You keep humanity afloat, nonprofiteers. And you probably don't hear that enough.

After ~25 years in this sector, I want to write something with (and for) the people who stay. Why they do, what it costs them, and why (I believe) it's worth it. Right now it's called A Nonprofiteer's Field Guide for Staying, and I want to build it differently than anything I've written before.

I want this book to travel long before it hits the shelves.

Think of it like a game of Telephone, or the jeans in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. But what's passing between us is something real and useful.

In all my time tending to this work—and co-leading the Social Impact Staff Retention project—I’ve found a few things to be data-backed and true.

• People stay when they have flexibility, passion, good environments, and decent pay.

• People leave when they have poor workloads, bad bosses, indecent pay, and lacking growth opportunities.

How does this resonate with you? I want you to sit with it… and respond. When you’re done, I want you to pass it on. Over time, your stories will shape For Staying.

I don't have all the answers after all these years. Neither do you. But somewhere in between, there will be something close to the truth about what it means to stay.