Ikigai and the Modern Fundraiser

Cute, but not a way to live.

I love my work. Really, I do. 

Like me, most of my friends who have made fundraising a career like their work overall. But I see far too many of us scampering on the big hamster wheel, trying to keep up with the continual demands of the charitable sector. There's always another budget number to hit, another event to manage, another proposal to write, and "other duties as assigned."

Beth Kanter and Aliza Sherman's book, The Happy, Healthy Nonprofit: Strategies for Impact without Burnout, highlights some incredible stories of how badly things can go when nonprofit professionals ignore self-care. Yet we continue, as a sector, to emphasize that our passion and drive to change the world is enough.

While there are a lot of discussions about finding "your why" and focusing your passion, in reality, it's not just about that. To make a sustainable difference in the world, we need to take care of ourselves.

In Japanese culture, there is a concept called ikigai, loosely translated to "your life's purpose." If you Google this word, you'll find many articles about applying this concept to your life, including this one on Medium. 

Illustration from Toronto Star

The basic idea of ikigai is that to feel fulfilled with your life's purpose, you need four spheres in balance:

• What you love to do
• What you are good at
• What the world needs
• What you can be paid for

If you are able to do what you love, and you're good at it, you are pursuing your passion.
If you are able to do something you're good at, and you can get paid for it, you've discovered your profession.
If you can be paid for something that the world needs, you have a vocation.
If you are doing what the world needs, and you love it, you have your mission.

I've been presenting on this topic for the last year and struggling with it personally for much more than that. When you're thinking about your life's purpose, what's missing for you? What sphere is out of balance?

I've been using several tools over the past few years to work on my personal sense of ikigai. I'm writing a series of blog posts in the coming weeks to highlight each tool and provide tips on how to work on your own ikigai. To be notified when the next post is available, subscribe to this blog on the right, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

Lessons from an Extraordinary (Donor) Journey

The #DonorJourney Crew, clockwise from top left:
Guy Mallabone, Sue McMaster, Jenny Mitchell, Stephen Pidgeon

"Do you have time for a quick call? I have a time-sensitive item to discuss with you."

This short message from Guy Mallabone was the start of an adventure that brought me to Halifax, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg and Saskatoon. All in five days.

The Extraordinary Donor Journey, presented by Global Philanthropic Canada, brought together Guy Mallabone and Sue McMaster from Calgary, Jenny Mitchell from Ottawa, Stephen Pidgeon from the UK, and me, the token American, for a curated conference for non-profit organizations across Canada. When we convened in Halifax, it was like being at the start of a school trip--you don't know most of your group well, and you certainly haven't traveled with them!

The pattern began: present the program all day, pack up the stuff as quickly as you can, take transportation to the airport, grab dinner, fly to the next city, slog on to the hotel, rinse, repeat.

Five days. Five cities. What could possibly go wrong?

Everything did not go perfectly. But thanks to the adaptability and team spirit of our mighty band, we thrived and, I think, came to truly care about one another in a short period of time.

While I learned many things from the program content of my fellow presenters, my strongest takeaways are from behind the scenes....

• How you think about money affects everything. I am grateful that Jenny shared the Sacred Money Archetypes model in her session. Jenny's explanation was, "If money were someone standing alongside you, what kind of person would it be?" Would it be supportive? Judgmental? Petulant? Rebellious? What the conference participants didn't know was that Jenny had all of us do the quiz at the start of the journey. Initially, our call backs to our archetypes were opportunities to tease Guy, but as the week evolved, I found that the context of money mindset was useful in understanding each other and our values.
• Trust begets trust. In reality, we didn't know each other well at the start of the week. It would have been easy, and expected, to be guarded until we got to know each other. Guy set the tone early, however, because of an unexpected family situation. He had to let down his guard and trust us. His ability to persevere under difficult circumstances led us to not only to deepen our connection with Guy, but with each other. This led to open and fulfilling conversations that I had with each of my colleagues, and I am better for it already.
• If at first you do succeed, try, try again. Halifax was the first time any of us saw the others' presentations. While the core parts of each of our presentations was the same in each city, we thrived off of drawing from each others' content and making small improvements from city to city. In many respects, we were accepting Stephen's call to focus on "the concept"--how can you think sideways to get at the core message? The chance to refine the same presentation every day for a week was a great way to challenge myself.
• It can be rewarding to be a sherpa. There's a lot of stuff involved in presenting a conference! At first, Guy carried all the banners and Sue carried all the other materials, but those barriers broke down relatively quickly. Pitching in and helping where needed felt far more rewarding than just watching others do the heavy lifting. By the end of the week, we were "Global Philanthropic sherpas," and proud of it!

