TonyB

Celebrate!

Our fundraising team just finished a terrific calendar year-end. For you in the business you grasp the significance of what I’m talking about. For you non-fundraisers it’s hard to overstate the importance of December. It is often pretty much the make-or-break month for many donor-supported organizations.

Anyway, the other day we did something all too rare in the not-for-profit world: we celebrated. Our department leader scheduled a two-hour gathering in mid-afternoon complete with taco bar and refreshments and we had a mini-fiesta. And as we ate, we spent time talking about the contributions others had made to our collective success. It was a lot of fun and created, I think, a terrific atmosphere of cohesiveness and cooperation among our large and diverse team.

And that got me to thinking: how often do we miss the chance to gather together and celebrate what our teams have accomplished? How often do we pass up the opportunity for a collective celebratory pat on the back?

Maybe some bosses are afraid to “waste the time” when there’s so much work to be done — yes, you made the goal, but January sucks so get back to work. Others may fear we’ll all get too complacent and lose our sense of urgency if we spend even a little time in the party spirit recognizing what we’ve achieved together. I suppose some managers simply aren’t wired in a relational configuration (translation: they’re relatively un-empathetic and somewhat clueless about the emotional needs of their subordinates) so the idea of celebration never occurs to them. Maybe not-for-profit organizations are simply “celebratorily challenged.”

So here’s a suggestion: find something to celebrate, and do it! “Seek the good and praise it,” as the saying goes. If you haven’t been doing this much your team may find it odd at first, but having been on both sides of this one over the years I speak from experience: few things build a sense of team like a collective attaboy/attagirl. So, take some time off, invite the troops and have a party. Oh, and tacos help, too.

The Power of Course Corrections

Fundraising, like life, is typically more a marathon than a sprint. Building relationships and achieving organizational goals happens over time. Trouble is, the more we get bogged down in the daily slog, the more we can lose sight of the eventual goal. We need to stop from time to time, figure out where we are (as opposed to where we think we are) and make sure we’re on course. If we’re not, it may be time for a course correction.

(Navy Flashback Alert!) Let’s say you’re on a ship leaving San Diego and heading for Pearl Harbor. At 20 knots that trip should take a bit less than five days. So you leave San Diego, set your course toward Pearl Harbor, and then you sail happily across the eastern Pacific expecting that you’ll wake up on the morning of Day Five with Diamond Head on the horizon. Right? Wrong! It doesn’t work that way, as anyone knows who has spent any time on the open sea.

What will happen instead is that you’ll wake up on Day Five with Diamond Head nowhere to be seen. That’s because along every mile of your cruise the ship is being driven off course. Sometimes the causes are external: wind, waves, currents. Other causes can be internal: your compass is bad, your rudder is misaligned, your helmsman isn’t paying attention. If you just set your course and forget it you’ll probably discover on Day Five that you’re 100 miles or more off course, because the forces that drive you from your predetermined track are cumulative — that is, the longer you wait the greater the correction you’ll eventually have to make. The obvious answer, and what Navy ships do, is to take constant fixes to determine where you actually are. Then you make continual, minor corrections to stay on course. And on Day Five, voila — there’s Pearl Harbor, right where it belongs.

In my business (and also in my relationships — this definitely applies to marriage!), I may think I’m on track, but in fact I’m constantly being driven off course by outside and inside influences and distractions. I’d better get into the habit of taking continual fixes — a regular reality check! — and then making those small adjustments I need to make to keep myself on track toward my destination. The longer I wait and assume everything is fine, the bigger and harder the course correction I’ll have to make. It might even be too hard, or too late.

So…I can think of several course corrections I need to make. How about you?

The Four i’s of Poor Leadership

Leadership. Is there any topic concerning which more words have been written, more speeches given, more consulting fees generated? At last count there are presently over three billion books in print about leadership. (Okay, I made that up…but it must be a lot.)

Like you, I’ve worked for some terrific leaders — and I’ve worked for some who were, um, not so terrific. Talking about this with some friends this morning, we came up with at least four traits that we think render a leader ineffective. See if you agree with the Four i’s of Poor Leadership.

