Join the Brave New World - Issue #1

Issue #1, January 18, 2025

I expect this will be by far the longest newsletter I ever write in this new series, which focuses on nonprofit resilience, largely (but not exclusively) through the lens of AI tools, tips, and practices. Think of this first newsletter as five issues rolled into one: First Contact, Resistance and Futility, The Next Generation, Practical Applications, and Rules of Engagement.

(If you are short on time, simply skip down to Practical Applications and read from there, understanding that these first prompts are elementary ones for those who have not explored just how much AI can help them in their work.)

I grew up a Star Trek fan, eventually including Star Trek: The Next Generation. The Borg—an alien species of cybernetic meanies—had an ominous introduction it used when it appeared and began absorbing a new hapless civilization into its faceless, spreading empire:

“Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.”

The coming of artificial intelligence can sometimes seem as ominous as a visit from the Borg. There we were, just living our dang lives, feeling good that it was late in 2022 and the COVID pandemic seemed to be in the rearview mirror. Then suddenly something called “ChatGPT” was announced and the world changed.

First Contact

I still remember this quite well. For me, it was during the Christmas-New Year “blessed quiet period” (BQP), that lovely annual time when business commitments become muted and I can reflect on the old and consider the new. I was celebrating the publication of my first nonprofit book, Managing Your Nonprofit for Resilience. I was basking, to tell the truth, expecting to take a bit of a victory lap in the new year. As part of the “what’s new” aspect of my annual BQP reflection, I caught up on some writing by trusted bloggers, and there it was. I learned that ChatGPT was a thing.

I started playing with it. Flash to January 27, 2023 (it seemed even faster at the time), when I first mentioned ChatGPT in a Slack to colleagues: “Holy moly. Have you . . . tried ChatGPT?” I was off to the races. Resistance, I quickly came to believe, was futile.

As I look back, it feels like much fewer than 24 months have passed between then and now. I have since used various forms of AI as thought partners, productivity enhancers, agents, and countless other roles. I’m now firmly committed to trying to build AI into all my workflows, all while maintaining my individuality and distinctive voice.

Resistance, I have personally decided, is not preferable. Adoption is preferable—with qualifications and caveats, certainly, but the use cases keep piling up, the productivity gains are indisputable, and yes, AI is becoming increasingly ubiquitous even when I don’t try to use it.

Resistance and Futility (Nonprofit Edition)

I work almost exclusively with nonprofit leaders and others in that sector. Nonprofit leaders operate under a challenging business model. They depend on donations, often from strangers, to provide ongoing services to beneficiaries. This reliance exists because society at large often does not view these beneficiaries as deserving of public funding or does not want to provide such services directly. Nonprofit CEOs and Executive Directors report to boards of directors, but those board members are volunteers who generally do not know as much about the organization as the CEO/ED and staff. Nonprofits are perceived to pay less than their for-profit peers, and they tend to be chronically understaffed and lag behind in technology.

In other words, I work with people who should be crying out for anything that would help them do more with their available resources, anything that would save time and improve performance. They should be demanding AI applications and should be at the forefront of the AI wave, seeking and securing productivity gains on behalf of their beneficiaries.

I find instead that nonprofit leaders are generally not early adopters. I hear a lot of different reasons, and many of them hold water. I’m not going to rehearse those reasons here, because I don’t want to reinforce even those that are valid.

I propose here that nonprofit leaders embrace the AI wave. There’s simply too much at stake. You are asked to do too much with too little. You have a stewardship obligation to maximize the impact of donors’ money. Part of that obligation now includes finding ways to incorporate AI into your organization’s workflows to improve outcomes for your organization.

The Next Generation

That’s what this new newsletter is all about. Here, I will share practical ways to begin using AI in your workflows (as well as non-AI tips when applicable). Because of my background in law and risk management, you can expect me to point out the threats as well as the opportunities. I will try to help you get the best of AI while minimizing the downsides. I do not claim to be an expert in artificial intelligence. (If a time comes when that changes, I will inform you and the rest of the world.)

Due to rapid advancements in AI, I often feel overwhelmed by the pace of innovation. Just as I learn one thing, it quickly becomes obsolete, and there are numerous new concepts and technologies to learn. Even without being an expert, though, I can still provide guidance and encouragement. I can provide lessons learned and real-life examples. I can identify interesting new ideas you might try out. I can provide a forum for the exchange of your ideas, too. In each newsletter, I hope to include at least one prompt that you can use with ChatGPT to gain value for some aspect of your organization.

Practical Applications

Starting with today. I recently devoured Geoff Woods’ The AI-Driven Leader. He suggests two greats prompt to ask ChatGPT if you are not familiar with the platform, both of which I have modified slightly. Here's the first:

“I’m new to AI and unsure how it can help me. I am [describe your role and your organization, e.g., "I am the development director of a large food pantry in New York."] Interview me by asking one question at a time to identify how you can help me.”

Here’s another prompt Woods suggests, again slightly modified:

I would like you to act as a Thought Partner by asking me one question at a time. Here’s the situation [provide the necessary context for your issue—for example, “I am the executive director of a $6 million dollar nonprofit providing services to children and adults with Down syndrome in Madison, Wisconsin. I face the following challenges . . . [details]] Here’s what I am trying to solve right now: [insert where you need help]. Please help me think through potential solutions, asking one question at a time.

Try one or both of those prompts. Let me know your results—good or bad, useful or useless. We’re on a journey here, and we all benefit from being open and honest. You might find these prompts too general or too elementary, but don’t worry. As we continue, I will share specific prompts that I know generate powerful results for different functional areas of a nonprofit.

Rules of Engagement

Here are my three initial commitments to you concerning this newsletter.

First, I will not hesitate to change my mind if I encounter persuasive new data, and I will always strive to be clear about my reasons for doing so.

Second, if you send me a response to this newsletter providing feedback from a prompt suggestion, I will never share that beyond my team at Risk Alternatives without getting written permission from you.

Third, if you have a question or problem related to AI, or if there is an issue that you’d like assistance with, please reply to me with that issue. I will keep those issues to myself or anonymize them if I ever refer to them in training or my consulting. While I may not be able to address every request individually, I intend to use issues raised by readers as inspiration for future newsletters. By engaging with me, you will make this newsletter more valuable to you.

By the way, if you face an issue, rest assured that others in the nonprofit space face precisely the same issue. Some will have solved it, and by participating here you will gain access to those stories. Others are waiting to collaborate on a solution but don’t even know it yet.

This is a completely new project for all of us—including every human on earth. If you think this AI journey might be useful to anybody else, please forward this newsletter to them and suggest that they subscribe using this link. By multiplying the readers of this newsletter, you again help build our common resilience and bring new minds to bear on these issues. Let’s grow this community together!

P.S. I doubt the Star Trek theming will continue, so if you're not a fan of that, don't worry.