Unbalanced!

If you are anything like me, you are often (ok, ALWAYS) unbalanced. I either have too much work, or too little. I have too much to do, or not enough. I've pretty much given up on achieving a perfect work/life balance, in part because I'm not sure I'd recognize it if I had it!

On the other hand, I do recognize when I am doing nonessential things, or when meetings have gone awry.

Generally—that would be my assessment. So many meetings I attend could be (a) much shorter, (b) more useful, or (c) actually just been an email, saving everyone enormous amounts of time.

Time, of course, is the one thing that most nonprofit staff members don’t have. And yet, it seems to me, they waste so much of this rare and precious resource by having or attending unneeded meetings.

Meetings, of course, are not the only enemy of time.

In all situations, but mostly when you don’t have the human resources to deal with too many things (I know this—I am a sole proprietor!), too often we end up dealing with what is smacking you right in your face, rather than the thing that most needs to be done.

Fundraising, of course, is something that often suffers from this. We are busy—too busy—because we don’t have enough staff, and we don’t have enough staff because, yep, we can’t afford to hire more people. So you would think that fundraising would become a top priority.

Your board, your boss, yourself, will all say it is, but too often that is just mouth music. If it really was a priority, that person would be on staff. So now you can complain about what you can’t accomplish, or you can just decide that you will make fundraising a priority and THEN get the staff you need.

Remember, always, that fundraising starts with gratitude. Every single (work)day, reach out to five or ten (or however many you can) existing donors to thank them for what they do and remind them what their generosity accomplishes.

Then reach out to former (also known as lapsed) donors, and remind them how much they are missed and what their renewed support could do.

Reach out how? Phone, email, text, social media, a handwritten note….whatever the contact information you have will allow! And mix it up. If this month you phone, maybe in 5 or 6 months, you’ll email.

These outreach efforts should be (ok, I’m going to us a word I swore I wouldn’t, ever) carefully curated. Not a mass message, but one crafted specifically for that person.

Don’t know much about them? Fine. Now is a great time to ask. To a lapsed donor note that, “It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from you. I hope all is well. And I’m wondering what we can do to get you back as a supporter…..” Then tell them how important your supporters are and share a special story.

For a loyal donor, remind them that they—above everyone—help to move your mission forward. They are the ones who make a huge difference. And you cannot thank them enough for their ongoing support.

Then ask, “Because you are such a valued member of our family, I’d love to chat with you about what you feel we do best, what we could improve, and why you chose to be a loyal donor.”

If you were to do this daily, suddenly you would discover that you now have a more sustainable donor pool. These donors will be willing not just to give but also to help you get—they’ll share the names of people they think are interested in what you do; tell their friends and co-workers about your amazing organization; maybe be willing to have a house party or remind everyone they know that for their birthday, the best gift would be supporting their most important charity: YOU.

And the more you chose to spend your time on things that do make a difference, the less unbalanced you’ll be.