Meet the Team: Robyn Tenenbaum
My name is Lindsay Jensen and I am the new Operations Manager at The Insight Alliance. Over the next few months I’ll be writing a series of blog posts about the amazing team members that work or volunteer with the organization. Join me as I get to know everyone, build new relationships and learn more about the beautiful humans that are involved with The Insight Alliance.
Friday, February 28, 2020
I had the privilege of meeting with Robyn Tenenbaum, our board chair extraordinaire, at our office in downtown Portland. After our conversation, I was reflecting on all that we’d discussed and how great I thought Robyn was when this fabulous Dolly Parton quote popped up:
“If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader.” -Dolly Parton
As the founding Board Chair for The Insight Alliance, Robyn has done a tremendous amount of work getting the organization set up as its own 501c3 nonprofit. From bringing in important contacts that have built our capacity to planning our annual fundraiser to building and strengthening our financial processes, Robyn has shepherded the organization to new heights. It was great hearing about all that she’s done for the organization.
We also talked about how serendipitous her introduction to The Insight Alliance was. After wrapping up a 15-year gig working at a nonprofit organization that she’d started and grown, Robyn was introduced to Anna. Anna was looking for support with turning The Insight Alliance into its own nonprofit organization; Robyn was looking for a new adventure – it was the perfect match! Robyn said, “that’s the cool part of this organization – things just keep happening when they’re supposed to. I’ve never been a part of an organization that has grown so fast and so organically.”
Robyn shared about her experience participating in the insight-based programming we offer at prisons in Oregon. She mentioned the impact she’d seen the program have on program participants and on her own life, “once we realize how our minds work, we start to not take things so personally and thoughts tend to more easily come and go – as they are meant to – leaving more space up there for the good stuff.” I recently started participating in one of the 10-week groups at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility, so loved hearing this message and realizing how much learning I had in store. Another takeaway I had from this portion of our conversation was when Robyn was talking about how universal our programming is. All humans benefit from learning about how the mind works and, knowing this, all program participants are viewed as fellow humans, not prisoners or people with defects. It was an “ah-ha” moment for me as we reflected on our shared humanity.
Robyn is a smart, humble and empowering leader. After the few meetings I’ve had with her, I’ve walked away feeling like a rock star and energized to dive deeper into my work with The Insight Alliance. She has truly inspired me to “dream more, learn more, do more and become more.”
Robyn Tenenbaum is a Producer. She has produced events from public radio shows to large scale music festivals. Early in her career, she honed her skills working for the legendary Bill Graham Presents in San Francisco, working on festivals and ticketing for icons ranging from The Rolling Stones to HH Dalai Lama. In 2003, following her move to Portland, Robyn co-created and produced Live Wire Radio, a live public radio show that is now heard each week by over 300k people around the country. In 2018, after 15 years as Executive Producer, she stepped away to pursue new life adventures and to find other ways to make a difference in her community. Robyn brings expertise in non-profit management, strategy, growing networks and producing things.