--- title: "Clarify: An Introduction" description: "Clarify is the first step of the Aligned Impact Model™: define the mission, values, and theory of change that shape your identity and filter every decision." --- [Skip to content](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/larsen-strategies-blog/clarify-an-introduction#main-content) [![LS Transparent-4](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/hs-fs/hubfs/LS%20Transparent-4.png?width=2000&height=2078&name=LS%20Transparent-4.png)Homepage](https://www.larsenstrategiesllc.com) - [Home](https://www.larsenstrategy.com/) - [About](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/about) - [AIM™](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/aim) - [FAQs](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/faq) - [Tools](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/free-tools) - [Blog](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/blog) [Contact](https://www.larsenstrategiesllc.com/contact) - [Home](https://www.larsenstrategy.com/) - [About](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/about) - [AIM™](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/aim) - [FAQs](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/faq) - [Tools](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/free-tools) - [Blog](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/blog) [Contact](https://www.larsenstrategiesllc.com/contact) Financial Leadership Organizational Sustainability Nonprofit Leadership # Clarify: An Introduction ![Larsen Strategies](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/hs-fs/hubfs/LS%20-%20Logo.png?width=48&height=48&name=LS%20-%20Logo.png) Larsen Strategies October 4, 2026 ## Start with the why Every nonprofit makes hundreds of decisions a year: which programs to run, which funding to pursue, whom to hire, which partnerships to accept. Clarify is where you define the identity that should sit behind all of them. Clarify is the first of six phases in the Aligned Impact Model™ because it becomes the filter for everything that follows. A clear mission, vision, values, and theory of change tell you what fits who you are and what doesn't. Priorities are chosen against it, resources are aligned to it, and success is measured by it. Most nonprofits already have a mission statement, and many have a strategic plan. Clarify isn't about writing more documents. It's about making your identity specific enough to say yes or no with confidence, whether the question is a new program, a grant opportunity, a partnership, or a line in the budget. ## What you clarify Clarify brings five elements into focus. Each answers a different question, and together they give leaders, staff, and the board a shared reference point.   ## What you clarify Clarify brings five elements into focus. Each answers a different question, and together they give leaders, staff, and the board a shared reference point. | Element | The question it answers | What clear looks like | | --- | --- | --- | | Mission | Why do we exist, and for whom? | Names who you serve and what changes for them, not just what you do | | Vision | What future are we working toward? | Describes a world people can picture, specific enough to know if you're getting closer | | Values | How will we behave along the way? | Shows up in hiring, spending, and partnership decisions, not only on the website | | Theory of change | How do our activities lead to the change we seek? | Connects programs to outcomes through a logic someone outside the organization could follow and question | | Definitions of success | How will we know it's working? | Describes observable results for each program and priority, at a level of detail your data can support | The theory of change is often the missing piece. Many organizations can describe their mission and their programs but can't explain the logic that connects them. That gap matters more than it seems, because it's the same gap that later shows up between the strategic plan and the budget. Our article *What Is a Theory of Change?* explores it in more depth. ## Signs it's time to clarify Unclear direction rarely announces itself. It tends to show up as friction in other places, especially finance and fund development. - **Budget conversations turn into turf debates.** Without a shared sense of what matters most, every department's request looks equally urgent. - **New programs appear because funding appeared.** A grant opportunity drives what you do, rather than what you do deciding which grants to pursue. - **Staff describe the mission differently.** Ask five people what the organization exists to do, and you hear five answers. - **The board approves the budget without discussing strategy.** The two documents live on separate tracks, reviewed in separate meetings. - **Success is measured by activity.** Reports count meals served or sessions held, but no one can say what changed for the people served. - **Prioritize** chooses which parts of your theory of change to focus on right now. - **Align** compares where resources actually go against what you said matters. - **Integrate** connects your plans, budget, and operations around those priorities. - **Measure & Manage** turns your definitions of success into metrics and meeting rhythms. - **Evaluate & Adapt** tests whether your theory of change holds up, and refines it. If two or more of these sound familiar, Clarify is a good place to start. ## Questions to start with You don't need a retreat or a consultant to begin. Bring these questions to your next leadership meeting and notice where answers agree and where they don't. 1. If our organization disappeared tomorrow, what would be different for the people we serve? 2. Can we describe, in a few sentences, how our programs produce that difference? 3. Which of our values would we refuse to compromise, even if it cost us funding? 4. What would we expect to see in three years if our strategy is working? 5. Looking at last year's budget, does the way we spent money reflect the answers above? The last question is the bridge to everything that follows in AIM™. Where the answers to the first four don't match what the budget says, you've found the starting point for the next areas. ## Where Clarify leads What you define in Clarify becomes the reference point for every area that follows. ## Go further Start with our article *What Is a Theory of Change?*, then explore the other free resources in each area. Member tools for Clarify, including a theory of change template and success definitions worksheet, are in development. Join our list to hear when they launch. If you'd rather work through Clarify alongside other nonprofit leaders, the AIM™ Bootcamp is a nine-month guided cohort that begins in January 2027. ## Share this post [mailto:https%3A%2F%2Flarsenstrategiesllc.com%2Flarsen-strategies-blog%2Fclarify-an-introduction](mailto:https%3A%2F%2Flarsenstrategiesllc.com%2Flarsen-strategies-blog%2Fclarify-an-introduction) ## Keep reading ### [Financial Leadership Organizational Sustainability Nonprofit Leadership Is Finance Really the Backbone of Your Organization?](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/larsen-strategies-blog/finance-backbone) ### [Financial Leadership Organizational Sustainability Nonprofit Leadership The People Carrying the Mission Shouldn’t Have to Carry It Alone](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/larsen-strategies-blog/people-carrying-the-mission) - [Home](https://www.larsenstrategy.com/) - [About](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/about) - [AIM™](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/aim) - [FAQs](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/faq) - [Tools](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/free-tools) - [Blog](https://larsenstrategiesllc.com/blog) ©Larsen Strategies, LLC 2026. 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