“Our commitment to the process is the only alternative to the lottery mindset of hoping for the good luck of getting picked by the universe”. #SethGodin, #ThePractice.
#Fundraising is a practice, a process, a set of daily habits and efforts, repeated over time, regardless of the outcome.
Fundraising requires persistence and effort in the face of constant rejections.
So how do we sustain that level of effort, knowing that we will be rejected 4 out of the five times we ask?
We commit to the practice of fundraising.
A Practice builds in both the actions and the persistence mindset.
Godin says “Good processes, repeated over time, lead to good outcomes, more often than lazy processes do. Focus on short-term outcomes forces us to make choices that are banal, short-term, or selfish. It takes our focus away from the journey and encourages us to give up too early.´
Approaching fundraising as a practice means that you apply your skills and actions, daily and regularly in order to improve. Without a practice, you will not get sustainable funding outcomes.
Now you: Do you have a daily work practice?
To create a #fundraising practice,
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Fundrasing as a Practice-- Simply Begin
The only choice that we have is to begin. And the only place to begin is where we are. Simply begin” #SethGodin, #ThePractice.
You can begin your #fundraising effort, from just where you are. Just begin. If you have a few individual donors, extend your practice to create a systematic #majorgifts program. The way you do this is by establishing the practices of the major gifts program.
A practice is built by having daily habits and taking action, consistently over a period of time. “Action creates habits, and habits are part of a practice, and a practice is the single best way to get to where you seek to go. (Godin)
You create a major gifts program, by doing the prospecting, cultivating, communicating, soliciting, and stewarding—long before you have the major gift as an outcome.
Start where you are. The commitment is completely under your control, even when the end results cant be.
Now You: What action are you committing to today that will begin your practice?
#fundraising #nonprofit #leadership
Diversity as an Innovation Imperative
It is a moral imperative to advance #diversityequityinclusion, in our work. Diversity is also an #innovation imperative.
“Solvable problems are usually solved by surprising, non-trivial alternatives. …Instead, it is the unlikely approaches the odd combinations that come from diversity – that often win the day.” #SethGodin, #ThePractice
We must strive for #diversity in our #teams across all dimensions—race, ethnicity, background, gender, age, sexual identity and orientation, socio-economic, neurodiversity, and diversity of thought.
Empathy is the first step in #DesignThinking, that is to experience a challenge from the perspectives of someone else in order to design solutions with them that are deeply embedded in their own experience.
As Godin notes “It’s not helpful to only make things for yourself unless your are fortunate enough that what you want is precisely what your audience wants.
Having diverse teams creates the conditions for empathy. #Empathy is not only the mark of a generous person, it is also the root of creativity.
Now you: How have you harnessed diversity on your team?