Current e-Journal
-
May 19, 2026
What if it’s NOT a pipe dream?
In this week’s Systems Change Newsletter…
- Invitations and Announcements
- Catalytic Thinking Exercise: What if it’s NOT a pipe dream?
- Resources to Further Your Practice
Invitations & Announcements:
Setting Salaries with Catalytic Thinking
Yes, Catalytic Thinking provides a great process for determining salaries. And that is exactly what we will be discussing at the June 15th meeting of our Integrity Team (aka our board). As with all our strategy and board meetings, YOU are invited to be part of this conversation. This is a topic that affects all people working in the nonprofit world, which is one of the many reasons we are having this discussion openly. So come join us!
For U.S. Nonprofits
Does your work include assisting refugees from countries the U.S. doesn’t like – perhaps feeding them, or teaching English? The administration is once again using the guise of terrorism to crack down on the work of nonprofits. “The FBI and IRS have created a new ‘mission control command center’ to investigate nonprofits for possible ties to political violence or domestic terrorism. This appears to be another step in a growing effort to use federal power against organizations whose work does not fit the administration’s political agenda.” We highly recommend the Charity Lawyer Blog of Caritas Law Group for ongoing updates to protect your work during these times. Find it here…
Catalytic Thinking Exercise:
What if it’s NOT a pipe dream?
Have you ever experienced a visioning exercise to kick off a strategic planning session?
The facilitator sets the stage: “Imagine what your community might be like in 50 years if all your work has been wildly successful.”
Perhaps you’ve been encouraged to draw a picture of that image. Or to write a newspaper headline.
When the exercise is over, the facilitator then turns to the group and transitions to what’s next with these words:
“Now let’s get down to reality.”
And BAM. With that one phrase, the facilitator is telling you, “Your dreams for what is possible are not reality.” Not achievable. A pipe dream.
Instead, “reality” becomes about focusing on the next year or two. The low-hanging fruit. An adjustment here or there to the work you’re already doing. Or something that is easily fundable.
What if that suggestion to “get down to reality” is actually the thing that is not realistic?
The only things that have ever made a difference in the world are the things that are too often called “pipe dreams.” Treating those dreams as achievable, and then aiming there with everything we’ve got – that is what has created every leap that humanity has ever taken.
Imagine if instead of the short-term planning that passes for “reality,” the next question after the visioning exercise was: “What would it take for us to actually achieve that?!”
Try this
“We accomplish what we hold ourselves accountable for.” In Hildy’s book, The Pollyanna Principles, here is what she says about that principle.
“If we hold ourselves accountable for fiscal prudence, we will be fiscally strong. If we hold ourselves accountable for staying the course and maintaining our current programs, that is what we will accomplish.
Imagine the potential, then, if we held ourselves accountable for making our communities healthy, vibrant, resilient, humane places to live?”
The questions of Catalytic Thinking allow us to hold ourselves accountable for accomplishing that vision. Those questions make that vision achievable.
Here is what those questions look like in action:
1) The vision question. If your mission were 100% successful, what would your community look and feel like?
2) From there, the questions are about the conditions that would lead to that success. What would it take for your vision to be reality? What would need to be in place?
- What would people need to know or understand?
- What would they need to have?
- What would they need to see or hear or experience?
- What would people need to believe?
- What would they need to feel?
- What would they need to be assured of?
These questions seem simple because they are. And we know this because we plan like this in our daily lives all the time. If you’ve ever gotten to the theater on time for a show, or dropped off your kid at school on time, you know what it’s like to ask those “What would it take?” questions.
There might be construction traffic downtown. I need to leave 10 minutes early...
The kids need to eat, so I need to allow time for that, and for making their dinner…
And I have that memo that has to be sent by 5pm today…
We do this all the time, laying out the dominoes that will lead to our ultimate end result. That means we can do it for our communities as well.
That thought process is at the heart of holding ourselves accountable for turning our vision into reality. It starts with seeing your vision as achievable. From there, it is about using those “conditions for success” questions to lay the path of dominoes that will lead to that result.
Rooted in causality, those questions are what it takes to hold ourselves accountable, to move beyond the pipe dream. That is why those questions are at the heart of the Catalytic Thinking framework.
Resources to Further Your Practice:
- WATCH: For a great example of these questions in action, check out Hildy’s TEDx talk, “How to create the future.” Watch it here…
- READ: Short-term, reactive planning only leads to more short-term, reactive planning. Here’s how to get out of that cycle. Read it here…
- LEARN: For your plans to make a huge difference in your community, stop doing “strategic” planning and start doing Community Impact Planning. That starts here…
Help Keep Our Programs Freely Available
Creating the Future’s eJournal is free. And there are no financial barriers to our classes – tuition is whatever folks can afford. Because we never want money to stand in the way of people learning.
If you value our content and our approach, please donate here – and please consider becoming a monthly supporter of our work.
eJournal Archives:
If you’re new to our eJournal, or just want to remind yourself of past practice exercises we’ve shared, check out our eJournal archives here.
SUBSCRIBE
to get this e-Journal
Creating the Future is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization in the U.S.A