Clay M. Grayson Of Grayson Law Firm: 5 Things You Need To Create A Successful & Effective Nonprofit That Leaves A Lasting Legacy
…Gratitude. Remembering everything for which I am thankful can pull me out of the ditch. Gratitude is resilience strength training. It’s something I think you should express every day. I remind myself when I pray, I first need to give thanks. I do it at meals with my kids or as I drop them off at school. By giving thanks, it’s not just words. I try to use my empathy to remember how I really feel to be thankful. I try to let my body feel that feeling. The more you do that, the more it puts your problems in perspective. It’ll make you realize that your life is good no matter that setback. That’s how you build an indomitable spirit. Say grace. Setback or not, give thanks…
I had the pleasure of interviewing Clay M. Grayson. Clay M. Grayson is the author of The Philanthropist Handbook: Finding Meaning In The Endowment Of Humanity. he also founded Grayson Law Firm in 2018 to serve exclusively as legal counsel for nonprofit organizations. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in the categories of “Nonprofit/Charities Law” and “Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships),” and was honored as the 2024 Lawyer of the Year in the category of Business Organizations in the market he serves. Grayson has extensive experience in federal taxation of exempt organizations, not-for-profit corporate governance, public-private partnerships, executive compensation, unrelated business income tax, excess benefit transactions, charitable and planned giving, and joint ventures. In addition to holding J.D., Clay has a masters degree in international business studies from the University of South Carolina, and an LLM in taxation from New York University.
Thank you for making time to discuss this “top of mind” topic. Our readers would like to get to know you a bit better. Can you please tell us about one or two life experiences that most shaped who you are today?
When I was 9 years old, I was bused from my elementary school in Charleston, S.C. to the Gaillard Center to hear the Charleston Symphony Orchestra present a program of Peter and the Wolf. I’d never experienced a performance hall of that size nor seen a symphony orchestra. Sitting in an auditorium with at least 1,000 other kids from my area, I remember being in awe of the space. I remember learning how each instrument had its own tone and musical line. Each instrument represented a specific character in the story. The magic of that day has stayed with me 40-plus years later. It’s inspired so many things in my life.
I’ve gone on to serve on the Board of Directors of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra. I later became the general counsel to the Gaillard Center. More recently, I’ve been elected to serve as the Chairman of the Board of the Rivers Foundation, which previously raised $71 million towards a $142 million renovation of the Gaillard Center in 2015, and currently is the endowment foundation of the Gaillard Center. That moment at age 9 set me on my path towards philanthropy and community service. It was nonprofits that helped fund my being bused to the Gaillard as a kid. Our symphony and so many arts organizations that perform in the Gaillard are nonprofits. Today, the Gaillard is becoming my community’s largest classroom, destined to reach every child in my community, every year.
These experiences, and others, have contributed to my realization that nonprofits build community. Nonprofits feed our souls. If I’m discouraged, I boost myself back up by remembering how I felt that first time in the Gaillard at age 9, and I think about how many children in my community continue to be inspired at the Gaillard, by and through the magic of philanthropy arising out of the work of donors, volunteers, and nonprofits.
Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? We would love to hear a few stories or examples.
The three traits, of which I am most conscious to aspire, are the same disciplines of a philanthropist: empathy, foresight, and curiosity for knowledge.
Empathy. Empathy is my superpower as an attorney. Empathy enables me to connect with my clients, and to take on their charitable mission as my own. Empathy makes me consider more deeply the perspective of any attorney that is my adversary. If I can understand that person’s pressures and issues, I can work to find a reasonable solution. I’ve heard lawyers boast that the practice of law is a blood sport. It’s not. It doesn’t have to be. It can be about problem solving and finding the best outcome for your client through thoughtful reasoning of situations. It’s empathy that enables me to pursue the practice of law in this way.
