Believe. Decide. Move Forward. Serve. Repeat.

Believe. Decide. Move Forward. Serve. Repeat.

I care about you.  Yes, be aware now and wash your hands and keep some space.

But MORE – be aware of what you are thinking. Please. It is your best defense.

Your success is not about the financial climate, it’s about your mental climate. Are you spewing poison or possibilities? What are you telling yourself – over and over and over?

• “I can’t talk to donors now – I can’t meet with them anyway and besides everyone just wants to be left alone to deal with this thing.”
• “It would be rude to ask for money now. Everyone’s scared – no one knows what’s going to happen.”
• “What is everybody else doing – how can I get something out right away?”
• “They don’t have toilet paper and I’m asking for money?”
• “How will I be judged by others if I ask now?”
• “I’m afraid.”

Uncertainty is the new norm.  Today you are told one thing. Tomorrow it is different. Ok. Make a decision. Then, as you learn more, make another decision and another.

I firmly stand where I always have – YOU need to look inside yourself and find your authentic, caring relationships with YOUR major givers.  They want to help you now – just like they always have.  They want to hear from you. They want to know you care about them, how they are doing and how they can connect to your mission – now.

How they change the world hasn’t changed. Help them remember why they give. You exist to meet a certain need and that hasn’t changed. What they get from their giving hasn’t changed.

• Students still need financial aid – AND perhaps even more with disruptions with their family earnings.
• Homeless still need meals – and the folks who provide these meals need dollars right now to deal with the new challenges getting food out there.
• Senior living centers still need staff to care for residents and money to fund new ideas to connect residents to family when they are locked down. 
• Animal shelters still need food for the animals there.
• FILL IN YOUR MISSION HERE!

This is really about YOU — and YOUR Mind shifting into fear.

You live – constantly – in either a Powerful State or Primal State of thinking and feeling. You can only be in one state at a time.

Powerful State            Primal State

Hope/Joy                     Stress/Anxiety

Gratitude                     Worry

Confidence                  Overwhelm

Optimism                     Anger

Abundance                  Lack

Expansive                   Contracted

You may be feeling the fear of this virus…feelings of anxiety and worry. In this state you cannot access your greatest creativity and productivity AND you can actually harm your body, heart and spirit.  

It is not about what you experience, but how you REACT to it. Your beliefs and feelings about what you are experiencing are your choice. Our beliefs build from our childhood – true or false – and by what we allow into our minds and what we say to ourselves.  

We become what we think about. Believe and Decide.

You put out energy when you believe…and even the smallest grain of incongruence is felt.  Help empower your beliefs by making them your DECISIONS. Feel the shift.

I believe…                                                         I’ve decided…

I will be successful raising money now.                           I will be successful raising money now. 

the virus will not block my fundraising success.               the virus will not block my fundraising success. 

my major donors are eager to hear from me.                   my major donors are eager to hear from me. 

donors know I care about them–not just their money       donors know I care about them–not just their money 

I will be safe from the virus.                                              I will be safe from the virus. 

people love to give me money!                                         people love to give me money! 

Believe. Decide. Move Forward. Serve. Repeat.

A decision has power. It has inevitability. It sets an intention.  Once you make a decision the actions – the “how” – becomes obvious and comfortable.

1.  Talk to your donors about giving – and major giving!

Are you texting, emailing, phoning and face-timing your donors right now? Good! Ask them how they’re doing. Ask them/share how you are managing your mission during this virus time. Ask them for their prayers and MONEY. Share a glass of wine over Zoom. Listen to them if business is rough right now. Reassure them you care about them ALL the time – not just when they have money to give you. We make assumptions donors won’t give now – just not true.  Tell them how their gifts and pledges will get us all through this. In 2008 and 2009 during the Great Recession, those we treated well and authentically gave larger amounts then they ever did before some right then, some when they could later. Let them know challenges, but stay upbeat!  (scroll down to see three efforts my clients are launching right now below)

2. Don’t shut down. Be aware of avoiding or distracted living right now.

Are you shutting down? Working from home is different. Checking out? TV, video games, 24/7 virus news? Stay vibrant. Walk, do house projects, set up time blocks to accomplish your work during consistent hours, STOP TALKING ABOUT THE VIRUS. Look ahead and plan ahead – you can always make a new decision if the situation changes.  STAY in motion. You will find you actually have MORE time working from home. Do those things you said you’d always do if only you had the time….

3. Use this time to beef up the back office.

Do you have missing information in your data base? Could you use more email addresses? Now is the perfect time to reach out with what you have and ask for the missing email, or cell phone, or winter address…these times make us all want to be certain we can stay in touch.  What is their preferred method of connecting? ASK! Create/Update Relationship Action Plans!

4. See the possibilities! Embrace them!

Ask yourself, “If I knew my giving was going to drop, what would I do differently to lift it up?” Now’s the time for NEW – NOT “We’re always done it this way.” Host mini-zoom major donor meet-ups. Have a non-event. (These have been going on for years for event-weary non-profits and their event-weary donors.) Sell the silent auction items online. But most important – continue the conversations with your major donors about how their gifts matter and make a difference.

Your fear is more contagious, and more deadly, than this virus. It makes you contract. Your breathing comes fast. Your heart races and your body reacts making you more likely to get sick – fulfilling your fear!  Decide to be strong!

We will get through this. I promise. Trust me.

Believe. Decide. Move Forward. Serve. Repeat.