Courage to Ask in a Recession

Hi friend. So today we are going to be talking about having the courage to ask in a recession and why courage matters, especially during a recession. And know, I think a lot of times what I see leaders do is they project. Their finances onto their donors or their organization is actually struggling to raise more money. It's, it's getting harder to raise more money, and so we assume that it's getting harder for everyone. And we project that onto our donors. Another thing that I see people do is you have one or two or even three conversations with a few major donors who are telling you that their business is struggling, that they are gonna be laying off people, that the recession is hitting them. And so you think, and you take that and you're like, oh my God, our donors are struggling. Oh no, because you got a couple of donors. Feedback doesn't equal everyone's feedback. They are not indicative of everybody's financial situation. So here's how you get the courage. You focus on your why, and you decide that when you are afraid, that's your moment to take action. And you focus on who you are doing this for. If it means that you need to get out a sticky note and write down the testimonial, the name, the family, the person who you know their life was changed through your organization and through your mission, put that sticky note right next to your phone. Put it there to remind you why you're doing. Stop thinking about you. So many times we lose the boldness in asking because we are focusing on the wrong thing and we think that our financial situation is our donors financial situation, and that isn't true. And here's why. Major gifts matters even more, and especially in a recession. Major gifts should be. One of your top three revenue streams, and if you are below a million, it should be your number one revenue stream. It should be your focus that, or monthly donors. But either way, it's individuals, individual givers. That's where the money is, my friend. should be your focus. And it's even more important, especially in a recession, because mid-level donors and lower level donors, Might actually be struggling. They might be going into greater debt. They have less financial cushion during this time, and so asking those people, doing really big campaigns for your monthly giving during a recession may not be the best option for you to reach and exceed your revenue goals. You need to actually get gutsier with your higher level donors. You can look at the Great Recession in 2008, 2009, 2010. That was the season when I became a Major gifts fundraiser, and I've been doing major gifts since then. And you'll see during a recession, the top 5%, the top 10%, the wealthiest in the US actually get wealthier. Or if they take a hit during the Great recession, which they did. They gained all of their wealth back within two years and then some. That is the population that has grown in wealth exponentially over the last decade or so, I guess, couple of decades. And so we, have these level of people, even if it's one person, We need to get even gutsier and bolder in asking them to step up if they're truly mission aligned, if they're passionate. Last episode I talked about people who are your biggest fans and you know that they could probably upgrade their gift. They could probably give more, like they're in your corner. You gotta get gutsier with those people. And stop centering our own experiences or the experiences of our community, of the people we serve and project that onto our donors. Just because the people that you're closest to or the people who you've spoken to recently who are major donors, Might actually be struggling. Doesn't mean that all of them are. And usually when we do that, it's because we're losing confidence and we're stepping into fear. And fear gets in the driver's seat. And that's why we start to believe that about all major donors because we heard one or two or three people say that. When the truth is you don't know your donor's financial situation, even if you put them through a wealth screen because it's super easy to hide your wealth nowadays. Wealth screening, I, I mean, I do use that with my one-on-one clients. I do think it is a great tool. It is not the primary tool that we use. You know what the primary tool is? Having conversations with your donors and asking bold, powerful questions, the best data that you can get on your donors, the best research that you will ever get from your donors is what they tell you from their mouths. So you have to get even gutsier, especially in the midst of a recession because you don't have. The same level of support from mid-level donors, and you need to become even more bold with your higher level donors so that you can exceed your goals. That's where it's gonna come from. There are so many who get so wealthy during a recession, during an economic downturn. I mean, we know this, right? A lot of you are working on, I mean, and part of why your nonprofit exists is because of income inequality and all of the factors that are connected to that. The environment is connected to that, right? Our school system, the way that people who are negatively impacted by income inequality in this nation and across the world. We understand the factors involved in that and we need to understand it in our fundraising strategy as well. So you've gotta be able to truly use your empathy muscle to connect with and put yourself in the shoes of your highest level donors. They are not struggling right now. They are not pinching pennies. They might be a little bit more cautious. They might be aware of what's happening. they might make different choices, but they're not struggling. Do not make the mistake of projecting your scarcity mindset. Onto your major donors. You cannot afford to do that. Your community cannot afford for you to pump the brakes, especially during a downturn. You have gotta get even bolder and have the courage to ask even, and especially in a recession, you do not know people's financial situation unless they tell you. If you wanna know if somebody is struggling, ask them for more. If you don't know how to do that, you need to get inside my program, courage Lab. You need to check it out and seriously sign up. Get on the wait list. We have a cohort in September. You need to learn how to ask for more if you do not know how to do that in a way that is respectful and clear. Then you need to get over your poverty mindset, your scarcity mindset, that people don't have enough money, that they don't care, that they don't give a shit, that they are not really there to help you. They're just there to get the tax deduction, the tax write off, that they're not gonna give again, that they just gave. So why would they give more? All of these scripts that run through our head. Keep our mission and our impact and keep us as leaders small. And if you are ready and fed up, you're ready to overcome that. You need to get inside my program. Courage Lab. That's what it's all about. It's a six week training program for nonprofit executive directors, development directors, major gifts officers, any fundraiser who needs to learn how to make the ask clearly. And raise 10 k plus gifts whenever you decide to make the ask. That's what it's all about. If that's you, you need to get on the wait list right now. I don't want you to put this off anymore. Don't make the mistake of projecting hard times onto your highest level donors. What's most likely happening is they are ready to step up. In new ways, especially because they know people are struggling and it's your job to invite them to do it. Until next time.