“When Should You ‘Pick the Low Hanging Fruit’?'”

Part of The Words We Use Series

Let’s talk about Tom. I especially treasured meeting Tom at the United Way Great Rivers Conference last month. He’s clearly dedicated to raising the dollars to make an impact in the community. But, throughout my workshop, Tom pushed back as I stressed the importance of our words in our work and life joy, satisfaction and success. He looked at “picking the low hanging fruit” for example, as a go-getter’s way of focusing on the most likely donors and bringing them in. He said it fired-up his competitive engines!

Well ok then. Let’s go out there and GRAB ’em!

I asked the group to describe WHY these prospects (another word I’m not fond of) were considered “low hanging fruit.”

“They’re easy.” “They are ready to give.” “They are ripe for the picking.” I asked if these prospects KNEW you? Were they your volunteers? Were they your friends? Did they believe in the mission? Had they given to you in the past? Had they come to your events?

“Oh, YES!”

So let’s say Joe is someone who deeply cares about your organization. He’s given gift for years, never misses an event, talks about your organization everywhere, is ready to volunteer and speaks highly of you and what you are doing. You visit Joe and say, “Joe, you are ripe and easy and I’m here today to pick you.”

How does that make Joe feel?

Put names and faces to these “low, hanging fruit.”

Now let’s get back to Tom.  He caught up to me at lunch…an athletic, tall, gracious and dashing fellow.  He took my hand and said, his eyes misty, “There are three gentlemen I have known in the community for a long time.  They are sincerely caring and invest in making the community better.  They believe that if everyone has the opportunity to better themselves it makes for strong communities and families, and that’s good for everyone.  They are generous and caring.  They will be transferred now to another staff member and I was concerned about staying in the loop – I want to KNOW they will be treated well.  Then I realized that I had transformed them into objects (fruit) for my fundraising bottom line (picking).  I felt terrible.”

How we talk and think about our givers behind their back impacts our relationship with them where we are together.    

And equally important  – do you realize how this makes YOU feel?  About Joe, about your work in this honorable and noble profession, about giving?

The specific words we use – to our givers directly and as we discuss these givers in our organizations, must be authentic and respectful. Yes, this is better for them but it also makes us feel differently about our work.

So, when do you pick the low hanging fruit? Never.

When to you check in, reconnect, engage more deeply those closest to you that may want to have an even larger impact? RIGHT NOW!

Then you have more success. You have more joy. And, you sleep better.