Foresight. The word philanthropy derives from the phrase “philos anthropos,” which means the “love of humankind” in ancient Greek. The word comes from the Prometheus story, representing the love that Prometheus had for us and instilled in us when he molded and created us from clay. What most people don’t know is that the name Prometheus means “foresight” in ancient Greek. There is an archetypal connection here. If you combine empathy with foresight, I think you are working towards a greater good. You start thinking about the consequences of actions, particularly on the community. Foresight means you’re looking to the horizon to guide you. I’ve tried to cultivate more foresight. I’m thinking more about the future. It’s helping me make better decisions.
Curiosity for Knowledge. Curiosity is the thing that pulls it all together for me. I hate to be bored. I enjoy being a lawyer because it enables me to go down any rabbit hole that I feel like, as long as I’m learning something. Curiosity for new information, for truth, enables me to allow my thoughts to evolve. Curiosity is also a privilege, and I recognize that as well. I suppose this self-indulgence is ok. It helps my mental health more than anything. What’s the motto of Phi Beta Kappa — ”A love of learning is the guide of life.” I subscribe to that philosophy.
What’s the most interesting discovery you’ve made since you started leading Grayson Law Firm?
I’ve had a recent discovery about myself that has affected me. The context is sad. I lost my mentor 14 months ago. I dedicated my book to him. I spent almost a decade working for him. I left his firm a long time ago, but we remained very close. We ate lunch together a lot. That was our thing. He was the king of lunch. When he passed, it was quick. He had brain cancer that took him in a matter of weeks. He passed away exactly 100 days after the last time we had lunch pre-diagnosis. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about him.
Today, I’m pretty close to the age that he was when we met. I’m not a kid lawyer anymore. I’m looking around my firm, and I’m seeing people that I’m training. Like my mentor trained me. An entire chapter just turned over in my life overnight. I’ve discovered I’m a mentor now. I’m leading a firm. There’s a complex set of emotions that I have to balance in order to say that. That’s been a major discovery for me.
Can you please tell our readers more about how you or your organization intends to make a significant social impact?
My law firm only represents nonprofits. I love that I can say that. It took many years to get to that focus. We have a vision to elevate the entire nonprofit sector with tools, skills, and thought leadership to support each of our clients in their pursuit of mission success. My colleagues and I are lucky that we can practice law in a way that lifts up nonprofits. My big hairy audacious goal is to drive my law firm to be the legal voice and advocate for nonprofits across the country. This is how my group, using our skills, will make the most social impact.
What makes you feel passionate about philanthropy?
I’ve never really thought about it before. Maybe it was in my upbringing or my nature, but I feel compelled to help people and to serve my community. I’m aware of how lucky I am. That luck includes the various privileges into which I was born. When I see someone in need or in pain, and especially if I sense that there’s no explanation or justice in their predicament, I’m going to be compelled to see if I can help them, even if it’s just to provide some comfort or kind word.
When I realized that I can use my legal training to help people, that was like throwing gasoline on my fledgling philanthropic fire. I stopped trying to be a mergers and acquisitions attorney and switched gears to devote as much of my time as possible to serve nonprofits. Part of me is paying it forward, but another part of me, the louder part of me, is paying it back for all of the blessings that I have in life.
Without naming names, could you share a story about an individual who benefitted from your initiatives?
Soon after the Gaillard Center was re-opened in 2015 following its $142 million renovation, I heard a story of a very young boy who was attending an educational performance with his school. This boy grabbed the hand of an usher after the performance and said: “I can’t believe that I’m here in this place and that you made this place for me.” He couldn’t stop thanking the usher. I wondered if that child would remember that moment for the rest of his life. Moments like those can be a source of inspiration, self-worth, and strength that can last a lifetime.
Based on your experience, what are the “5 Things You Need To Create A Successful & Effective Nonprofit That Leaves A Lasting Legacy”? Please share a story or example for each.
