ArticleProsperity Consciousness

Creating Wealth and Resources for your Nonprofit Organization

by: Steven and Chutisa Bowman Copyright 2007 by Conscious Governance. All rights reserved. You may forward this in its entirety to anyone you wish.

* “What would it take for our Not for Profit organization to attract an abundance of resources, including money?”

* “What would it look like if we had resources and money sources that were sustainable and more than we could currently imagine?”

* “Why do we spend an inordinate amount of time and resources trying to attract even more resources and money that are never enough?”

These are questions that constantly arise in the strategic thinking of leaders of Not for Profit organizations. This article seeks to provide a paradigm for the creation of a prosperity consciousness within the leaders of these organizations, and the subsequent manifestation of resources and money that accompanies such a consciousness.

It explores prosperity consciousness in the context of Not for Profit leadership, discusses the Scarcity Paradigm and its effect on Not for Profit organizations, highlights some of the most common belief systems about money and resources, and suggests ways that prosperity consciousness can be developed.

Prosperity consciousness and the nonprofit leaders

Many setbacks and dilemmas can crop up in an organization when these people choose to operate from a scarcity paradigm. They feel that there is not enough to go around, or too little of everything: opportunities, prospects, support, resources, time and money. Because of these scarcity belief systems (which we term the Scarcity Paradigm) which emanate from the leaders, the organization operates from a basis of lack (lack of money, lack of resources, lack of staff, lack of respect, lack of influence etc), and the leaders and staff act within their self developed and self imposed Scarcity Paradigm.

For example, it is generally acknowledged that many recessions and economic downturns are caused or exaggerated and intensified, not by the monetary realities of the country's economy, but rather by the people's perceptions, attitudes, fear of scarcity and level of faith and confidence in the economy or their country at the time.

The scarcity attitude, outlooks and emotions of the general public create the negative economic culture and climate for the country, rather than the climate creating their point of view and emotions. Once the scarcity climate is set, it tends to solidify and justify these thoughts and emotions. Here, the people’s thoughts and emotions are the cause of the scarcity conditions, not the effect.

The implications for Nonprofit organizations is huge: if a scarcity outlook is predominant within the organization, this will create and embed scarcity. The financial circumstances of Not for Profit organizations is a direct expression and indication of the leaders and employee’s attitude and emotions regarding prosperity and scarcity, wealth and lack. Leaders and team members’ attitudes, belief systems and emotions regarding their personal and their organization’s prosperity are directed by their prosperity consciousness which, in turn, creates the organization’s financial state.

We have discovered, over decades of experience with the Not for Profit sector, that these belief systems, more than anything else, hold back many Nonprofit organizations from being prosperous and successful. It is not because the government has failed to increase grants, not because membership numbers are falling, not because others just don’t understand what we are trying to achieve, ………… (you can fill in the other limitations you have created or have heard of…). The lack of prosperity in most Nonprofit organizations is because THE LEADERS HAVE CHOSEN THIS. The leaders have chosen to operate from a scarcity paradigm, and have belief systems about money and resources that impose severe limitations on the prosperity of their organization.

It is ultimately the leader’s consciousness, beliefs and points of view that make the greatest difference in organizational culture, as the leader has the greatest influence on the rest of the staff.

Leaders that have chosen to operate from a scarcity paradigm often create a distrustful, cynical, apathetic, and pessimistic culture. They tend to focus on lack and blame their state on poor market conditions, natural disasters, changes in government legislation, and changes in interest rates or other external dilemmas. These leaders and their organizations tend to be drawn toward the comfortable habit of worrying and tormenting about things outside their control, on what they can’t do and waiting on tenterhooks for the market and other conditions beyond their control to improve. A scarcity paradigm tends to knock the enthusiasm and innovative spirit out of their people, mostly unconsciously and unintentionally.

Prosperity consciousness within organizations is critical for future and sustained business growth. It is therefore vital to explore what leaders and organizations must do to ensure that leadership fosters a conscious prosperity attitude, approach and behaviour. If the leaders embrace a prosperity consciousness instead of a scarcity paradigm, their business will come with ease and joy.

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