Joyful Impact Accelerator

for Social Entrepreneurs

The Joyful Impact Accelerator exists to help leaders of high potential social impact organizations  discover their next level of impact, personal renewal, and joy. It is an opportunity to join with fellow social impact leaders in a year-long journey of personal and professional growth. Our cohorts are diverse by design, created specifically for mission-driven change agents with a big vision for making the world a better place. 

Our participants are going after deep impact in a complex world. As leaders (and in many cases founders) of entrepreneurial social ventures in which they are both key visionaries and operational strategists, our participants find that the joyful integration of their personal and professional selves makes all the difference in their overall success.

The Joyful Impact experience is offered free of charge to participants, thanks to  sponsorship by some generous grantmakers. This year-long experience provides an opportunity for social impact leaders to connect with a diverse set of peers; engage with curated content focused on making social change more impactful, sustainable, and joyful; and access individualized coaching to apply the learning in their unique context. The only cost participants are asked to cover is that of traveling to and from our two in-person convenings.

Why You, and Why Now?  

This program is sponsored by forward thinking foundations and individuals who are committed to backing the journey of social impact leaders who are tackling the biggest issues of our time.  They know that as a visionary leader dedicated to making change on the issues that matter most to our shared future, how you show up in all areas of your life makes a huge difference on the impact that you and your organization ultimately achieve. So they want to help, but as donors they’ve got a pretty limited set of tools for directly helping you on your own journey as a leader: they can join your board, they can call you up and offer sage advice…and you know how that goes much of the time.

What if they could support an opportunity for you to engage in a customized program of personal development and peer-based learning that was tailored to fit your unique circumstances and journey – no strings attached? What if they were inspired by the belief that there’s not enough joy in the world and that one of the most powerful ways for you to have more impact in your work as a change agent is to bring even more of your full, joyful self to the table?

This vision is at the heart of what we’re here for at the Joyful Impact Accelerator. We help forward thinking leaders with big visions for making change in the world develop the knowledge, skills, and mindsets necessary to make the most of their own potential as change agents. This accelerator opportunity is about getting even bigger things done in service of your vision—and doing so with real personal joy and fulfillment—it’s about joyful impact!

You might be wondering whether you’ll be able to make a significant, year-long commitment to your own growth and development in the face of such unprecedented challenges facing the world and each of us individually. For all of us with a strong calling to change-making work in the world, it might seem hard to imagine taking on any kind of additional commitment, let alone one that is significantly focused on caring for yourself. That said, this program is about creating pathways to renewed energy, joy, and impact that will ultimately support both you and your organization. Members of our first six cohorts have said this experience was absolutely worth the investment of time in an already busy schedule. At the end of the program, participants reported making significant progress on their highest priority areas for growth and agreed resoundingly that they would recommend the program to another leader. Our seventh cohort is well underway, and their feedback thus far has been overwhelmingly positive as well.

Program Team

Testimonials

Here are some of the ways that our past program participants talk about their Joyful Impact experience:

“I grew more this year than I probably have in any period of my career. The community pushed me to be better, held me accountable with love, and celebrated my wins with me.”

“JIA strikes a great balance between offering very practical tools (behavioral, technical, and somatic) with deep relationship building, all designed to help leaders show up as humans and get to their desired impact. It’s a beautiful opportunity to shed your title and lean into community support.”

“This is the best setting and routine I've found to connect with like-minded peers. The mastermind groups are unlike anything else I've been a part of professionally.”

“This program provided a forcing function for me to reflect - deeply and consistently - about how I'm impacting my community and my work, and how my community and my work are impacting me. Having a community of peers that listened to me with compassion gave me the space needed to reflect on where I am and where I want to go.”

“Make it a commitment to practice showing up authentically and letting all parts of you be heard. This year, the program gave me a space of unconditional support, helped me recognize my patterns, and guided me toward leading from a more grounded, aligned place.”

“Prior to participating in Joyful Impact, I had decided that I would not seek another large, high impact role but would rather focus on my personal life and wellness.  I did not see a clear path to both contribute to broader K-12 education efforts or the ed-reform movement AND live a happy, balanced life.  Participating in Joyful Impact helped me decide I had a few more ‘at bats’ left in me.”

“This is a rare space where you aren't here because of your title or simply to do self-care work without any real application. It is fully worth the investment of your time, and you will discover things about yourself and others that you didn't imagine.”