Four Actions for Tackling Obstacles
Now let’s look at how YOU can jump over any Obstacles in your Path!
1. Reframe an obstacle. “Not all storms come to disrupt your life; some come to clear your path.” Paulo Coelho said this and I believe it represents some of the positives that have resulted from the challenges of our Covid experience. It cleared the path, if you will, for zoom trainings, meetings and family sharing that only the sheer force of that “storm” could do. Consider that there is a silver lining in all your obstacle.
2. Engage in the Power of Positive Doing. My friend and author, BJ Gallagher, has a book, “The Power of Positive Doing.” I agree that you can actually change your thoughts and attitudes by taking positive ACTION, no matter what you are thinking or feeling. While our mindset IS important – and we should constantly work on our thinking, it can be an obstacle to manage it! Positive doing helps!
3. Prioritize and Identify your Daily Highlight. In the book Make Time by two Google programmers, Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky, they challenge us to set one daily highlight that we commit to doing each day. I have adapted this to 2 highlights – one professional, one personal – and it is remarkable how this compounds over a month and then a year without feeling like a burden or overwhelming.
4. Adapt vs Adopt. I’m really proud of my CASE Crystal Apple – bestowed when you achieve excellent ratings at 10 CASE national conferences. We always said CASE – the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education really stood for “Copy and Steal Everything.” To overcome obstacles, I suggest it is more effective to learn from others and ADAPT – not adopt. Your situation may be similar – but invest time to tweak another’s practice to fit your mission, audience and situation. This ADAPTING is a real obstacle jumper!
So now sit down and consider the obstacles you perceive you have to raising MORE major gifts. Reframe them, engage the power of positive doing, identify your daily highlight and DO IT, and adapt what you learn from others.
You, and your non-profit can, indeed, raise transformational gifts! Thank you for setting yourself up for what is possible!
SHINE ON!
