7 Steps to Stay Out of Fundraising Crisis Mode

4. You have protection from your board’s fundraising idea of the month.
We’ve all been there. A well-meaning board member gets fired-up over some strange new fundraising idea. And she’s convinced that this, this, will save your organization. What do you do? Well, you calmly bring out your fundraising plan—one that everyone signed off on months ago. And you say, “If we do this new idea/strategy, what fundraising program shall we give up? We don’t have the manpower to do it all. Usually, cooler heads will prevail. And everyone will understand the wisdom of keeping with the current plan.

Otherwise: You are at the mercy of the idea of the week. And you’re stuck.

5. You can shift from reactive to proactive.
Your plan also keeps you from being buffeted around by what’s happening around you. You don’t have be reacting all the time. A good plan gives you flexibility and time to deal with roadblocks and breakdowns. Instead, you are proactive. You have everything in place so that your plan is effective and efficient, and will bring in the donors and the money you need. Whew. I can just feel everybody around you relaxing.

Otherwise: Rush around, lose sleep, create tension and lose your quality of life.

6. You can build confidence in your fundraising program.
When people above you have confidence in you and your plan, they will leave you alone and let you do your work. And they will smile when they see you because you are exuding confidence. Enough said.

Otherwise: If they don’t have confidence in you, they will meddle with your plans and your program. They’ll institute weird metrics to measure you by. Don’t let this happen to you.

7. You will raise tons more money.
Clearly, a solid plan will help you raise more money. A good plan gives you confidence. You have time to do the work required to court major donors. And you’ll be organized to plan a profitable gala, to develop a sequenced year-end fundraising campaign and to get your website working smoothly. You even have time to take a vacation or two.

If you want to create your own killer plan that will take you where you want to go, join me for my two important workshops: Create a Transformational Fundraising and Solicitation Plan for 2015-16. Check them out. I hope you can join me!

Bottom Line: Have a wonderful summer. Take some time off. And create that plan. It will protect you and it will make your life smoother and happier.

And you’ll raise a lot more money!