As I write this, I'm still in Saskatoon; most every one else has gone home. I am exhausted, but grateful, for the opportunity to spend time with some amazing people. I've learned so much in five days, and hope to have a chance to do this all over again. To Sue, Guy, Stephen, Jenny, James, Steve and Jeff, thank you for an experience I won't forget.

Outside Looking In - 6 Exercises for Finding Common Ground in Diverse Groups

A fundraising colleague, Dave Tinker, CFRE was asked to lead an educational session for refugee teens primarily from Nepal, Bhutan, and the Middle East to introduce them to fundraising as a profession.

He asked the #AFPeeps, an Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) volunteer Social Media group for recommendations for activities he could do with the refugee teens. I was excited about his project because it reminded me how often I work with groups that I am not, nor will ever truly be a part of. Alice Ferris, ACFRE and I have and continue to work with numerous culturally diverse groups; Native American, Latino, Rural, African American, Afghans, Iranians, and others. We find some of our greatest satisfaction working with people from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

I created the following list of suggestions for activities that I think can work for any group, but will be especially effective if working with a diverse group. I think they can build trust and relationships among participants while delivering insight about your audience that you can draw upon while presenting for both humor and education. 

ACTIVITY SUGGESTIONS:

1. "I Am, But I Am Not" (Defy stereotype exercise) Participants work in small groups to share what "other" people's stereotypes are of them, their culture or their country. They then share how they do not fit within those stereotypes. They report out to the group. This can be a verbal/written or drawn exercise.

2. "This is America?" (Cognitive dissonance exercise) Ask them to draw 2 things. What they thought America, Americans or other American students were going to be like and then to draw what they've learned "we" are really like. Goal: getting them to share their surprises and open up about their "American" experience.

3. "Good Heart, Bad Idea" (Critical thinking exercise) Ask them to draw or perform short skit about how they see people from other countries try to help through philanthropy in their home country but in ways that are misguided, clumsy or uninformed. Then ask them to provide solutions or advice for people who still want to help. This one will have to be delicately presented or they might be reluctant to share perceived criticisms.

4. "Sesame Street - One of these things is not like the other" (Breaking down barriers) Ask them to group themselves by different criteria; physical, demographic, geographic, cultural, religious, etc. They report out after each grouping about why/how they grouped themselves. The goal is to identify sub cultures that they share with "some" others but to finish the exercise where everyone is in the same group to identify that ultimately we all share some common culture regardless of resources, education or circumstances.

5. "The ONE Thing" (Self-awareness exercise) They work in small groups and explain to each other "The One Thing" they wish people understood about them, their country or their cultures that most people have a hard time comprehending. They report out why this is important to deeper understanding, trust and progress.

6. "Why Should I Care?" (Justify support exercise) Break them up in groups of 4-5. Try to mix them so they are with people they don't know. Provide a list of causes they can choose from. Make it about causes, not organizations. arts, education, health, social justice, animal protection, hunger abatement, clean water, etc. Do a random drawing after the groups are established to determine which group gets to pick their cause first from the list you create as a flip chart exercise. This will generate initial excitement and disappointment. Every person gets $100 in play money and 1 week of "virtual" volunteer time to give to a cause. They can give both to one cause or cash to one, time to other. Report out the winning cause and "You" make an actual $100 donation to a local cause in your group's name.

Regardless of the exercise you choose. At the end I encourage "You" to make a contribution to a cause that your group chooses and have them participate by signing a card that will accompany that gift. 

Be sure to provide a signup sheet and send contact information about how the participants can become more involved with causes they want to support either financially or through volunteer work.

Good luck! And have fun learning while you teach!

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Connect with GoalBusters     

Jim Anderson, CFRE      GoalBustersJim

Alice Ferris, ACFRE, CFRE, MBS      alice.ferris

Special Event Makeover: The Velvet Rope: Creating a VIP Experience

At the GoalBusters "Special Event Makeover" workshop, we discussed how to make your special event "special." Here is a repost of a blog from 2008 with highlights from "The Velvet Rope."
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Is your special event truly “special?” Are your VIP’s truly “very important?”


