Author: erik

Dr. Seuss on the growth of your non-profit organization

organizational development, Planning

growth“I laughed at the Lorax, “You poor stupid guy!
You never can tell what some people will buy!”
Business is business!
And business must grow
regardless of crummies in tummies, you know.
— Written my Dr. Seuss in The Lorax
 

 
You hear it all the time from for-profit business people, “If you’re not growing, then you’re dying.” If you want proof that this is the mantra of the business community, turn on the news or open your newspaper. Oh heck, just Google it and you’ll find more than you can read.
However, isn’t this also the mantra of the non-profit community? In my almost 20 years of experience, it certainly seems to be. The following are just a few things I constantly hear my non-profit clients saying:

  • “Our facility is too small (or too old), and we need to raise money to build a new one to serve more people.”
  • “The state just released a new grant RFP, and we should look at expanding programming if we hope to qualify.“
  • “We don’t have enough board volunteers and need to add more.“
  • “Operating expenses keep rising and we need to add another fundraising campaign or event.“

changesSo, I guess Dr. Seuss is right again . . . “Business is business!” It must just be a function of human nature, right? Because I see corporate America constantly expanding. I see the non-profit sector doing the same thing. And I may just get sick if I hear one more person rant about the expanding size of government on my television (I probably just need to learn how to use my remote and change the channel.)
There is lots and lots of wisdom in Dr. Seuss’ words and there are lots of directions I could go with my blog post this morning, but it is his last sentence that sticks with me.
I don’t know about you, but I believe “crummies in tummies” is an obvious reference to:

  • stress
  • anxiety
  • uncertainty

I think he is saying the idea of growth is a force at work at all times in our organizations, and it is likely a stressor.  While I believe this to be true, I’m choosing to look at this as a clarion call rather than a truism. I think the good doctor is making the case for . . .

PLANNING

In my experience, non-profit organizations who plan for growth don’t have many “crummies in tummies.” And I’m not just talking about developing one plan . . . those organizations have many plans including:

  • Strategic plan
  • Long term plan
  • Business plan
  • Resource development plan
  • Board Development plan
  • Compensation & Benefits Plan
  • Program plan
  • Marketing plan
  • Crisis communications plan
  • Succession plan

planningI know that many people look at this list and immediately reject it, but if Dr. Seuss is right and “Business is business! And business must grow” then change is inevitable inside of our organizations. And if change is inevitable, then why put on a blindfold and take the proverbal steering wheel of your organization?
If this post intrigued you but you’re not sure how or where to start, you might want to check out a few of these resources I recently found online:

Of course, if you are looking for an external consultant and partner to help your agency with facilitating you plan, I know of someone who might be willing to help.  😉
I am feeling whimsical this morning. So, please scroll down and use the comment box below to share what this Dr. Seuss quote inspired you to think about this morning. Your thoughts and experiences are appreciated and will likely help inspire other non-profit professionals and volunteers reading this blog.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Your non-profit can learn something from the Chicago Cubs

Uncategorized

Let me set the stage for you. It is a Sunday afternoon, and I am sitting in the bleachers waiting for the start of a baseball game between the Chicago Cubs (a team that I’ve been a fan of since my birth 44 years ago) and the Atlanta Braves. It is hot . . . VERY HOT! Then a song written in 1969 titled “Hey Hey Holy Mackerel” started blaring over the speakers. This song is intended to be a fight song. Never heard of it? Here are the lyrics words by I. C. Haag and music by JOhn Frigo):

Hey hey! Holy Mackerel!
No doubt about it,
The Cubs are on their way. (Hey hey!)
The Cubs are gonna hit today,
They’re gonna pitch today,
They’re gonna field today.
Come what may the Cubs are gonna win today.Hey hey! Holy Mackerel!
No doubt about it,
The Cubs are on their way.
They got the hustle.
They got the bustle.
The Chicago Cubs have come to play.
The Chicago Cubs are on their way.

Wanna hear it? Here is the YouTube version for your enjoyment:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQyUhiV_Fdw
OK . . . the scene is set. Now image another Cubs game in the history books and the reality setting in:

  • They aren’t on their way
  • They didn’t pitch today
  • They didn’t hit today (well, maybe a little bit)
  • They didn’t field today
  • Did I mention that they really aren’t on their way?