1. A poor leader is indecisive. This one stings a bit because I know in my past roles as a leader I have been guilty of stalling, analyzing, and debating some obvious decisions far past their expiration date. Those who look to you for leadership need you to be decisive. Remember, not to decide is to decide!

2. A poor leader is impulsive. This ready-fire-aim trait can unsettle everyone around you, as the boss’s project du jour suddenly sweeps aside all the really important priorities. If indecisiveness is at one end of the negativity scale, impulsiveness is probably at the other.

3. A poor leader is insulated. Leaders can hide behind their desks, their doors, their walls, their circle of self-serving advisors, and not listen to the inconvenient truth that those not on the “inside” are dying to disclose. This goes far beyond the world of business: how many politicians and religious leaders are brought low because they insulate themselves from the facts and refuse to be accountable?

4. A poor leader is insecure. I’m not talking about the brash pseudo-security that comes from an overpowering personality — that’s not true security. I mean the inner strength that says, “I know who I am. I know what I believe. And I am not at the mercy of the opinions of those around me.” (Personally I think that inner strength comes from our relationship with God.) Insecurity drives some leaders to feel they always have to be Mr. or Ms. Nice Guy, while others conclude they have to be Ms. or Mr. Dictator, constantly demanding my respect. Either way, I think insecurity is the at root of the problem.

So there are my Four i’s of Poor Leadership. What do you think? Any you’d like to add?

Pick Up Five Things!

“You can accomplish anything if…” How would you complete that sentence?

A business friend I always admired used to say it this way: “You can accomplish anything if you just know the next step.”

I like that idea. Sometimes the sheer size of a project can seem overwhelming. Daunting. Paralyzing. If I look at the whole enchilada it can stop me in my tracks. At times like that I’ve found that that the best question to ask myself is, “What should I do next?” I even find that notion helpful when I have a day or a week on my calendar without enough planned activity: instead of getting frustrated trying to figure out how to fill up the whole day or the entire week, I can often gain traction simply by focusing on the next 30 minutes!

When I was a kid and my room was messy, the sheer size of the mess was enough to paralyze my little brain. “Mom, I can’t do it, it’s too hard!” I would wail. Her calm reply was always the same: “Pick up five things.” She knew that if I reduced the task to a bite-sized Next Step, it would break the logjam and establish some momentum. Now when I get overwhelmed I often remind myself, “Just pick up five things.” And it doesn’t even matter which five things! The important thing is to begin. Take the next step.

Stephen Covey told us in his Seven Habits of Highly Effective People to “Begin with the end in mind.” I agree. But at those times when the end seems too far away and hard to reach, I may need to content myself with a baby step in the right direction. A journey of a thousand miles may begin with a single step — but it’s the next step after that, and the one after that, and the one after that — and so on and on — that will get you there.

Overwhelmed? You can accomplish anything if you just know the next step. So go pick up five things.

Technology has made us _______________ people.

Consider the statement, “Technology has made us __________ people.” How would you fill in the blank?

By technology, I don’t mean the steam engine and the electric can opener. I’m talking about communication technology and information technology, the kind of tech that has given rise to multi-billion dollar industries while flooding our saturated and over-extended minds with Important Data, Relevant Facts, and Vital Details. You know what I’m talking about. My philosophical question is, are we better off with smart phones, 24/7 news cycles, and the never-ending bombardment of information? Or has all that barrage made us less happy, less satisfied, more fearful and even more isolated? In other words, are your Facebook friends really your friends?

When my dad was an insurance man, he had a phone on his desk and a secretary who took messages. When he was out, he was out. Calling into the office meant finding a pay phone. (Tried that recently?) I suspect my father was more satisfied in his work and had a greater sense of what was important than many of us today. Dad would not recognize the world of today, just like I won’t recognize the world into which my grandkids will grow up. I don’t mean to lapse into an exercise in gauzy nostalgia here, but maybe we ought at least to be asking the question, “What has that ceaseless flood of information done to us as people?” What are we doing to ourselves?