Maybe you’ve been to an event where you thought, “This is truly spectacular!” But you’ve also probably been to an event where you thought, “I will never come to this thing again!”


What made the good event so good and the bad event so bad? It was connected to your personal experience. Did you feel special or did you feel like just another cog in the machine?


To make a lasting connection to an event participant, you need to create an unforgettable experience that they believe delivered more value than they paid for.


When designing your event’s experience, think about these points:

• Exclusivity. It’s not “VIP” if everyone can have it. And this does not just apply to high end concerts or galas. Even at picnics or family gatherings, it can be as simple as providing a t-shirt that’s only available at your event. Exclusive is about providing access that other people don’t have.
• Participant focused. Depending on your event, you’ll have different personality types of participants. If your participant wants recognition, then make sure you have some way to publicly appreciate them. If they would rather learn more about the organization, make sure there’s plenty of information available.
• Shared history. Your VIP’s develop a connection to each other and to your organization when you give them stories in common. Provide unique opportunities for the VIP’s to interact.

You can design the highest value experience for your donor without necessarily spending a lot of money. Logo cups, a separate buffet or food and beverage services, toys, and other gifts are easy and usually inexpensive to provide.

Whatever you do for your participants, always think creatively and think from the perspective of your donor. Your next event will be spectacular!

For more on this topic, contact GoalBusters about “The Velvet Rope.”#####


Connect with GoalBusters: LinkedIn - Alice Ferris / LinkedIn - Jim Anderson / Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / Myspace

Storytelling: Communicating Your Mission with Infectious Passion

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On July 13th 2010, GoalBusters presented the webinar "Storytelling: Communicating Your Mission with Infectious Passion" for the Charity Channel's Charity University. Here are some of highlights and resource materials we discussed during the session.

Storytelling is a part of our cultural heritage and vital in any organization to transfer the passion
you have for your cause to the public, donors, volunteers, board members and staff.

Stories are important to us because:

• They communicate history
• They establish identity
  
• They share culture
• They aid memory

Universal themes will help you engage the listener so they keep listening.

Organizational Stories and Themes: Examples

	Mob at the Gates			Benevolent Community	Rot at the Top	Triumphant Individual
Examples for a Nonprofit School	Government funding being cut for education New legislation requires more time for testing and less time for other classes			Students’ families and friends get together to refurbish the auditorium for performances	Owner of property next door to school building large factory and trying to force school to move	Principal of school was once a student there and has come home to provide education for his hometown

How will you represent your organization? Most organizations have stories in each category. Which are the most compelling for your organization?

Classic Story Structure: “Introduce your hero, get him up a tree, throw rocks at him, throw more rocks at him and then get him out of the tree.” - Robert McKee, Screenwriting Guru

It's easier to convince a prospective donor to contribute if he or she can empathize with a character and be engaged by the story.

What do you need to transform your data to a story?

• Introduce Protagonist - Who are we following? It can be an individual or your organization.
• Inciting Incident - Importance of antagonism or the emotional dynamics. This is the "Problem Statement.
  
• Obstacles / Barriers - Why is it hard to fix the problem?
• Resolution / Success - Put the donor in the story

Another way to express the story is...

• Who you are
• What you do
• Why it matters
• How someone can help

Telling the Story:

• Determine your audience - Focus on who you can actually persuade to act
• Give your characters voice - Client quotes, Real people where possible
• Select communication vehicle -In person? Print? Radio? TV? Video?
• Pick presentation style - How formal do you need to be? Where will you be telling your story?
• Target desired response - What do you want them to do? Fall asleep? (bedtime story) Get angry? Volunteer? Change their mind? Give you money?
  
• Think about the epilogue and the sequel - What comes next? What will you talk about when you next meet?

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Watch the videos of the nonprofit organizations whose stories were shared today.

The Hopi Education Endowment Fund's connection of History, Identity, Memory and Culture.

The "Classic Story Structure" in the campaign to build the Sanders Clinic; Sanders, Arizona.




Meet John H. Caskey, III the protagonist of the North Country HealthCare story.