The morale to the story?
Be careful about the promises you make because you might disappoint your fans! How is this applicable to your non-profit organization? Simple! Consider the following:

  • Your mission statement is akin to the Chicago Cubs fight song.
  • Your vision statement is also akin to Hey Hey Holy Mackerel.
  • Your marketing tag line and public service announcements are also rally cries, right?
  • And your donors are very much fans.

When you organization makes promises that aren’t delivered upon, you’re setting yourself up for trouble.
Don’t believe me?
Then go ask the Chicago Cubs who purportedly are selling one million fewer tickets this year than they did a number of years ago. Ouch! That must hurt. Hopefully, the promises they’re making as part of their rebuilding plan are things they will deliver on (and soon).
Are you assessing your agency’s effectiveness? Who are you engaging in that assessment? How are you assessing your agency? And what are you doing about it?
Don’t torture your donors and supporters for more than a century. Start your assessment and planning process today and include all of your stakeholders in that process.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Tools for engaging your non-profit board during planning activities

Planning

Planning is an engagement activity, especially when it is done right. This is probably why I’ve found myself signing many contracts with non-profit organizations in the last few years to help them develop long term plans, strategic plans, tactical plans, business plans, board development & governance plans, resource development plans, marketing plans, program plans, etc etc etc.
OMG . . . I think I was channeling Bubba from the movie Forrest Gump there for a moment:

As you saw from that memorable movie clip, this stuff can get a little mesmerizing and rote. When it does, then planning isn’t very engaging at all and begins to feel like Dunkin Donuts’ Fred the Baker. Remember him?

Planning (whatever you are planning) can be frustrating for many different reasons, but two of my all time favorite things that result in tearing out one’s hair are:

  1. when participants don’t understand the issues, strategies or tactics being discussed during the planning process (or they have an incorrect and fuzzy picture of what is really going on at their agency)
  2. when board members don’t want to put their names on any of the action items

I recently found a tool that you might find useful, and I employed a simple exercise that also appeared to work fairly well with helping people better understand and engage in your planning process. I thought it would be fun to share both of these tools with you today.
post it notesExercise: What seat(s) on the bus do you want to sit?
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where your resource development committee is writing your organization’s annual resource development plan in a vacuum?
You know what I mean . . .
The committee meets, strokes their chin, pontificates on goals-strategies-tactics, puts it all on paper, brings it to the board for approval, everyone votes ‘YES’ and the illusion of  consensus descends upon the boardroom. Action plans were sketchy and very few people’s names were listed next to any tactics. In the end, you have a plan and the only person doing anything associated with the plan is YOU.
One simple exercise that your resource development committee could use to engage the board simply involves:

  • Larger poster paper
  • Post-It Notes
  • Pens
  • Approx 5 minutes of time on the board meeting agenda

Let’s say your resource development committee has set its goals and now grapples with what strategies it should include in the plan to achieve the goals. It certainly doesn’t make sense to include strategies with which no one plans on volunteering to help. This exercise — albeit simple — helps get a handle on the question: “What seat on the bus do you want to sit in?” Here is how it works:

  1. Label each poster paper with a prospective resource development strategy (e.g. prospect cultivation, specific special events, annual campaign, major gifts, planned giving, special projects, donor stewardship, etc)
  2. Give every board members a stack of standard size Post-It Notes and a pen
  3. Ask participants to put their name on Post-It Notes and place those notes on the larger posters that represent activities where they would like to volunteer their time
  4. Step back and facilitate a short discussion about what they see (e.g. Are there resource development strategies that don’t have any names? If so, what should be done about that? Are there posters with lots of names? What options does that give the committee? etc etc etc)

This exercise gives your resource development committee an opportunity to:

  • Refine and fine tune the strategies in its draft plan (e.g if no one put their name on the annual campaign strategy, you can eliminate it from your plan OR revise your board recruitment plans to find people with that interest OR change the annual campaign model to better fit the skills and interests sitting around your table, etc)
  • Develop leadership prospect lists for various fundraising activities
  • Target specific board volunteers to engage in discussion about action plans and tactics

Kinda simple, but pretty effective in getting people in the seats that they want to sit in on the fundraising bus.

matrix mapTool: The Matrix Map
When planning, I find that sometimes people get all turned on issues pertaining to:

Profitable activities

vs.

