I stumbled on an old notebook that acted as a professional reflective journal when I was Charity Manager of a small youth charity. For the first ten weeks I wrote and reflected every single day about the experience.

Before I confined the writing to the shredding bin this week, I looked back on those first few months taking the helm of an ailing charity. Sometimes even years later you can doubt if you made a difference, but reflective journalling and now re-reflecting has allowed me the opportunity to realise and appreciate just how much I achieved and learned from the experience.

What started as an overwhelming, chaotic experience became a treasure trove of lessons – about leadership, resilience, and the importance of community support. Whilst I could rewrite the entire diary entries which stretch to half an A4 notebook, below are some key takeaways that might be helpful for anyone stepping into a new role, especially in the nonprofit sector, or anyone interested in what it can be like:

Week 1: Starting with People

• Key Insight: It’s easy to underestimate the power of listening. In my first week, I met with staff and local supporters, and one staff member told me I had made them ‘feel safe’ for the first time in all the years they had been in post. Quite a feat for a first week. The chair of trustees even sought me out to say that I was absolutely 100% the right person for the job. This set the tone for what would be an intense but fulfilling journey. Key for me was calling on those friends who could keep me going when the times got tough.
• Tip: Build a tribe. Find those who will support you and don’t hesitate to ask for help. Even in the early days, your network will become your lifeline. Speak to your team early doors. They’ll have opinions on what works and what doesn’t. Talk!

Week 2: Stay Calm Amid Chaos

• Key Insight: From managing COVID cases in the team to dealing with roof issues (which I had no intention of inspecting myself because me and heights don’t like each other), it was clear that things would rarely go according to plan. But somehow, the chaos didn’t throw me off. We had to move forward to save the place. Small steps were still steps.
• Tip: It’s important to keep your head when things get tough. Control what you can, and tackle one problem at a time. It’s all part of the journey. Don’t forget to say no or ‘not now’ if you need to in order to save your sanity. I wasn’t always the best at this – I’m naturally a ‘Yes, I’ll help everyone’ person, but there comes a time when enough is enough and you accept that you have to be priority.

Week 3: You Don’t Get to Choose the Challenges

• Key Insight: I was informed that we were hosting a music festival a matter of weeks into my tenure. We’re talking mini Glastonbury on site, not a couple of people sat round campfire with guitars. It had been suspended due to Covid but now there was a manager in place (me) it could happen and they were determined. In amongst trying to meet partners and strengthen our position in order that we could actually reopen to the young people, the pressure ramped up quickly, and suddenly I found myself prioritising writing policies, risk assessments, sorting extra insurance coverage, and sourcing marquees from my many contacts. My priority now was to get processes and procedures in place going forward to make life easier in the future for this and other challenges we were facing.
• Tip: Never underestimate the value of clear processes. No matter how unexpected the challenge, take time to plan and assess risks thoroughly. The lead up to the event was chaotic but on the day, highly successful – and we couldn’t have pulled it off safely if I hadn’t had a focused effort to ensure the legalities were in place.

Week 4: Troubleshooting Everything

• Key Insight: When a fire drill exposed gaps in safety, it became a massive task that required calls to local authorities, creating safety assessments, and overseeing the testing of electrical equipment.
• Tip: When you’re deep in crisis mode, don’t forget the smaller things. They often evolve into bigger challenges later on. Keeping things running smoothly means being proactive, not reactive. This might not always be easy, especially if you’re still learning the ropes with the place and how everybody ticks.

Week 5: Learn to Celebrate Small Wins

• Key Insight: After an exhausting week spent managing the logistics of the festival while overseeing huge staff wellbeing matters, I realised that sometimes the best way to staying grounded was to take a moment to reflect on what I’d accomplished, even if I was feeling overwhelmed myself. I’d worked 66 hours that week (in what was a part-time job (a quarter of those hours)), and felt proud to step up to the mic at the end of the evening and be able to announce the achievements so far and where we were going to a massive supportive crowd.
• Tip: Embrace your ‘learning moments’ – not every week will go as planned. Don’t view mistakes as failures, but as opportunities to grow.

Week 6: Building Partnerships is Key

• Key Insight: We had a skeleton staff on limited hours, and no budget, but I found ways to connect with local organisations, including those focused on LGBTQ+ support, immigration, and fundraising. These partnerships proved invaluable to strengthen our work and what we wanted to offer.
• Tip: Never underestimate the power of a good connection. Building relationships is often the foundation for overcoming resource limitations. Connections can come from anywhere and my, the list we ended up with was phenomenal. I reached a point of, if I needed something, I had a number I could call and usually an answer the same day.

