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Word on the Street with Kurt Krukenberg
July 21, 2025, The Association
“If we don’t meet our own self-care needs, we’re actually doing a disservice to the rest of the organization and to the animals and people we’re supporting.”
When it comes to stress management in our organizations, “In animal welfare we all want to do everything in a big, big way,” shared Humane Society Silicon Valley President Kurt Krukenberg in last week’s members-only Leadership Summit. “But the biggest game-changer for me is knowing that small, bite-sized little moments where we regularly help ourselves and each other is the way to go.” Read on for more wise words that Krukenberg dropped during the panel he facilitated on day 1 of The Summit.
Find a venting buddy and set a two-to-one rule of venting and then sharing something positive back with your partner. Looking for the good to share is the first step. Then you can begin to pause when you’re in a challenging situation with someone to ask yourself—“What’s the other person’s most positive motivation?” “What’s the most positive assumption we can make about this situation?” Find what kind of grace you can offer. Seeing frontline teams do that when someone comes in with a difficult situation with an animal is huge.
Another way to show self-compassion and create community is to understand that everyone is going through something. Stress isn’t just about what’s happening at work. Everybody has their own individual context, and stress comes from everywhere. From the environment, from family situations… Remember that it’s not our job to solve all of these problems for everyone. I know that we’re fixers—that’s a big part of animal welfare—but our job is to do what we can to support and provide. We can listen. We can show compassion. Just being there is so important.
– Kurt Krukenberg, President, Humane Society Silicon Valley
P.S. Stay tuned to The Association Blog for more tips and resources presented by your colleagues during The Summit. We’ve got a lot to share!
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