Building Unity: Leading a Non-Profit from Spark to Succession

by Michael 'Piecez' Prosserman

Overview

Build an organization that is growth-minded, values-based, and innovative using the six steps to “responsible impact.”

At age 16, Michael ‘Piecez’ Prosserman, a professional b-boy (breakdancer), completed a school project that would grow to become a hip-hop-inspired mental health charity with global reach. Through a process of continuous discovery and reflection, Prosserman and his team grew UNITY to the point where it benefitted over a quarter of a million young people. In Building Unity, Prosserman breaks down the six steps to discovering “responsible impact” and building an organization that is growth-minded, values-based, and reflective of the needs of its community. Using stories of his own evolution, learning, and growth as a leader over 15 years, Prosserman parallels the creativity found in breakdancing with the innovation needed to build a sustainable non-profit.

Six steps to discovering “responsible impact”:

• Spark is the inspiration, the big “why,” the motivation to wake up and do something.
• Build is the testing ground to clarify ideas, understand community needs, and challenge assumptions.
• Trust involves building the culture of your organization, leading by example, and hiring people with dreams. Trust sets the stage for growth by empowering awesome people.
• Grow is about finding the right size for your organization to create a responsible impact.
• Evolve is knowing when to step back so others can step forward by building a succession plan that leaves your organization in good hands.
• Re-Ignite is building from past experience and lighting the next spark within yourself.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781773056067
Publisher:	ECW Press
Publication date:	09/15/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Michael ‘Piecez’ Prosserman found his passion for break­dancing at a very young age. By the time he was three, Michael was already standing on his head while watching Saturday morning cartoons. Michael is a university instructor, mental health advocate, and professional speaker, specializing in start-ups, team culture, fundraising, and succession. He is the founder of UNITY Charity and EPIC Leadership. He lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Read an Excerpt

“Express your stress”

Like I said, I was a quiet kid. Even to this day, when I’m angry, I want to beat up the floor. But stress provides a creative opportunity for me: it fuels my dance. The biggest challenges in my life have given rise to new angles and perspectives to fuel my creativity. It's when I have the most to share, something to say, but words can’t express the story. It’s the raw expression birthed from experiences translated through movement. I express, create and heal in order to better understand my experiences. I turn pain into power.

In 2003, I had an idea. I wanted to share Hip Hop as a tool to create social change. Hip Hop was such a powerful tool in my life. Hip Hop was an expression, an outlet, a voice, a platform, a community. In grade 11, as part of a group project in my entrepreneurship class, our teacher, Mr. Izumi, gave us a practical real-world assignment. We had to write a business plan for an entrepreneurial venture that we would have to execute to raise money for a local charity of our choice. Our group ran an event we called “Hip Hop Away From Violence.” We donated the proceeds from the event to the charity Leave Out ViolencE (LOVE), a charity that worked with youth in underserved communities, providing them outlets and alternatives to violence through photojournalism.

The first event was a miserable failure. Everything that could go wrong, went wrong. We needed to sell enough tickets to fill the school gym which held up to four hundred students. A few days before the event, we had only sold around 30 tickets. We decided to move to a smaller venue. The only venue we could get permission from the principal to use last minute was the cafeteria during lunch hour. This changed the entire dynamic of the event. It was terrible. No one paid attention. All the performers felt disrespected. Luckily, the charity we were working with cancelled their guest speaker, because it would have been an embarrassment. On top of everything else, a few of our best performers dropped out last minute. It was a disaster. We went through the motions and ran the event the best we could. I knew we could do better, we had to give it another shot. I still believed.

In grade 12, I was elected president of the student council and decided our big event that year would be Hip Hop Away From Violence. This time, we started preparing almost six months before the event date, getting students engaged in both planning and selling tickets to the event. We also secured a much stronger roster of performers to headline the show. In the end we ended up selling over three hundred tickets and raised a bunch of money for LOVE. Over three hundred of my peers respectfully listened to real stories of youth who had experienced violence. We had engaged a room full of young people with a message that was truly important, using Hip Hop as the hook. It was youth led and youth driven. We were onto something. 