Impact and mission driven activities

Let’s face it. Sometimes our organizations do things that lose money because our mission calls us to do it or the community impact demands we do it. Likewise, we sometimes do things that have nothing to do with our mission because it brings in money and helps fund other mission-focused activities.
These calculations aren’t intuitive to business-minded people who sit on your board.
One tool I found while reading LinkedIn discussion groups is something called a Matrix Map, and it might be helpful to your board members during the planning process.
Steve Zimmerman recently wrote a great article at the Nonprofit Quarterly titled “The Matrix Map: A Powerful Tool for Mission-Focused Nonprofits“. This link is definitely worth the click if your board members struggle with questions like “why are we doing that?” during a planning activity.
What tools have you used to engage your board or help clarify issues in your boardroom during planning and strategic related discussions. Please scroll down and share your experiences in thoughts in the comment box below. We can all learn from each other.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

A basic truism about fundraising volunteers

Board development, Fundraising

horse to waterI believe it is a basic truism that you can’t make people do anything they don’t want to do. Every example I can think of ends up not working.
As a nation, we tried to force people to stop drinking (when they didn’t want to) by passing a constitutional amendment banning alcohol. The result? A black market and the rise of Al Capone.
Tell someone to stop smoking or lose weight (when they don’t want to) and it might result in short-term results, but the relapse rate in the long run is high.
While I’m sure there are exceptions to what I am calling a truism, I think I am more on the right track than the wrong track with this belief.
So, if you’re buying what I’m selling this morning, I have one simple question for you:

“Why do so many of us try to force non-profit board members to do fundraising when they tell us that they are strongly opposed to do it?”

I know, I know. We do it because many of our fundraising models need volunteers to be involved in order for it to work. Obviously, another basic truism in fundraising is that “people give to people.”
However, I still go back to where I started . . . forcing people to do what they don’t want to do is a recipe for failure.
So, what is the solution?
In my opinion, the answer can be found in the old Texas two-step:

  1. Stop recruiting people to do things they don’t want to do
  2. Start engaging people in honest discussions about what they do want to do

birds of a featherBoard Development
There have been many blog posts written on this subject, but it is time to stop agreeing with what is written and start putting those thoughts into action.
Your board development and recruitment process must include honesty, transparency and a number of tools that set expectations before a volunteer is asked to say “YES” to joining your board.
If someone wants to join your board but doesn’t have the stomach for fundraising, then you need to find another role for them in your organization (e.g. program volunteer, committee work, etc).
This type of strategic focus in recruiting like-minded people when it comes to fundraising will help solve your problem because you’ll no longer be forcing people to do what they don’t want to do.
your seat on the busResource Development Plan
Unfortunately, this board development strategy won’t be enough to completely solve your problem.
Why?
Because not everyone around your boardroom table will be comfortable participating in every aspect of your fundraising program.
Some people are drawn to planning parties (e.g. special event fundraisers). Other people are attracted to your pledge drive and sitting down face-to-face with their friends to ask for money. There are also be a number of people who appear to disdain traditional fundraising activities, but who are open-minded to opening doors, going on donor solicitation visits (as long as you do the talking and asking), and various other stewardship activities.
The reality of the situation is that you need people to do all of these things in order for your fundraising program to be successful.
This is where involving everyone in writing your annual resource development plan comes into play.
Getting everyone involved in the planning process is akin to asking them to choose which seat on the bus they want to sit.  In doing so, you avoid the pitfall of arm twisting and making people do what they don’t want to do (which never works and is where we started in the first paragraph of this blog post)
So, there you have it! Your agency’s fundraising problem is solved.  😉
Good luck rolling out this two-part strategy and please circle back to this space to let me know how it works out for you.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Ben Franklin is the father of American philanthroy

Fundraising

Every year for the last 15 years or more, I take the week of the Fourth of July off and head up to an old Boy Scout friend’s cottage in Michigan. Needless to say, blogging gets a little difficult when you’re looking out over Saginaw Bay trying to forget about the world. So, I’ve decided to re-post two older pieces this week pertaining to philanthropy’s roots in the founding of our country.
Today’s re-post is actually from the end of 2011 when I was trying to be cute and offer readers predictions for the coming year.
Enjoy!