Week 7: Stress is Inevitable – Manage It Well

• Key Insight: Balancing a major funding application with launching a programme for the local ‘yoof’ during half-term was nothing short of stressful, whilst coordinating staff development. It felt like the wheels were coming off, with the funding bid eventually consuming much of the year, but somehow, we pushed through.
• Tip: It’s OK to feel overwhelmed. The key is finding ways to manage stress and maintain momentum, even when everything seems to be happening at once. A lunchtime walk honestly doesn’t go amiss. Get up from that desk, walk your site, see what’s going on, talk to people. Tell people you’re on a break, and it should be honoured. I’d eat outside on the picnic bench often. If you prioritise your breaks for productivity, the team will likely follow suit.

Week 8: It’s About the Bigger Picture

• Key Insight: We began working on long-term projects in week eight like updated business plans, youth work plans, and revised vision statements. I’d gained a fair bit of data and insight by now. People’s views were important and two months in we’d all started to find where we each fitted in. The mood lightened, and the team started feeling more unified. It was in this week when an external training course was booked onto site and I met what would become my Senior Youth Worker.
• Tip: It’s vital to keep the long-term vision in mind, even when things feel like they’re spiraling out of control. A solid foundation in strategy helps ground the team in the bigger picture.

Week 9: A Little Windfall Can Change Everything

• Key Insight: Unexpected donations started rolling in, and the energy in the organisation shifted. Funding applications were successful, and it felt like everything was falling into place. It was the week before half-term and it was the boost we needed. I had an unexpected moment when somebody came in to tell me that ‘We’re in safe hands with you’.
• Tip: Keep your eyes open for unexpected opportunities. Sometimes things don’t seem promising, but with persistence and optimism, small wins can grow into bigger successes. As before, celebrate the tiny things. We had the biggest cheer once when £25 came through the letterbox. When you suddenly find out that the organisation’s deficit is five-figures, that small amount is like winning the lottery.

Week 10: Onwards to a bright future

It was week 10 where I ceased writing my journal. Half term week had arrived and there was much to do. I was running the holiday programme, grappling with the funding bids, and interviewing for new staff at the same time. All a bit mad really but it was the beginning of change, for soon after our new Senior Youth Worker started and brought so much life to the place and a plethora of ideas through years of experience in a variety of youth settings that things really took off at a pace.

We were a bit chalk and cheese, and we openly admit that (she was definitely the cheese and if she’s reading this she knows why I say that). I was much used to being a centre-based youth worker, dealing with more of the younger members, and an admin type, able to draft you up a risk assessment for an activity in no time, get meaningful partnerships, and bring in the money.

She was better at being on the streets, persuading the seniors to stop smoking, and designing programmes that I could only dream of. I’m not putting myself down here. I’ve run some cool stuff, but she had a uniqueness that I couldn’t put my finger on, and wish I’d had.

As a result, between us and the team we were drawing together, the club thrived. Within a couple of months, we both stood in the office amazed at the line of young people coming in and the fact we’d gone from an old membership list where we only had about 15 respond to wanting to rejoin, through to 120!

We were throwing out rubbish, buying new resources with next to nothing, calling on favours, organising outings, creating a brand new culture WITH the young people, and bringing life back to the area.

Soon, we had a full complement of team members, and life had returned to a place that frankly could have gone completely the opposite way.

It’s important to remember, change doesn’t happen overnight.

Beyond the Charity: Personal Reflections

• Key Insight: After nearly 18 months of managing the charity, I realised I needed to step away and focus more on myself and other aspects of my life. That doesn’t mean I stopped being a youth worker. A former colleague from another setting said this week they missed doing youth work with me and asked if I missed being a youth worker. Yes, I’ve not been in a youth centre for eight months, but I still work with young people, and just because I’m not in a certain building doesn’t mean my degree, knowledge, and skills have vanished. I’ve continued coaching, and I’ve designed entire education programmes around county lines, running the related workshops in schools.
• Tip: Don’t let titles or roles define you. You may evolve and shift, but the core skills and passion you have can take you into new and exciting directions.

Final Thoughts

Looking back at the whirlwind first weeks, it’s clear that running a charity, especially one in need of rebuilding almost completely from the ground up, especially after a global pandemic, requires patience, grit, and a lot of adaptability.

There will be hard days, but those are often where the biggest learning happens. As I look back at those notes, I see how important it is to surround yourself with a supportive team, embrace the chaos, and take moments to celebrate the wins – big and small.

Importantly, never stop learning. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that no matter where life takes you, the skills and lessons you pick up along the way will continue to shape who you are and what you do.

In the end, the most important thing isn’t having all the answers; it’s about keeping the faith, taking action, and learning from every twist and turn.

The journey may not always go according to plan, but isn’t that where the magic happens?