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Additional Storytelling tips and resources

Storytelling as Best Practice - Ten Tips for Storytellers by Terrence E. McNally

1. Stories are about people. (And people have names – even if you have to make them up.) Instinctively, your audience will want to know whom they will be following on this particular journey, and they also will want a mental picture of that person, so it helps to provide at least a few physical details.

2. One or more of the people in your story has to want something: to do something, to change something, to get something. A story doesn’t really get started until the audience knows what the goal is and has a reason to care whether or not it is attained.

3. Stories need to be fixed in time and space. Audiences don’t need every detail, but they want to know: was this last week or 10 years ago? Are we on a street corner in Boston, a Wal-Mart in Iowa, or somewhere else?

4. While people in a story pursue a goal, they tend to talk. Direct quotes let the audience hear your characters’ unique voices, bring the audience into action (which is precisely where you want them), and lend urgency to storytelling.

5. Audiences bore easily. Your story has to make them wonder, “What happens next?” or “How is this going to turn out?” As people in your story pursue their goal, they have to run into obstacles, surprises, or something that makes the audience sit up and take notice.

6. Stories speak the audience’s language. They are colorful (thanks to telling details), concise, and clearly understandable.

7. Stories stir up emotions. Human beings (which should comprise the majority of your audience) will not think about things they do not care about. So you have to make them care before you can get them to think about your issue. That’s the test your story has to meet.

8. Stories don’t tell: they show. Intellectually, your audience will understand a sentence such as, “She felt hostility from the family.” But when you write, “The family wouldn’t look her in the eye,” your audience will see the moment and feel the family’s anger.

9. Stories have clear meaning. When the curtain comes down, your audiences should know why exactly they took this journey with you.

10. Stories are containers of truth. At their essence, the best stories are about how we should treat ourselves, how we should treat other people, or how we should treat the world around us.

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Resources for Further Learning

Storytelling as Best Practice By Andy Goodman, available at agoodmanonline.com

Free Range Thinking A free monthly newsletter by Andy Goodman, available at agoodmanonline.com

The Triumph of Narrative by Robert Fulford “Story telling is an attempt to deal with and at least partly contain the terrifyingly haphazard quality of life.”

The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge “I realize that…many otherwise competent managers in leadership positions were not leaders of the same ilk precisely because they saw no larger story.”

The Story Factor by Annette Simmons “In a complex environment, people listen to whomever makes the most sense – whomever tells the best story. Facts don’t have the power to change someone’s story. Your goal is to introduce a new story that will let your facts in.”

Storytelling in Organizations by Yiannis Gabriel “In [a business] environment, amidst the noisy din of facts, numbers, and images, the delicate, time-consuming discourse of storytelling is easily ignored or silenced. Few organizations are spontaneous storytelling cultures.”

Storytelling for Grantseekers: The Guide to Creative Nonprofit Fundraising by Cheryl A Clarke

All Marketers are Liars: The power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World by Seth Godin

Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screen writing by Robert McKee

Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting; a step-by-step guide from concept to finished script by Syd Field.

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Additional training and presentation information about Storytelling and other topics is available at www.GoalBusters.net or by emailing info@goalbusters.net.

Connect with GoalBusters: LinkedIn - Alice Ferris / LinkedIn - Jim Anderson / Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / Myspace

Fundraising Through a Different Lens: Thoughts to Guide Philanthropy in Diverse Communities

Many well intentioned fundraisers have made a cultural misstep: you schedule a major event on a religious holiday, pick a menu that features food that is culturally taboo, or you make an assumption about someone's beliefs only to find out the hard way that you are very, very wrong. So how can you navigate cultural traditions, norms and unwritten rules when you are not a member of a certain group, yet you need to work with the group for fundraising?

1. Think about things you have in common with individuals within the community.
When we meet someone new, if you're good at getting to know people, you immediately start to try to find things that you have in common. But isn't it interesting, that when you consider groups of people, suddenly it becomes easier to find things you don't share? Instead of thinking about a particular culture as a group: Native American, African American, Chinese American, Jewish, Muslim, or others, begin with a single individual. Try to find common values and interests with that one person. Not only will this help with building respect for a potential donor's values, but also works to develop relationships that are critical to the fundraising process.