 The Final 2012 Non-Profit Prediction

This entire week we’ve been looking back upon 2011 for major trends, and then looking forward to 2012 with an eye towards making a few predictions. Today’s post speaks to a fundraising prediction that has been true every year since the birth of our country more than 235 years ago:
If you ask people to donate, then you will raise lots of money.
A few days after Christmas, a friend sent me an email with the following Benjamin Franklin quote from Benjamin Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings:

“It was about this time that another projector, the Rev Gilbert Tennent, came to me with a request that I would assist him in procuring a subscription for erecting a new meeting-house.  It was to be for the use of a congregation he had gathered among the Presbyterians, who were originally disciples of Mr. Whitehead.  Unwilling to make myself disagreeable to my fellow-citizens by too frequently soliciting their contributions, I absolutely refus’d.  He then desired I would furnish him with a list of the names of persons I knew by experience to be generous and public-spirited.  I thought it would be unbecoming in me, after their kind compliance to me solicitations, to mark them out to be worried by other beggars, and therefore refus’d also to give such a list.  He then desir’d I would at least give him my advice. “That I would readily do,” said I; “and in the first place, I advise you to apply to all those whom you know will give something; next, to those whom you are uncertain whether they will give anything or not, and show them the list of those who have given; and, lastly, do not neglect those who you are sure will give nothing, for in some of them you may be mistaken.”  He laugh’d and thanked me, and said he would take my advice.  He did so, for he ask’d of everybody, and he obtained a much larger sum than he expected, with which he erected the capacious and very elegant meeting-house that stands on Arch-street.”

Ben Franklin is considered by most people to be the “Father of American Philanthropy”. His advice is timeless and perfect for those non-profit executive directors and fundraising professionals who are stewing over what their 2012 new years resolution should be:

Don’t say “NO” for anyone.

Ask everyone if they want to support your mission
and invest in the outcomes and impact your agency produces.

Ask! Ask! Ask!

If you do this, then my 2012 prediction for you is that regardless of the economy and any other external influences your non-profit organization will thrive and you’ll exceed all of your fundraising goals.
Speaking of non-profit new years resolutions, do you have any? If so, please use the comment box below and share your thoughts because we can inspire each other.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

America was built on a foundation of philanthropy

Uncategorized

Every year for the last 15 years or more, I take the week of the Fourth of July off and head up to an old Boy Scout friend’s cottage in Michigan. Needless to say, blogging gets a little difficult when you’re looking out over Saginaw Bay trying to forget about the world. So, I’ve decided to re-post two older pieces this week pertaining to philanthropy’s roots in the founding of our country.
Enjoy!

Philanthropy and the Fourth of July

Happy Fourth of July everyone!
As with most Americans today, I find myself reflecting back on our country’s history. While doing so, I became curious about how the history of philanthropy is woven into America’s story. After a little bit of googling and thinking, it is very obvious that one of very cornerstones on which we’ve built our country is philanthropy and charity. Consider the following facts:

  • In 1628, the Massachusetts Bay Company established the first ever American “board” to manage colonial business.
  • In 1630, John Winthrop preaches to Puritans bound for America that it is the obligation of the rich to care for the poor.
  • In 1638, John Harvard’s planned gift establishes a major American educational institution.
  • Throughout the 1700s, Benjamin Franklin is involved in numerous philanthropic projects including creation of the first circulation library in Philadelphia. He arguably plants the seeds of philanthropy throughout the founding of our country.

The list goes on an on. Click here to see a very interesting chronology of philanthropy published by our friends at the National Philnthropic Trust.
declaration of independenceThere is also a great white paper published on the website learningtogive.org that argues that the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution are underpinned by philanthropic principles.
First, consider that “philanthropy includes voluntary and active efforts to promote human welfare and well-being.” Look no further than the Constitution’s preamble that charges our new country with many things including providing for the “general welfare”.
Click the aforementioned link to read so much more about how philanthropy is woven throughout the American tapestry.
I encourage you to take a moment this Fourth of July to reflect upon philanthropy’s roots in our American democracy and pay tribute to how it has made us the country we are today.
Happy Fourth of July, everyone!
Here is to your health!

 Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Another lesson learned from a donor about relationship building

Fundraising, organizational development, volunteers

On Tuesday of this week, I shared with you a story that a donor had shared with me while walking me down his driveway to my car, and it had to do with a skunk and an incredible moral to the story for all of you workaholic non-profit professionals out there. Today, I am excited to share another short donor story with you about relationship building.
Enjoy!

caricature1Earlier this week, I found myself walking into a title company to interview a donor for a client. As I walked into the office building, I noticed the following things:

  • the employees looked busy
  • there was a sense of purpose in the air
  • there were lots of smiles and people seemed genuinely happy to be doing what they were doing
  • the office was ringed with framed pictures of people drawn in caricature

At first I found the caricature pictures to be out-of-place. I’ve never been in a professional office environment with cartoon pictures everywhere. (By the way, I do mean EVERYWHERE.) However, I quickly realized that these pictures created an atmosphere that permeated the workplace.
When the donor greeted me in his waiting room, I asked: “What’s up with all the caricature pictures? Is it a local hall of fame?”
He explained that the pictures were of local real estate professionals who use the services of his title company to close their property deals. He said that he used to make bobble head dolls of his customers, but that practice got a little bit out of hand. So, they started doing caricature pictures instead.
caricature2I walked away from the conversation thinking this was a unique, fun and quirky business practice. I also came to understand that this business practice was a genius idea on so many different levels:

  • it was obviously a form of recognition
  • it was a practice that allowed the company to express gratitude to their clients for choosing their company
  • it created a fun office culture infecting employees with an attitude that couldn’t help but bring a smile to their faces
  • it served as a constant reminder to everyone that these are the people they work for and the reason they are in business

Throughout the entire interview, I had the theme song from the 1980s television sitcom Cheers — “Where Everyone Knows Your Name” — running through my head. LOL
As the donor walked me to the lobby and the front door, I expressed again my love of his framed caricatures. He graciously accepted the compliment and then summed up his business practice with these few words:

“It’s all about relationships.”

Indeed!
Business is all about relationships and so is your non-profit organization’s fundraising program.
As I walked through the parking lot back to my car, I couldn’t peel the smile off my face. I just love it when a donor touches your heart and teaches — or reminds you of — something.
Driving away to my next donor interview, I made a promise to myself. If I ever find myself back to the front line of a non-profit organization as an executive director or fundraising professional, I am going to incorporate this framed caricature idea in some way, shape or form. Here are just a few of the ideas I came up with for framed caricature picture:

  • distinguishing an employee of the month
  • spotlighting successful clients
  • recognizing board volunteers
  • appreciating donors who join a monthly giving program or donor recognition society
  • identifying great program volunteers

Has a donor ever inspired a new business practice at your agency? If so, what was it? Can you think of other creative ideas on how to incorporate caricature pictures into your workplace that we can add to the list above? Please scroll down and share your thoughts and experiences. We can all learn from each other.  🙂
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847
 

A donor learns a lesson from a skunk

Fundraising, volunteers

I’ve been doing lots of interviews with donors recently, and gosh do they some of the darndest things.  🙂   I have two donor stories that I just can’t resist sharing this week (today and Thursday) with DonorDreams blog subscribers.
Enjoy!

 
skunkAs I walk down the driveway of an 80-something-year-old donor, he starts sharing a story with me about a skunk that appeared in his very nice and upscale neighborhood.
One morning while walking down the driveway to get the newspaper for his wife, he observed a skunk walking in circles and making its way down the street towards his house. As the skunk got closer and closer, this donor realized it accidentally had gotten its head stuck in a plastic soda cup, and it was circling and weaving around because it was disoriented and couldn’t see where it was going.
Not knowing what to do, this donor called the police department and asked for help.
As you can probably imagine, neighbors came out of their homes to see what was happening. Additionally, people driving by pulled over to investigate what all the commotion was about.
One of the people who had pulled over, asked the donor what was going on. After explaining the situation to her, she simply asked:

“Why hasn’t anyone here just walked up to the skunk and pulled the cup off of its head?”

Of course, no one had wanted to get sprayed by the skunk, and in the case of our 80-something-year-old donor he didn’t move very well anymore.
Sensing that no one was willing or able to do what was necessary, this lady walked up to the distressed animal, grabbed the cup and shook it gently until it came off of the skunk’s head. No one got sprayed, and the skunk ran for cover under the nearest bush.
With nothing left to look at, everyone went along on their merry way.
Problem solved . . . thanks to one lady who had the courage to step up and do what was obvious to everyone.

