A Rockstar's Reading List

One of the things I noticed during Trista Harris' presentation on 6 Ways to Rock Your Career was the number of leadership and nonprofit books she referenced. Part of the reason that she and Rosetta Thurman chose to write "How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar" was because so many of those books fall short in the "how to/do it yourself" instructions. I wish I'd jotted down all the books and articles Trista mentioned, but instead I asked her for her top 3 suggestions for anyone who is interested.

Here are Trista's three must-reads (linked to Amazon.com), plus another one that sounded good to me!

• From Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... And Others Don't, by Jim Collins
  
• The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization, by John C. Maxwell
• The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels, by Michael Watkins
• Causewired: Plugging In, Getting Involved, Changing the World, by Tom Watson

And don't forget - you can also purchase How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar as an EBook for just $24.99 - as well as the supplemental WORKBOOK for an additional $9.99. Invest in yourself!

Save the Date: Nonprofit Rockstar Tour Hits Seattle on June 2nd

We are excited to announce that EPIP Seattle is bringing Trista Harris, co-author of "How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar" to Seattle for an exciting workshop on how to build your career path in the nonprofit and/or philanthropic sector.

Trista Harris is the Executive Director of the Headwaters Foundation for Justice, author of the blog "New Voices in Philanthropy" and Vice-Chair of the EPIP National board of advisors!

Save the date for Thursday, June 2nd - more details to come!

About the book:

Do you feel stuck in your nonprofit career? Unsure how to take that next step? How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar is an accessible, do-it-yourself map of how to navigate the nonprofit sector and gives you the tools that you need to move from entry level to leadership. This book is designed for professionals who want to build meaningful and rewarding nonprofit careers. How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar is based on the authors’ experiences as well as interviews with nonprofit rockstars who have supercharged their careers. You’ll learn how to develop meaningful nonprofit experience, build a strong network, establish a strong personal brand, achieve the elusive work/life balance, and move on up in your career.

EPIP Seattle's new "library"

Thanks to Deb Wolf for her contributions to EPIP Seattle's growing library. One of the benefits of being an EPIP member is having access to a variety of different books, reports and papers, so we can each build our own philanthropic libraries!

Some of the new titles include:

Outcome Funding: A New Approach to Targeted Grantmaking

Gude to Funding for International and Foreign Programs

National Guide to Funding Community Development

We will sort through the stack (pictured above) and will house our growing library in the offices of Philanthropy NW. Next time you're there, check them out!

Every dues-paying EPIP member should have a copy of Wit & Wisdom: Unleashing the Philanthropic Imagination, and EPIP National Conference attendees each picked up a copy of Working Across Generations by Frances Kunreuther, Robby Rodriguez and Helen Kim. Several of us also purchased Grassroots Philanthropy by Bill Somerville, which we're happy to lend to anyone who is interested!

Summer of EPIP Love: July Happy Hour

To help kick off the EPIP Summer of Love, EPIP Seattle hosted our July summer happy hour on the Terrace Garden patio at the Red Lion Hotel in downtown Seattle last Thursday night. 17 people braved the 90+ degree weather for some cool drinks and great conversation, including a recap of the U.S. Social Forum, which several EPIP members attended in Detroit a few weeks ago.

We were also gifted with the beginnings of an EPIP library! Many thanks to Deb Wolf for collecting over 20 books on a variety of philanthropic topics for our members to use. We will be taking an inventory of these books and publishing the list later today. Books will be available at the Philanthropy NW offices for use by our members.

Stay tuned for more information about upcoming EPIP events and opportunities!

Extra Special EPIP Member Benefits! Sign Up by 12/1

Not an EPIP member yet? If you join by December 1, 2009, EPIP will provide you with a set of valuable library of learning resources that address issues of generational change in the workplace, philanthropic effectiveness, and social justice philanthropy. These include:

• Wit and Wisdom: Unleashing the Philanthropic Imagination, EPIP's book, written by philanthropy observer and practitioner Mark D. Constantine, features indepth interviews with diverse senior foundation leaders discussing the highlights and challenges of their grantmaking work and careers.

• GrantCraft's "Guide to Personal Strategy," arguably one of the most applicable tools for practitioners looking to successfully navigate the foundation workplace.

• Change Philanthropy: Candid Stories of Foundations Maximizing Results through Social Justice, a brand new book produced by EPIP partner, the Linchpin Project at the Center for Community Change.
  

• The Foundation Center's "Foundation Yearbook" and "Social Justice Grantmaking II" executive reports, which highlight and synthesize general giving patterns and social justice grantmaking trends from 2009.

This special library was already provided free of charge to EPIP's current members earlier this fall. We look forward to sharing it with new members who join by December 1st!

Visit the EPIP website at www.epip.org to sign up to become a member!

Working Across Generations

Here is a neat opportunity to meet the authors of a new book, Working Across Generations.

Working Across Generations presents ideas and gives practical advice on how to approach generational changes in leadership so that the contributions of long-time leaders are valued, new and younger leaders’ talent is recognized, and groups are better prepared to work across generational divides.


Below is the text from the invite:

Join authors Frances Kunreuther, Helen Kim, and Robby Rodriguez for a book signing and discussion on the ways we can work together in multigenerational settings. Enjoy appetizers and beverages, while networking with leaders throughout the nonprofit sector.

You can also take advantage of the special book signing and have the authors autograph your personal copy. Copies of the book will be available for purchase for $20.

This event is co-hosted by EA the Alliance of Nonprofits, CityClub, and Nancy Bell Evans Center on Nonprofits & Philanthropy, Evans School of Public Affairs at University of Washington.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009
4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Location: Southlake Grill - Loft
1253 Thomas Street | Seattle 98115

Space is limited!

For more information, phone (206) 328-3836.

To learn more about the book visit: www.workingacrossgenerations.org or www.buildingmovement.org