Today we’d like to introduce you to Will Dowell.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Will. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Behind Every Door was started in 2009 to transform lives in underserved neighborhoods by forming deep relationships with residents of apartment communities.
We cultivate stable environments by collaborating with other organizations to bring resources that affirm dignity, demonstrate love, and empower neighbors. Our involvement includes educational after school programs for kids, employment and financial resources for adults, mercy and social support, physical fitness programs, spiritual outlets and encouragement, and relationships with role models.
We started in a community called Willow Pond (now called The Hive) and pretty quickly added a second community called Village Oaks. We knew generational poverty was bad, and we wanted to love people in the place where they lived. So, we jumped in the deep end and tried to learn how to swim! Pretty quickly, we learned how many issues are connected to cause and perpetuate poverty.
As we made friends and learned stories, we began help. As we helped friends, we realized we were addressing many of the issues that make up poverty. We also knew we couldn’t sustain such extensive and holistic work. So, we started asking people to help.
We started recruiting people who were much better at addressing certain issues than we are. And, along the way, we tried to be the expert at coordinating experts.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Hah! If it was smooth, it wouldn’t be necessary because it’s not innovation or someone has already figured out the best way. There have been plenty of struggles. One struggle has been cashflow.
That’s not a popular topic, but it is a reality. There is a challenge in harnessing the vision so it doesn’t kill itself. We have tried hard to find the balance between being too overextended and too restrained. It is truly a walk of faith, and to quote Patrick Lencioni, we have decided to choose clarity over certainty. Sometimes we do this well and sometimes we miss it. But, cashflow issues have been a part of those conversations more than we would like, and it is hard to restrict parts of a vision you believe in because we can’t fund all of it yet!
There are plenty of other struggles, too. Staff issues. Culture issues. Communicating our message and strategy in a clear way. Realizing something isn’t working and then taking steps to correct things. Truly – it’s been a bumpy, awesome ride, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat!
Behind Every Door – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I’m most proud of our staff and the culture we have. We built Behind Every Door on top of Patrick Lencioni’s Organizational Clarity model. There are a series of 6 questions, but the first four become the DNA. Two of the questions are ‘how do we behave?’ and ‘how will we be successful?”
This is how we behave: we believe the best, we inspire others, and we do everything from love. This is how we are successful: build relationships, collaborate with others, and represent the gospel.
Our staff know these and we talk about them at least once per month (at our culture meetings).
The truth is, our staff is the reason we have been successful. They are incredible people with huge hearts and brilliant minds. They each have unique gifts, and when we work together as a team it is really special. Our values and key strategies make sure that each person on the team is free to work out of their strengths. You know how we want to behave, you know the lenses we look through to ensure success, and you have a budget. So, go for it!
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
This may sound strange, but I think my proudest moment so far has been realizing the people who are in charge of implementing our strategy are more talented than I am, and the more I stay out of their way the better things go. Our team is amazing. I know I have a role, and it has changed as we have grown; and, I know my role is important. But the people who are on the ground implementing every day are more talented than I ever was when I was in the same situation. I’m really proud to be on a team with them.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2824 Swiss Avenue,
Dallas, Tx 75204 - Website: www.BehindEveryDoor.org
- Phone: 9723314774
- Email: info@behindeverydoor.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behindeverydoor/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/behindeverydoor
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/BehindEveryDoor
Image Credit:
Behind Every Door
