I Will Never Join Another Board. Never.

There’s an entire universe of wonderful men and women – socially conscious, committed to a vast array of causes. They are smart, they have access to funding, and they themselves may have capacity. They have so much to offer the nonprofit community.

Sadly, they sit today on the sidelines, stricken with a debilitating illness.

It’s called Post Traumatic Board Member Disorder or PTBMD for short.

Are you one of them? Do you have a friend who is undiagnosed?

Curing this disorder must be a core priority of the nonprofit sector. We simply cannot afford talent on the sidelines, just because of previously horrible nonprofit board experiences.

What exactly is PTBMD? How did it get so bad? And what can we do about it?

First the symptoms.

THE TRAUMA OF HORRIBLE NONPROFIT BOARD SERVICE

The germs of PTBMD are typically found in certain board conference rooms. All of the following can present as evidence of potential PTBMD:

• A board chair who thinks that the ED is actually in charge of the meeting, thinks that meetings run themselves, or, frankly, doesn’t do much thinking at all.
• An uncontrolled toxic board member – negative, dominating and generally unwilling to fulfill his responsibilities.
• A meeting in which you as a board member are never asked your opinion about anything.
• A board of directors that has never learned to have honest conversations and disagree constructively.
• Insufficient number of board members with leadership attributes.
• A leadership transition, especially if it is a termination of the CEO.
• An executive director that badly needs to move on (a prima donna who rules with an iron fist or is just simply incompetent) but has a board chair who provides cover.

 THE SYMPTOMS OF PTBMD

• You’re already feeling sad because you have dreams about your day job. Now your anxiety triples as you realize a toxic board environment has infiltrated your dreams.
• You no longer stand to make contact with some of your fellow board members and/or leaders.
• You make a noble (but failed) effort to change things around but find that too few board members have the nerve, energy, or commitment to take on the issue and confront it head on.
• You resign from the board swearing you will never join another. You can’t even read the direct mail that comes from the organization.
• Hearing the name of your previously beloved organization leads to nausea.

A SIX-STEP PLAN FOR TREATMENT AND RECOVERY

If you’re suffering from PTBMD, there is hope. All of us who work in nonprofit need you to follow these six steps:

Step 1: Recall what drew you to the organization to begin with

Remember the feeling of pride you had, knowing that you would be a lead ambassador of such a wonderful organization. If you can no longer remember, ask a spouse or close friend. Sit with that for a while.

Step 2: Talk to a friend who sits on a board that is not toxic

Buy her lunch and ask her to tell you what that feels like. Watch your friend’s eyes light up. Sure she will offer critiques and frustrations but she will talk about the work with passion and pride. Sit with that for a while.

Step 3: Make a list of organizations doing great work that you feel passionate about

You know there are lots of them. I bet you know about these organizations through friends, donors, or staff. So here comes the hard part. Call your source. Pick up the phone and begin due diligence. For those with serious PTBMD, consider investigating a board of an organization you care about with a friend or colleague who is already involved in some way. That person can be like a “sponsor.”

Step 4: Don’t join right away

You are valuable to any organization you care about. They will recruit you quickly. You have prior board experience. And you have sought them out. But please, not so fast. You’re still too fragile. So attend an event. Maybe volunteer. Do your homework.

Step 5: Finally, jump back into the pool

It’s time. Life is short. You were drawn to board service once and it was an awful experience. You’ve had a break. You’ve gone through the first four steps. You’re as ready as you will be. And most importantly, veteran board members with “battle scars” have a lot to teach fellow new board members. You know what toxic looks like. Help your new organization avoid making the same mistakes.

Step 6: Take the call from someone you know afflicted with PTBMD.

Help them recover. Help them get off the bench.

One of the best sources for board member recruitment is the bench — thousands of men and women who had a tour of duty on a board. Maybe they termed off. Maybe they had one or two terms and then were too busy and had to step away.

Or maybe they are sufferers from Post Traumatic Board Member Disorder.

This chronic and debilitating illness keeps smart, skilled and passionate board members on the sidelines. And it’s not talked about. Instead, board members just go away mad, traumatized or something in between, and the nonprofit community has no access to these invaluable resources.

Don’t let a horrible nonprofit board experience stop you. If you suffer, please follow my six-step plan. If you know someone who does, please forward this post. I bet they will see themselves here and it might just ignite and put them back on the field where they belong.

Where we really need them.