So how would you fill in the blank? Has communication technology made us happier or more depressed? More relaxed or more stressed? Better connected or more isolated? More productive or more paralyzed? Better informed or more bewildered? We can’t turn back the clock, of course, nor am I suggesting (necessarily) that we should. The genie is out of the bottle, Pandora’s box has been opened, etcetera. But, come on, people — can we talk?

Love to hear your thoughts.

I May Not Know Much About Fundraising…

Someone asked for my input the other day. I was surprised that I actually had some to offer!

It was a colleague who works for a different division within the same non-profit I work for. She said she was considering putting on a fundraising banquet, and did I have a few minutes to kick around some ideas. We sat down to chat and when she left my office after 40 minutes or so I was actually sort of pleased with myself — I think I gave her several helpful suggestions! Now please bear in mind that I have personally helped plan and execute a grand total of two fundraising banquets, and since one of those was a breakfast it barely counts. So I was hardly speaking from a deep reservoir of personal experience here.

However, in working on those two events I did learn a HUGE amount, including what works (recruit really good table hosts) and what doesn’t (don’t miscount the cupcakes), and also what to watch out for next time (your audio visual people will not automatically show up with a CD player unless you ask for one). My epiphany — sort of a “Well, duh” epiphany at that — is that pretty much everything of value that we learn is learned by doing. And no matter how little experience you may think you have, you probably know more than you think you do.

In fundraising I have found immense value in the informal reservoir of shared experience, information and insight that is all around me. I suspect you have, too. So my encouragement to you (and to me) is, first, be willing to ask for help from others in the business…and, second, be willing share what you know. Join a forum, teach a workshop, start a blog. And as you begin to share, you’ll probably be surprised at how much valuable information you’ve assimilated along the way!

Fire engines, Rowboats and Helicopters

When God steps in, what does it look like?

It’s an old joke. A man of deep faith is threatened by a deadly flood. As the rising waters are lapping against his front stoop, a fire engine pulls up in front, and the driver calls out, “Sir! Wade over to the truck and we’ll take you to safety!” To which the man replies, “No, thank you. God will save me!” The truck drives off.

Four hours later in the evening darkness the waters have reached the man’s living room. Two rescuers come to the door in a rowboat. “Sir, climb in the boat, and we’ll get you out of here!” Again, the man refuses. “Thank you, but you can go on about your business. God will save me!” The boat drifts away.

Early the next morning the water has risen to the roof top and the man is clinging to the chimney. A helicopter roars overhead and hovers above the man, and a rescue cable slowly drops toward him. Over a loudspeaker the pilot cries out, “Grab hold of the cable and we’ll reel you in!” But the man waves the pilot away. “I’ll be fine,” he cries over the roar of the helicopter. “You can go rescue someone else! God will save me!” The pilot reluctantly flies off, and minutes later the flood waters pull the man free from the chimney and he drowns.

Instantly he finds himself in heaven, face to face with the Lord. “Oh, Lord, how wonderful to be in Your presence!” he cries out. “But, Lord, I thought You were going to save me from the flood waters! Why didn’t You?”

“What are you talking about, my son?” God answers. “I sent you a fire engine, a rowboat and a helicopter. What else did you expect Me to do?”

What is it we’re expecting God to do? What does God’s intervention look like? We probably imagine that, when God steps in, it looks like Hollywood, complete with angelic choirs and special effects. But I suspect that far more often God’s little miracles look like fire engines, rowboats and helicopters. The moral: God’s not bound by our expectations. He’ll show His hand in unexpected ways!

Always Close for Something!

True confession time: I used to be a Professional Visitor. Or at least I felt like one.

Oh, I thought I was an account executive for a major metropolitan radio station, but more times than not it was as if I was really getting paid just to visit. I recall too many episodes spending time with certain prospective accounts, sitting in their offices exchanging pleasantries over coffee for an hour or so, only to walk away with absolutely no clue what was supposed to happen next. My Sales Manager, Mac, would ask me how the meeting went. “Great,” I would say, “I was with him for an hour!” “So,” Mac would ask, “what’s your follow-up strategy? When is the next buy up? What’s the next step with this guy?”