Editorial Reviews

A powerful and personal biography, with a lesson for all of us on each page. Brave, poignant and practical, an inspiring road map for a new generation of leaders.” — Seth Godin, author of This Is Marketing: You Can’t Be Seen Until You Learn to See

“Michael Prosserman has written, in his authentic voice, a timely book about the importance of determination, creativity, and vulnerability in leadership ... and in life. A grassroots triumph!” — Sharon Avery, President and CEO of Toronto Foundation

“He endures high levels of anxiety around every corner, the son of a schizophrenic mother and a father suffering from Parkinson’s. To describe him as an average student would be charitable and with three fused vertebrae in his neck, the notion of an athletic career should have been a non-starter. ‘Piecez’ defied the odds and became world renowned in the breakin’ world (break dancing for the rest of us). Perhaps a hero to some. That is not what defines his alter ego Michael Prosserman, who has stepped up and built Unity, a non-profit that uses breakin’ to reach teens in underserved communities, building values, self-esteem, and leadership. His philosophy, embodied in his new marvellous book, can be summarized in one line: "Our work was about contribution not attribution." His humility and honesty make Building Unity a worthy read. A great reminder for all of us.” — Norman Bacal, best-selling author of O’Dell’s Fall and Breakdown

“The world we live in is transforming before our eyes in extraordinary ways. To help our divided communities begin to heal, we need people like Mike Prosserman. Mike’s vulnerability and passion for his work comes through in every word. As you read his unique story, you’ll witness the kind of perseverance we all wish for when tackling our own challenges — and you’ll be surprised at how much you learn about hip hop culture along the way. Read this book and get inspired to make a difference in your world.” — Ken Blanchard, co-author of The New One Minute Manager® and Servant Leadership in Action

“Mike Prosserman lived by the motto think big, start small, and scale up to establish Unity Charity. It is extraordinary that he began this life trajectory at 15. I’m sending you a Unity hug. Remember: I was the Grandma.” — Sharon Johnston, wife of former Governor General David Johnston, a.k.a. Unity Grandma

“An inspiring testimony from a super kind and generous leader — who knew what he wanted from the ripe young age of 15 — as he smiles through the tears of Building Unity. He hasn’t changed one bit while always looking forward! My heart and eyes smiled and danced while reading. Thanks, Mike!” — Michie Mee, award-winning Canadian hip hop icon and actor

“I don’t know Mike P. I don’t know Unity. But when I started reading this book I couldn’t stop. Ready to make your dent in the world but don’t know where to start? Right here. This book. I think it will leave you chomping at the bit to get going like it did for me.” — Neil Pasricha, author of The Book of Awesome and host of 3 Books podcast

“Mikey ‘Piecez’ Prosserman’s journey and dedication to making this world a better place through hip hop is truly inspiring. And if there is anything I took personally from reading Building Unity, it’s that applying the b-boy mentality to life can help your career from being an innovator, creating something from nothing, and constantly evolving. A true testimony that hard work never goes unnoticed.” — B-boy Ronnie, Red Bull Dancer, SuperCr3w

“Unity shows the deepest forms of community strength and the hardships of what a child of culture can be capable of due to the exact facts of growing up in a street/urban culture. A must read and a story to be motivated from.” — B-boy Thesis, Knuckleheads Cali, Massive Monkees

“As a 41-year-old b-boy, I never liked to read until I got into Building Unity. The lessons that B-boy ‘Piecez’ explains are so on point, I wanted to call him after every chapter I read to pick his brain even more. I am truly inspired by his stories about his family, how he got his name, and his non-profit, and every time I think about Building Unity it reminds me of an owner’s manual. Building Unity is an educational tool for the breaking scene.” — B-boy Wicket

From the Publisher