What do you know about your work? I mean, really know? The reality is that we all believe we know a lot more than we actually do. In fact, in all facets of life, we walk through situations believing we have more knowledge than we do. It’s part of being human. Each day our brains…
Month: May 2016
Making the Invitation
If there is one word in our work that captures people’s imagination and interest more than, “asking,” I don’t know what it is. Gift officers are conditioned to talk unremittingly about “making the ask,” presidents and CEOs wonder if they are “asking” enough and for enough, Board members want the development team to “ask” more,…
Do Not Solicit
Recently, I was with a client and we stumbled upon my donor record in their database. “Do Not Solicit,” it read. “That’s interesting,” I observed. “Why would you have me classified as a “do not solicit?” “Well,” came the response, “we didn’t want you to receive all our phonathon calls and direct mail solicitations. ….
Guilt or Grace
Which culture characteristic animates your advancement team’s efforts? While there are a number of ways to assess team culture, assessing your team’s placement on the “Guilt or Grace Continuum” can lead to helpful understandings. In the Guilt Culture, the fundamental assumption is that an organization gets better when problems or gaps in performance are identified…