2. Find a "coach," advisor or trusted ally to help you within the community.
There are many factors that contribute to the definition of a culture, including but not limited to religious beliefs, traditions, geographic location, economic class, language, food, and much more. It can be very difficult to understand the layers of culture if you are an "outsider"--a transplant or an occasional visitor. Your advisor should be someone that you have gotten to know well enough that you can ask them the "stupid questions" without completely offending them. They should also be someone who believes in and trusts you enough to steer you away from the pitfalls and potholes! One of our trusted advisors is always good to point out without judgement when we've made a mistake. They also explain where we went awry. We value these learning opportunities and generally don't make the same mistake twice!

3. Take time to understand the "philanthropic currency" of the community.
While fundraisers are typically dealing with cash or cash based assets, we need to be aware that many diverse communities do not have a history of cash based philanthropy. In each group's culture of philanthropy, there may be traditions of helping extended family by providing a place to stay, or bringing food to a person who is sick, or coming with your horse to help with farming. In general, there is some tradition of helping others in every culture we have encountered, but in most, it is very direct and hands on. This is not to say that cash contributions don't happen in diverse communities--in fact, "minority" groups will become a majority proportion of philanthropic givers in the future as the makeup of our population changes. What you need to do, with the help of your advisor or coach, is understand what the culture's philanthropic currency is traditionally, and how you can translate those concepts to cash giving.

For example, in early Chinese American philanthropy, support was provided through "name houses," where any new immigrant with a particular family name could get help with housing, employment, communication, and more. So I could have gone to the Lin house to get help if I were just landing in the United States. Benefactors to these name houses were generally immigrants who had already established themselves. Points that you might glean from this tradition are that honoring the family name and making sure that the next generation is better off than the last are highly valued by this group.

4. Challenge your assumptions not only about other cultures but about yourself.
What misconceptions might other cultures have about you? Being aware of what assumptions others might be bringing to the conversation will also help with your relationship development. In my past, I've had people assume that I know how to speak Chinese, can beat up someone with karate, will generally be quiet and demure, will giggle with my hand over my mouth, and that I was not born in the United States--all of which are incorrect. (I've also had people assume that I was a good student, that I'm good at math, and that I can whip up a mean Chinese dinner, but those are true.) For Jim, working with Native American communities, others bring many assumptions about what the "pahana" (white man) will do. Assessing what misconceptions you may have to disprove will also help you navigate the culture.

5. Take time to build trust.
As much as I would like to say that there is a magic formula, there isn't. This won't happen overnight. Like other sustainable philanthropic endeavors, this will be an investment in a relationship that will evolve into support for your cause. It's not about changing what you wear, or translating your materials into another language--it's about understanding what a community values, finding advocates for your cause within the community, and building connections based on honesty and mutual respect.

Other resources about diversity in fundraising
This blog is an extension of my original essay written for the Association of Fundraising Professionals Kaleidoscope e-newsletter. Read the essay here.

Jay Frost writes a great blog, Frost on Fundraising. Here's his article on The Business Case for Diversity.

This blog was based on a session presented to the Association of Fundraising Professionals Southern Arizona Chapter in June 2010. One exercise was "Circles of my Multi-Cultural Self," which is available at Critical Multicultural Pavilion.

If you are interested in having this session presented to your nonprofit organization or association, please contact us at info@goalbusters.net or use the Contact Us link.

Fundraising Tips: A Snapshot of Rural Donors - Press - AFP

From the Association of Fundraising Professionals

Fundraising Tips: A Snapshot of Rural Donors - Press - AFP

(April 6, 2010) Although people from rural communities are less likely to donate to charity, those that do give donate a higher percentage of their income than urban donors, according to a recent study by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

The research, funded by a grant from AFP, found that all else held constant, rural respondents were almost 5.2 percentage points less likely to be a charitable donor, and donated less, on average, than urban donors, after controlling for human and social capital variables, such as education level, income level, health status, religious affiliation, family composition, and others.

Rural respondents were significantly less likely to be donors to secular charities, and gave less on average to secular causes overall.

However, rural donors donated a statistically significantly higher percentage of their income to charity than did urban donors. Also, rural donors are more likely to donate to religious causes than secular causes. Frequent religious attendance is associated with a higher probability of giving for rural residents, as is itemization of deductions on income tax returns.