“Um…” I would answer, staring at my shoes. I had no clue. The client and I had talked about everything except the real reason I was there! Finally after one too many of these frustrating conversations, Mac blew a cloud of cigarette smoke my way and said to me in exasperation, “Remember — always close for something!”

Now I’m a fundraiser, but Mac’s advice still resonates. Always close for something. What could that something be? Well, a gift, obviously — but if it’s not time for that, how about closing for the next appointment? Closing for a follow-up call? Closing for a site visit? Closing for a written proposal? Closing for some information? Even closing for the next time you plan to call and say hello? Clearly we fundraisers value our relationships with our donors, but it seems to me we should always be moving those relationship gently and appropriately toward that next gift, that larger commitment, that new initiative. It’s why we’re here. I shouldn’t have that deer-in-the-headlights stare when my boss asks me what’s my next step with a significant donor.

Mac said it more than 30 years ago: “Always close for something.” Thanks, Mac — good advice that still applies!

“Apollo 13” and the Power of Vision

In my Tuesday men’s group this week we started talking about the Power of Vision. “Vision” is an important organizational idea for most of us — it’s that picture of the idealized, visualized future that guides our plans and strategies. Our Vision Statement is supposed to be our North Star, that point on the horizon toward which we are continually steering. A powerful concept indeed.

And that got me thinking — is there a movie I think does a great job of depicting that power? Yep: Apollo 13.

No way, you may say — Apollo 13 was about a moon mission gone terribly wrong. It was the event that seared the phrase, “Houston, we’ve got a problem” into the national psyche. It was about a vision lost, a goal abandoned, a grave and life-threatening disappointment encapsulated in Jim Lovell’s stark statement, “We just lost the moon.” Well, yes, sort of. But it was also about the kind of real life chaos that can happen in our everyday lives, and how circumstances sometimes require that our vision for the future be suddenly and radically revised. Our circumstances may not be life-threatening, but they can certainly upset and significantly alter the neat image of the visualized future that had been our vision. Real life often demands that we shift on the fly.

In Apollo13, as the reality of new circumstances began to sink in, the vision of the entire team shifted. You could say that the “intermediate” vision — a safe landing on the Moon, followed by a safe departure — had to be abandoned in favor of what in truth had been the ultimate goal all along: the safe return of the crew to Earth. The movie depicts a mission team’s resourcefulness, problem-solving abilities and creativity in the face of conflicting data, inadequate information and the acute pressure of deadlines. Through it all their North Star remains the same: get those guys home. (That’s why every time I watch Apollo 13 I cry when those parachutes open.)

So I salute the power of great vision — but none of us needs reminding that our tidy picture of the idealized future is certainly going to become a moving target. Every Vision Statement should come with an asterisk and a disclaimer that reads, “Your actual mileage may vary.”

Is the Air Going Out of Your Balloon?

So here we are one week into 2014 and I sense…a little bit of a letdown. Maybe that’s just me, or maybe it’s inevitable.

After all, we in fundraising tend to push, push, push toward Calendar Year End. December! The Holy Grail of months! The make-or-break page on the calendar! So much is riding on these 31 days — we strategize, we plan, we execute, we measure, we compare. We watch the tally for this gift or that. We call, we ask, we match. Your gift doubled through the end of the year! The countdown has begun! The ball is about to drop!

And then…it’s done. The year is ended. Oh, sure, some gifts trickle in, maybe some important ones — but the build-up is over, the anticipation is behind us, the results are in. We sweep up the confetti, fill in the spreadsheet, and turn the page. It’s January. Suddenly the urgency is gone, but the importance remains. Much to do, but without the sharp clarity of a hard deadline, I feel I lack some of the energy I had only a few short days ago.

I know, it’s temporary. Some of the air may have gone out of the balloon for a few days, but we’ll get that sucker pumped up again! How about your balloon — is it a little bit flat? Or do you have a solid January Strategy to avoid the post-December slump? How do you give January some of that December punch? Love to hear your ideas!