Burn The Boats At The Shore
YOU AREN’T UNIQUE IF YOU SIMPLY PICK A DIFFERENT HERD TO FOLLOW
At the very least. I will challenge your thinking. You may not agree but you will learn.
You may hate on me. But you will think.
No one else will talk about this stuff.
If everyone is innovative in the same way is it actually innovative?
If everyone in the “new movement” thinks and talks in the same way, following a model of thinking which has been slightly tweaked from the old model, is that innovative? #realtalk.
Very important; if you think you want to get into the Recovery Support Services game: It’s not easy.
You may want to think again.
You’re Likely to Fail and Quit
There is no dedicated funding (and none on the horizon) and you’re likely to fail and quit early and/or limp along for years.
Don’t hate me for calling it like it is.
If you want to approach it from a professional standpoint it’s even more challenging.
If you want to do some service on the side it will probably be a fit. But if that’s the goal why bother with a movement?? There are many well established outlets for service.
Professional Recovery Support
I’m interested in the development of Recovery Support as a profession.
The company, Y Combinator, coined the term “Trough of Sorrow”.
This term refers to the period of struggle a startup faces after a setback and inevitable challenges.
Following the initial excitement of starting a company or a project or major initiative you face the reality of product fit within the market.
In the case of Recovery Organizations or Recovery Support Services we see this over and over.
The “idea” of starting Recovery Organizations and initiatives is much easier than implementation. Even harder to establish yourself among the bureaucracy, regulators, funders, and the legacy recovery groups.
The Challenge
That’s our challenge to find product fit (Recovery Support) in the market (bureaucratic funding and regulator malaise).
It’s a monumental task to survive the trough of sorrow.
It’s very rare to survive the trough. And, dare I say, it requires very, very unique and resourceful leadership.
Most people can not pull this off. Most people quit during the trough of sorrow.
In the recovery organization/services world many can quit because their lives and livelihood does not depend on the product.
Burn The Boats
If you burn the boats at the shore of the island and have no choice but to make it work, things get more intense.
When it’s viewed as a professional business you will die trying.
If it’s an outlet or service work on the side you aren’t as desperate to succeed. Logical right?
“Service work” is important and needed but things go next level when your personal world depends on success of the “movement”.
High Stakes
If your life, your family, your livelihood depend on success the stakes are much higher.
People wind up flaming out, imploded, destroying themselves, and doing all kinds of crazy shit in the trough.
An organization or business can be in the trough for years.
There is no magic to get through. Really… just moving forward and constant and continuous work.
Unceasing and never ending work.
Working just as hard while going through family crisis.
Keeping Moving
Chop wood carry water. It’s not a hobby. Compartmentalize and move forward. Working when everyone tells you that you work too much.
It’s all more difficult to do all this in the non-profit “recovery organization” world because there is no ultimate destination or goal. No exit or ultimate promised land. You don’t get bought.
You don’t get acquired and go to scale.
It’s essentially a job not a business. You do it until you retire. And the ultimate payoff is your contribution to the world. Your corner of the world is better because of your effort. Good stuff. But limited in scope.
Oh…you can write this off in that cliched, silly way: “it’s greedy to do for profit work….it’s less noble etc….”. Y’all know the story.
High Pressure – High Risk = HIGH REWARD
I’m gonna continue to bring the “burn the boat and survive” mentality to the non-profit world.
I’m gonna make sure FAVOR GREENVILLE goes hard all day everyday. Set the standard for community recovery support services. Our goal is scale at whatever level possible.
But…high pressure; high risk; HIGH REWARD is what ultimately changes the world.
Can we conjure up that mentality….. Something to think about.. Hmmmmm….🤔🤔🤔🤔