Researchers found that rural donors give $122 less, on average, after controls. However, for both urban and rural residents, the amount contributed is closely related to some of the same factors that are associated with the probability of giving: being a college graduate, being married, frequency of religious attendance, level of wealth, level of income and itemizing charitable deductions.

Note: The researchers defined "rural" as those living in small towns with a population of less than 20,000. In this study, approximately 18 percent to 21 percent of respondents lived in rural areas.

College Educated Give More

The researchers offered several suggestions for fundraising in rural areas. Because college education is a factor associated with giving, engage college educated people in your work, researchers recommend. Rural residents who have gone to college give more than those who had not had that opportunity, even after taking income differences into account. Especially for secular causes, it is important to cultivate the interest of people with a college education, and people likely to be itemizing deductions (people who have recently purchased a home, for example).

Segment potential donors by income in order to structure appeal amounts matched to different areas. Values expressed most frequently by rural donors include:

• Those with more should help those with less (equity of responsibility);
• Giving is a form of reciprocity for benefits received;
• Giving is a way to express religious beliefs; and
• Nonprofit organizations are perceived to be more effective in delivering services than government agencies.

Even with attention to fundraising in rural areas, the total amount of charitable giving from rural areas will naturally be smaller than the total gifts from urban areas, because fewer people live in rural areas.

Urban Communities

Urban residents donate almost 85.4 percent of total charitable giving, according to the study. Average and median giving amounts, whether for overall giving, religious or secular causes, from urban donors were always higher than the averages from rural donors.

Suggestions for fundraising in urban communities based on the findings of this study include:

• Ask couples to give to charity, not simply the men in the household. Men report lower giving and lower probability of giving to secular causes, compared with women. Married people report giving more than unmarried people of either gender.

• Segment on income but expect lower rates of return in lower income areas. Structure appeal amounts matched to different income levels. Income is associated with the probability of giving (higher income means higher probability of making a charitable gift) and with higher gift amounts.

• Structure requests to highlight connections to the prospective donor's friends and family, in addition to the appealing to broader concerns for equity and reciprocity. Urban donors were more likely than rural donors to say they gave to support the efforts of their friends and family.

To visit the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University's website, go to www.philanthropy.iupui.edu.

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Fundraising for Small Shops

How do you create a successful fundraising program with a small development staff? It's not impossible, but requires resourcefulness, creativity, and, of course, hard work! In this session, we'll address "mission critical" tasks for your development program, how to recruit volunteers to extend your resources, and how to prioritize your many responsibilities to be efficient and effective. This presentation was originally presented for Stevenson Inc. in 2009.

Fundraising for Small Shops

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Grants Step By Step

We've been getting a lot of requests for information about grant proposal writing. Given the economy, we expect that funding from foundations and corporations will be flat at best, and more likely at lower levels this year. Therefore, you must have as strong a proposal as possible! This presentation, presented to the AFP Greater Houston Ask the Experts Conference, gives you a brief overview on things to look for in grant writing to make your proposal the best it can be.

Grants Step By Step

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Building the House of Philanthropy

Traditional philanthropic models spend a lot of time focusing on the donor pyramid. While this model is a fundamental illustration of how donors deepen their relationships with nonprofit organizations, the pyramid doesn't fully illustrate how philanthropy progresses in rural communities. As we have worked with a variety of Native American and rural organizations, we have added to the donor pyramid, creating "The House of Philanthropy."

At the foundation of the house is a culture of philanthropy, a tradition of giving that exists in every culture. In the Hopi culture, these concepts are articulated as "sumi'nangwa" and "nami'nangwa" which have been explained to us as the concepts of working together for the common good, and the helping each other without being asked. In every community, you can identify this fundamental need to help one another!


Building on that foundation are three pillars of non-cash support: donations of time (volunteerism), donations of services, and donations of goods. You will often see this demonstrated with community members helping out where needed, even without a formal "ask." Not only will people show up to work, but they will also donate tamales for a sale, soaps and shampoos to a shelter, items for a rummage sale, or clothing to a thrift store! There are so many ways for people to support organizations and causes without cash contributions, and these are often the "entry points" for philanthropy. In addition, charities as they are created frequently start with these types of donations before any cash is received.


