Danny Maier

I’ll preface this blog by saying it’s a bit of a tough-love message. Learning about the “Anti-Decider” has been a hard lesson for me over the years. And I confess, I still occasionally give my most earnest advice on this subject…followed in some regrettable cases with the kind truth of, “I warned you.”

This January, the DBD Team is making resolutions to help us be better. Today Danny encourages all of us to try a new way to keep our resolutions – by being grateful. 

In this New Year, if you want to be successful in achieving your resolutions, don’t rely upon will power. Fewer than 10 percent of resolutions are maintained through will power. Instead, there’s a more powerful and successful way to change your life through a New Year’s resolution. Be grateful. How does gratitude figure into this equation?  Well, here is the research.  

I was watching an interview with an Academy Award-winning film director on how he selected screenplays. “I select a story based on the 3E’s; its ability to entertain, educate and elevate the audience.” My wife turned to me, “That sounds like what you want a case to do.” Amen to that.

There was a rule of giving I learned early in my career: you will receive 80% of your charitable giving from about 20% of your donors. This draws from the Pareto Principle, first postulated by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto. New studies indicate that as much as 98% of your charitable donations are now likely coming from only 2% of your donors.

This summer, the Donor By Design Team is considering new ways grow relationships with our donors, supporters and volunteers… moving beyond the thank you note to a deeper connection. Today’s topic: what might you learn from someone younger than you? 

When you are conducting an annual campaign, capital effort, or even an endowment program, publicity can be helpful. Positive “buzz” helps improve community understanding and support. But too often, we rely on buzz to do all the work. We assume that some good publicity will raise money for us.

I’m not rich, but I recently added up my giving to my favorite local charity. The amount over the last 20 years astounded me. More recently, I made a capital pledge to this charity. Unfortunately, two years later, I have no idea how my money is being used. I’m not aware of their campaign progress. I do not know if the projects are on time or on budget. But I do get an invoice (which resembles a hospital bill) every February and then a receipt letter letting me know the IRS will accept this letter allowing me to legally deduct my gift from my taxes.

Every leader fears a crisis. So much time and effort are rightly invested in reducing risk, bolstering safety, and ensuring protocols are followed. All are essential to protecting your organization. But sadly, most organizations are at greater risk because they have not prepared – and never practiced – to communicate in times of urgency.  I remember a friend rightly pointing out, “Prayer is not a communication strategy.”

In Part I of this series, we discussed the hazards of being in the “special events business” versus true fundraising. If you recognized your organization in that post, your next question is probably: “How do we become an organization more focused on major gifts?” The answer is all about culture change.

Part 1 of 2