Nonprofits are in the forever business. And forever is a mighty long time. These are the 5 things that you have to cultivate in a nonprofit for it to succeed in the very long run:
Vision — If you don’t have vision, what are you doing? Vision is key to every nonprofit. Vision is the beat of the drum that inspires your volunteer army, getting them to march in step. One of the best examples of vision that I can think of is Fred Goff and his founding of the Cleveland Foundation in 1914. He was an attorney working with uber-wealthy individuals, like John Rockefeller, to form private family foundations. But Goff had a vision to create a “community foundation,” where anyone in the community could set up an endowment to address problems at home. That idea was the basis of the Cleveland Foundation.
Goff’s vision democratized philanthropy, making it accessible to every man. Today, there are almost 900 community foundations across the U.S. Last year, the Cleveland Foundation reported assets of $3 billion and made over $130 million in grants. Vision is everything.
Organizational Learning — Nonprofits are an anomaly in capitalist societies. They don’t have owners and their focus isn’t profit, but societal impact. To make a nonprofit work, you need people, a lot of people. And they have to be able to work in a way that they, as an organization, can learn together. This ability to learn as a collective is critical for the maturation of any nonprofit.
Institutional Knowledge — Having your nonprofit engaged in organizational learning is not enough. You have to memorialize that learning to create institutional knowledge. This comes from writing down lessons learned in the form of bylaws, policies, and governing documents. This is the way that knowledge is passed down from one generation to the next.
I have a client that at the end of their board policies, they keep a record of every time the policy was amended. Included in the record is a list of names of the directors that contributed to each amendment and moved for its adoption. This nonprofit has been around since 1934. When you read the policy handbook, you realize you are hearing the voices of the predecessors on whose shoulders you are standing. That’s a powerful way to preserve institutional knowledge.
Succession Planning — I think the most important committee of any nonprofit is the nominating committee. If the nonprofit can neither cultivate nor attract leaders, it will not succeed. I’ve seen wonderfully performing nonprofits go through periods of setback by hiring the wrong CEO. Alternatively, one of my favorite nonprofits populates its nominating committee with the five most recent board chairs. In that way, they are retaining institutional knowledge and able to pass it down through each succession decision, whether it’s the nomination of a new director or the hiring of a new CEO. It shouldn’t surprise you that this nonprofit fundraises in excess of $80M per year.
Accountability — Without stockholders or owners in the for-profit sense, the importance of accountability in a nonprofit is heightened. Accountability is the by-product of organizational learning and institutional knowledge and is documented through internal controls and required periodic check-ins. I think of accountability as an alarm clock that periodically goes off during the year for the board to check in and measure performance. These activities ensure a higher level of stewardship across the organization, and if communicated appropriately to donors, can provide an assurance to the public that their gifts are managed in a fiscally responsible manner.
How has the pandemic changed your definition of success?
We’ve sort of forgotten the pandemic these days. I sometimes wonder if that’s what happened after the Spanish Flu in 1919. I’m not sure if this has changed, but the pandemic made me think more about living my authentic self. I’m a lot less concerned about what people think of me now. I’m probably more relaxed. I don’t wear a tie often anymore. I’ve grown to see remote-work options as important to have for staff. I don’t have to do things because that’s how they’ve always been done. I’m thinking more about curating a better life. That’s my updated post-pandemic definition of success: success is living authentically.
How do you get inspired after an inevitable setback?
Gratitude. Remembering everything for which I am thankful can pull me out of the ditch. Gratitude is resilience strength training. It’s something I think you should express every day. I remind myself when I pray, I first need to give thanks. I do it at meals with my kids or as I drop them off at school. By giving thanks, it’s not just words. I try to use my empathy to remember how I really feel to be thankful. I try to let my body feel that feeling. The more you do that, the more it puts your problems in perspective. It’ll make you realize that your life is good no matter that setback. That’s how you build an indomitable spirit. Say grace. Setback or not, give thanks.
You’re doing important work. How can our readers follow your progress online?
You can check out the work of my firm at graysonfirm.com and my personal site is claygrayson.com. I’m also responsive to anyone who connects with me on LinkedIn.
Thank you for sharing these great insights with us. We wish you continued success.
Clay M. Grayson Of Grayson Law Firm: 5 Things You Need To Create A Successful & Effective Nonprofit… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.