After there is an established need and some degree of stability in an organization, cash contributions may start coming in as donors reach a point where they realize that they can't help with their skills or items, but they can provide financial support. A good example of this is a cooperative preschool that I volunteer for--parents are supposed to put in "helper hours" every month, but some parents choose to pay a little bit more for their childcare since they don't have the time available during the day. These gifts will likely start off small, but gradually progress through the traditional donor pyramid, potentially to the level of intergenerational giving, where the donor helps ensure services to the next generation!


The House of Philanthropy demonstrates that the donor pyramid is only as stable as its foundation and supporting pillars. If there are challenges with moving your donors through the pyramid, check that your foundation is secure.


Additional information on this topic was presented as part of The Hopi Foundation's nonprofit capacity building training, funded by the The Rockefeller Philanthropic Advisors Cultures of Giving Fund. Expanded information will be presented at the Association of Fundraising Professionals International Conference on Fundraising in April 2010 in Baltimore, Maryland.

Connect with GoalBusters: LinkedIn - Alice Ferris / LinkedIn - Jim Anderson / Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / Myspace

Nonviolent Communication in Action

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GoalBusters recently conducted a staff retreat/training in Los Angeles for a major metropolitan hospital foundation. One of our training tools was the book "Nonviolent Communication" by Marshall Rosenberg. It contains some very helpful tactics for overcoming conflict and communicating in an objective way by minimizing the clouding effects of heated emotions and judgmental statements.

The techniques were personally useful as I experienced some interpersonal conflict over the holidays with a few relatives. I thought that repeating past arguments would simply be frustrating and futile. So, I decided to try the concepts of "Nonviolent Communication" in dealing with these differences of "opinion and perspectives" which seem to typically fuel these redundant arguments.

Communication Goals: There are four goals when attempting to communicate nonviolently:
1. Observe without judgment - What are the "concrete" actions we observe that affect our well-being?
2. Express feelings - How do we feel in relation to what we observe?
3. Communicate needs - What are the needs, values, desires, etc. that create our feelings?
4. Make specific requests - What are concrete actions we request which will enrich our lives?

Here are four topics that frequently become points of contention in conflicts. The four related examples associated with each topic are based on individual experience and are dependent upon personal observations, feelings, needs and requests. While I've generalized to a certain degree, it is best to be as precise as possible regarding the "observed behavior" at issue.

Hostility:
1. I observe that you speak to me and about me with a great deal of hostility.
2. I'm saddened that one of my relatives would treat me in a manner that I feel is confrontational and cruel.
3. I need to be treated with respect and not to be spoken to or spoken about in hurtful or abusive ways.
4. I request that you do not speak to me or about me in disrespectful or harmful ways.

Personal Responsibility:
1. I observe that you react extremely defensiveness about all disagreements or perceived criticisms.
2. I feel as though it is difficult to have a discussion with you about my perceptions of and feelings about your words and actions without facing immediate justification for your actions or redirection of blame to someone other than yourself.
3. I need to believe that you can accept personal responsibility for your words and actions.
4. I ask that you try to hear me when I speak to you and not redirect the conversation with justification for your actions or blame for someone who was "just as bad" or "worse," even if it's me.

Personal Desires:
1. I observe that you put your preferences and desires above or ahead of what is important to other people.
2. I feel that prevents other people from their right to choice and happiness.
3. I need to know that you value other people's happiness and needs.
4. I request that you consider how your actions affect other people before pursuing your immediate personal desires.

Gratitude:
1. I observe that your appreciation for the generosity of others seems scarce or fleeting.
2. I feel as though you don't really demonstrate gratitude for everything those who care for you do for you.
3. I would admire seeing you demonstrate an appreciation for the kindness and generosity of those who act to help you.
4. I request that you make it a point to demonstrate your gratitude beyond a simple "thanks" and a hug by looking for ways you can give back. Perhaps through respecting the wishes/requests of your hosts (turn off lights, pick up after yourself, avoid wasteful actions) or by pitching in with household chores.

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I'm not terribly optimistic that my efforts will have a lasting impact on those I had the conversations with, but it did make me feel better to try. And I am proud that I didn't get drawn into a re-hashing of tired, old arguments.

I thought some of you may experience similar frustrations and would perhaps appreciate this unique approach at resolving those frequent conflicts. Good Luck.

Wikipedia Article: Nonviolent Communication

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Connect with GoalBusters: LinkedIn - Alice Ferris / LinkedIn - Jim Anderson / Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / Myspace

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