 
As I approached the end of the driveway with the donor and the skunk story came to an end, I couldn’t help but ask “Is there a moral to the story?
Which of course there was . . . he simply smiled and said:

“Do what you can do!”

As I drove away, I couldn’t help but smile. This donor had just summed up the entire interview that took me an hour or two to complete in a matter of a few minutes. In fact, he summed up so much more including the mantra for your agency’s:

  • resource development program
  • programming
  • volunteer efforts
  • special projects
  • board engagement

As you organization runs around your community talking about needs and the case for support, there will be lots of people who just stand there looking at you like that skunk. They will be paralyzed and unwilling to step up to do what is obviously necessary.
You need to keep in mind that it isn’t your job to convert these people. That is hard work and likely going to be a waste of time. Instead, it is your job to find the few people who are willing to do what is necessary.
Have you ever walked away from a conversation with a donor with a fun story that invoked an epiphany related to your non-profit work? If so, please use the space below and share it with the rest of the world.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847
 

Qualifying grant writing prospects in two easy steps

Fundraising

oopsHappy Friday morning, DonorDreams blog readers! I owe you an apology because I missed my mark yesterday and didn’t publish a post. I had good intentions, but my day started fast and snowballed unexpectedly from that point onward. Needless to say, I didn’t even have time to reach into my bag of guest bloggers and share something from them with you. So, I’m going to rectify my Thursday mistake with a Friday morning bonus.
A few weeks ago, a dear old friend of mine — Karen Dove — reach out via LinkedIn to catch me up on where in the world she is. 
I first met Karen when she was working as a grant writer for Boys & Girls Clubs of Rockford, Illinois. Our paths crossed again when she was the executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Wisconsin Rapids, and I was assigned to help her agency plan and implement its first annual campaign pledge drive. 
Karen finally got smart and fled the Midwest for the warmer weather of Florida where she consults with Boys & Girls Clubs on things like grant writing and social media.
This morning I am sharing a guest blog post from Karen (with her permission, of course) on the subject of grant writing and letters of inquiry.
Enjoy!!!

How Not To Get A Grant — Letters Of Inquiry

By Karen Dove
Originally published on May 12, 2014
Re-posted with permission from KD Consulting Blog
grant writing1I had an interesting chat today with a new client who told me their last grant writer didn’t have any luck using a costly search engine tool for finding new foundations.  After a year, they ended the contract on the search engine and now he is no longer with the organization.  The moral of this story?  Tools don’t make the worker…the worker must really know how to get the most from their tools.
At this organization, the grant writer would identify a group of foundations that funded youth services and send them each a letter asking for funding.  There were no responses.  Why?  Because a simple letter sent out in shotgun approach does not yield funding.  Chances are you know of an organization that has utilized this approach to funding, whether through grants or letters sent to donors.  Just send a letter and you get less than 3% return in most cases!
So if you don’t use research to just identify foundations and send them letters, then what must you do to be successful?
My first step is identifying the foundations closest to my geographic proximity.
Grant writing should occur in concentric circles, starting with those closest to you, then further away….county….state…. region….nation.  Most novice grant writers are ready to write to the Gates or Oprah Winfrey Foundation right off. Slow your roll…. and start close to home, where funders know you and have a real vested interest in your success.  Over time, you may get to Bill and Oprah, but that’s not the place to start.
My second step is most often to make a simple telephone call  (or less desirable…an email) to the foundation to help clarify what they fund and what their process is to apply for funding.
Some have their own set of forms, and will likely offer to send you a copy so you can apply.  Others have specific grant cycles, and might direct you to their website for more information.  Still others do not accept grant proposals at all, but only take advice of their family or board members, in disbursing the foundation’s grant funds (these usually are identified as not accepting unsolicited proposals).
If you want to call, but you can’t find a telephone number for a foundation, chances are they don’t want to be found.  Just strike them off your list and move to the next prospect.  Grant writing is a science and an art.  The research is the science of a successful proposal.

