Why Grassroots is so Powerful and Exciting

Grassroots implies a birth of something. An opportunity to do it right, to change something for the better, to create something amazing. Moreover, it implies freedom, flexibility, passion, and that's the allure. It is small, and with strong leadership it is actually easier to stay on vision in the early going. There is a focus, and what can hinder it? Money, don't need it. Legal issues, there is no legal entity. Political interference, internal or external, you can walk away.

So how do you harness that passion when the thing takes off and becomes something real, when the product or the cause turns into something which needs to be or can be monetized? I think the best thing to do is highly process and safeguard anything that has ethical or legal implications, and then run the rest of the place like it is grassroots. Keep it creative and playful, passionate and fun, keep the focus on what got you there in the first place. Legal and financial controls keep you on the track, but great grassroots style leadership tries to make that train go as fast as it can!!

Posted via email from Cliff Cline