))
Burnout Looks Like Control: How To Lead Without Controlling Everything
Manage episode 487991668 series 3599910
Content provided by Brooke Richie-Babbage. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Brooke Richie-Babbage or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://ppacc.player.fm/legal.
As your nonprofit grows, your leadership style has to evolve — fast. In this episode, I share the mindset shifts and systems you need to lead effectively at scale without burning out or micromanaging.
I break down the three key levers that help you trade control for clarity and oversight. You’ll learn how to set up a "leadership cockpit" so you can stay focused on the big picture, trust your team, and stay aligned with your mission as complexity increases. This is one of the most common — and emotionally tricky — transitions nonprofit leaders face. I’ll walk you through what it really looks like to lead when you’re no longer touching every part of the work.
What You’ll Learn:
- How to replace control with high-level oversight as your team grows
- What to include in your leadership dashboard to stay focused
- Why aligning on operational values is key to scaling without chaos
Key Takeaways:
- Leadership at scale is about narrowing your focus, not expanding it.
- Operational values must guide decisions across the team—even when you’re not in the room.
- Dashboards, OKRs, and clear priorities help you lead strategically instead of reactively.
The 3 Core Levers for Leading at a Higher Altitude:
- Decision-Making Alignment
- Embed clear operational values across every level of the org
- Define what “good” looks like in real behavior
- Don’t ask for post-decision updates — build alignment that leads to the right decisions
- Programmatic Oversight via Outcomes
- Set clear, narrow priorities everyone can articulate
- Establish measurable team-wide and individual goals
- Use OKRs to track progress without monitoring tasks
- Information Flow That Serves the CEO Role
- Eliminate noise: don’t attend every meeting or get every update
- Design meeting cadences and reports that elevate key signals
- Surface risks, check for alignment, and trust your team to manage the details
Resource Mentioned: Delegation Ladder
Want to work together?
Apply for the Next Level Nonprofit Accelerator, a high-touch coaching and training accelerator for established organizations that want a smart, powerful playbook for taking their growing organization to the next level.
Connect with me!
226 episodes
Share
