Here’s the hard truth I share with every client and employer I’ve worked with: if you don’t know where you want your communications to take you, you’re setting yourself up to waste time, money, and credibility.

Too often, organizations mistake output for outcome. A stack of press clips is not success. A beautifully produced video is not success. A shiny new website is not success. Those things may look impressive, but without a clear, audience-driven objective, they’re just tactics. You’ve probably seen it — lots of effort, very little impact.

Find The Courage to Demand Clarity

For nonprofit communicators, the most important discipline is resisting the urge to produce for production’s sake. Instead, demand a real communications objective from your organization — one that’s specific, measurable, and tied to your mission. Not just once in a while, but every single year.

That objective becomes your compass. It helps you decide what opportunities are worth your time and which are distractions. Without it, you’re left chasing every flashy idea, whether or not it moves the needle for your cause.

Free Yourself from the “Busy Trap”

When you anchor your work to a clear objective, you do more than serve your organization well — you also serve yourself. You’ll stop pouring hours into projects that deliver little more than ephemeral “buzz” and a folder full of press clippings no one will ever read again.

Instead, your time and creativity will flow into efforts that actually matter — building awareness that shifts policy, deepening donor engagement, or mobilizing communities for action. That’s real communication success.