Chapter 1: Beware of Burnout | Building YIMBYs of NoVA
I learned my biggest lesson the hard way
Welcome to the Building YIMBYs of NoVA series, a guide for aspiring organizers as well as a meditation on management style and running a sustainable, effective organization. The series covers nine essential themes:
Chapter 7: Recruit Like Crazy (Plus Thoughts on Social Media)
Chapter 8: Think And Talk About Opponents As Little As Possible
These titles, while realistically subject to revision, are a representative overview.
Introduction
On August 20, 2021, I created a Facebook group called YIMBYs of NoVA. YIMBY stands for “yes in my backyard.” Our grassroots advocacy organization is dedicated to ending Northern Virginia’s housing shortage and affordability crisis, by enabling the construction of much more and denser housing. The supply-side housing reform movement is best known for focusing on zoning, but we also aspire to rationalize permitting and building codes.
On April 28, 2022*, Arlington County staff released a draft policy framework for Missing Middle housing. Less than eleven months later, on March 22, 2023, the Arlington County Board enacted into law a robust version of the plan, allowing up to 6 units per lot on all of the county’s residential land. Estimates vary but conservatively, 75% of this land had previously been restricted to detached single-family homes.
*(Exactly one year before I started Cornerstone!)
In that short time, YIMBYs of Northern Virginia matured and grew into one of the most active chapters of YIMBY Action, a national network we joined in May 2022. Our President Jane Green and Vice President for Arlington Grace White were featured in YIMBY Action’s 2022 annual report.
We now have 920 email subscribers. We have an all-volunteer team of a dozen-plus highly talented leads who have signed a formal contract to work with us. We have active projects in multiple local jurisdictions. And we are still growing. Now folks want to know: How did we do it? What were the keys to our success? This is that story in granular detail.
The Biggest Lesson I Learned: Pace Yourself
Grassroots advocacy can be surprisingly fun in addition to being deeply rewarding, thanks to the inherent sense of purpose it provides. It can even be addictive, which is why I must caution you. One of the early pieces of advice I got, from a veteran D.C. housing advocate, was to beware of burnout. I made a note but basically shrugged it off, and was incredibly wrong.
After months of late nights and adrenaline, with something interesting and unexpected happening to me seemingly every day or two, my body rebelled. I spent 6 weeks starting around Labor Day 2022 sick as a dog, and ended up getting myself checked out for walking pneumonia. Fortunately it was just a chronic cough, but I learned my lesson the hard way. This work must be done in a sustainable manner. Take breaks! If it is all you think about, from when you wake up to when you fall asleep, that is a red flag. This is a warning all entrepreneurs probably need. You can burn yourself out while having a great time.
If you enjoy this series or want to work together, I would love to hear from you at lucagattonicelli@substack.com. I am glad to answer questions from readers, ideally in future blog posts. Visit YIMBYs of Northern Virginia at yimbysofnova.org.
For bonus background on YIMBYs of NoVA and the coalition we built to help pass Missing Middle housing in Arlington, plus killer local restaurant recommendations, check out my podcast with California YIMBY Research Director Nolan Gray:
Chapter 2 will discuss what YIMBYs actually do, including the importance of identifying a campaign or, as I like to call it, a MacGuffin.
Never thought about how purpose and the value it provides can be addictive, but I think that's probably right. Great way to think about it.