With the possible exception of “How can I avoid fundraising?” the most common question trustees tend to ask themselves is, “What do all these numbers mean?” I bet you’ve experienced that dreaded board meeting moment. The financial statements are distributed, the treasurer offers a few remarks, and then asks, “Any questions?” A long, … [Read more...]
Gnarly Questions (and Answers) About Board Training – Part 2
Last week we ran the first part of Andy’s Q&A with consultant Mazarine Treyz, who posed several challenging questions about building and training effective boards. This week, we’re sharing the rest of their conversation. Enjoy! Finding great board members Mazarine: How can you find good board members? What’s a way to get the BEST … [Read more...]
Using Fundraising Parties to Engage Reluctant Board Members
As we roll into spring – and party season! – we’re offering two exercises to help you create and host profitable house parties. Last month, we shared a simple activity, Planning a Fundraising House Party, that you can use to create a party plan calendar. Do this exercise first. Today’s post features a follow-up exercise, Fundraising … [Read more...]
Party Time! A Fundraising Party Planning Exercise
As we turn forward the clocks (well, most of us), perhaps you’re anticipating longer days and spring weather. Fundraisers have seasonal clocks, too. As the weather warms and the days get longer, I hope you’re thinking what I’m thinking – it’s almost party season. And you can use parties to raise serious money. Yes, you can … [Read more...]
The Value of Being Wrong
There I stood, at the front of the room, introducing the workshop. After reviewing the agenda, and asking the group to suggest additions or changes, I offered the following. “If you disagree with my advice, or any content in this workshop, please challenge me. It’s always a good session when somebody picks a fight, so bring it … [Read more...]
Trainer School: Three Takeaways You Can Use Right Now
When was the last time you participated in a really well organized, professionally facilitated training event? No, I’m not talking about the ones you present yourself. Perhaps you’ve sat through some disappointing workshops. I certainly have. So when I experience something really good, I want to do my little happy dance. I’m … [Read more...]
When Bad is Good: How to Facilitate a Great Exercise Based on Bad Behavior
How many times have you heard somebody (probably your mother) say to you, “Learn from your mistakes!” It turns out that your mother was on to something. We can, in fact, learn a lot from our failures, missteps, and missed opportunities. When it comes to training fundraisers to make the all-important face-to-face ask, encouraging … [Read more...]
In Praise of Role Plays – Because Sometimes You Need to Make People Uncomfortable
After leading a recent fundraising training, I read the following comment on one of the evaluation forms: What was your favorite part of the workshop? The role play. What was your least favorite part of the workshop? The role play. Clearly, this person had participated in something uncomfortable, learned a lot from the experience, … [Read more...]
The Most Important Training Skill: Three Tips to Help You Become a Better Listener
What do you need to become an effective facilitator and trainer? We can talk about preparation or humility or courage – all of which are essential – but from my perspective, the most important skill is listening. For some people, this is counterintuitive. Maybe you think of trainers as presenters, armed with agendas and slides and … [Read more...]
Take It Outside: Why Your Next Training Should Include Time Outdoors
This post was inspired by a photo. Take a look. You want to be part of this workshop, right? It was a lovely fall day in Colorado, at an event sponsored by the Community Resource Center. We had more than one hundred people in a church hall – good light, great acoustics, a very nice venue. And yet – a hundred people can only sit … [Read more...]
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