Advice to people looking at careers in the non-profit field

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job3When I graduated college with my masters degree in Urban Planning in 1994, our country was still emerging from a small recession (you know the once that propelled Bill Clinton into the White House). Needless to say, government jobs in urban planning offices across America were still in short supply, and there were many people with much more experience waiting in line for jobs ahead of me. It was this economic dynamic that forced me to innovate, changing my job search parameters and propelling me into the non-profit sector.
I starting thinking about this topic when the Wild Apricot Blog announced earlier this month that it was hosting the June 2014 Nonprofit Blog Carnival and the theme was “Innovation and Inspiration.” All of this got me wondering how many recent college graduates might be in a similar situation in which I found myself back in May 1994.
Getting it right the first time
Throughout my college years, I worked at a Boy Scout camp in the summer to earn money for room & board, books, and spending money. So, when my job search focus changed from urban planning to non-profit jobs, agencies with a youth development focus made sense.
My first non-profit job was with the Don Moyer Boys & Girls Club as a unit director. My job was to open a new site in a rural community west of Champaign, Illinois in a town called Mahomet.
I didn’t last long in that position because the salary was miserable, and I was working 50 to 60 hours per week. However, little did I know that I found my non-profit career path and future employer right out of college.
My next job was in the for-profit sector, and three years into that position I was regretting my choice to leave the non-profit sector.
I opened a new job search and thought I had found the perfect fit when I accepted a District Executive position working for the Boy Scouts of America in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.
I saw this as perfect because:

  • I am an alumnus of the scouting program and an Eagle Scout
  • I had already worked for the scouts as a summer camp employee and thought I understood the culture
  • It was a youth development agency, which I learned was a passion for me from my work at the Don Moyer Boys & Girls Club

Valuable lessons learned
job1I loved working for the Boy Scouts because I learned so much including:

  • Membership recruitment & management
  • Volunteer recruitment & management
  • Field service
  • Fundraising
  • Training

In spite of all of this, I learned this wasn’t “the perfect job for me” as I had originally thought.
First, I was still reeling from a divorce and grappling with my sexual orientation.
I was fairly sure that I was gay, but I thought I could make the choice of celibacy as I entered scouting’s anti-gay workplace. Interestingly, when the job offer arrived, it motivated me to come out of the closet to my first family member — my mother — because I was afraid that I would somehow get “outed” and she would find out by reading it in the newspaper. (side note — this kind of stuff was happening in communities across America at that time . . . it was a very different world  in the 1990s)
Second, I learned after three years on the front line with the scouts that the mission of the Boy Scouts only matched my passion and what was in my heart by about 95%.
It wasn’t enough to love scouting and be a poster-child (except for being gay) illustrating the impact that scouting has had on the lives of millions of Americans.
What I learned was that the mission of the non-profit organization for which you work (and work like a dog) must match what is in your heart 100%.  Being close is not good enough.
I used to joke with close friends that it was the mission of the Boy Scouts to “take today’s average Joe and turn them into tomorrow’s CEO.” Of course, scouting’s mission is much more than this, but leadership development is still at its core.
What I came to realize was that I am passionate about much more than just working with and making a difference in the lives of today’s youth. I am passionate about working with “those kids who need us most.” We used to call those kids “at-risk” or “youth from disadvantaged circumstances.”
So, I opened another job search, left a job promotion opportunity on the table with the Boy Scouts, and landed my first executive director job working with a local Boys & Girls Club. And the rest as they say is history!   😉
Words of wisdom for those young people looking for non-profit jobs today

  1. job2Look into your heart and understand your passions
  2. Match your job search with your passions
  3. Don’t settle for offers from non-profit organizations that don’t speak to your inner passions
  4. Understand the organizational culture of the agency for which you’re going to work
  5. Understand that you can most likely make more money working in the for-profit sector, but your payday will come from making a difference in the lives of your clients
  6. Consider doing some volunteer work first to identify areas of interest before jumping into a non-profit career
  7. Don’t abandon hope of doing what you studied in school because there is lots of room for lots of stuff in the non-profit community (for example, I am using my urban planning degree to do lots of strategic planning, board development planning and fundraising planning)

Are are currently looking for a non-profit job? Or does your story sound similar to mine? If so, please scroll down and share your thoughts and experiences in the comment box below. We can all learn from each other.
Here’s to your health!
Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com 
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
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