An Olympic Moment

Sometimes the Olympics really interest me. This was one of those years. Was it the venues? Was it the athletes? Maybe my Canadian heritage drew me to the television? Whatever it was, I enjoyed almost all that I saw and learned a lot from the variety of sports.

But how are the Olympics a career lesson? Those men and women in “The Games” aren’t there by accident. Long ago these athletes realized that they were good — coming to the sport with either natural talent or a self knowledge of their deficiencies and the will to overcome them. They also knew early on that to stay good at anything takes practice. But knowing you’re good (or having the grit to overcome your deficiencies) and practicing is something that we all can do. What gets them from being “a natural” to being an Olympian? A coach.

Lindsey Vonn and Shawn White didn’t get there by themselves. In the background — sometimes lurking in the shadows and sometimes right there at their side as they took to the “field,” there was someone not just urging them on like their thousands of fans, but giving hints and pointers based on expert observations — right up to the moment of competition. The athletes realize that these coaches have a huge advantage over them — and that’s why they pay them. The coach isn’t in the game; she or he is WATCHING the game.

Yet in our careers, how many of us decide that either we don’t need, or can’t “afford,” coaching? Like the Olympians, you need to decide whether your career is worth the investment. The difference between finishing “out of the medals” and on the podium might be the advice of a good coach.

Bring Me the Sun, Please!

Nothing lifts me up more than a sunny day — especially after the winter we’ve had. For me, sunny days are great days to reach out to people — whether it’s on the phone or in person. But (and here’s the paradox) there are few days that I get more done than when I’m hunkered down by a blizzard. So you might surmise that living in Philadelphia, I’ve gotten quite a bit done through our 70+ inches (and counting) of snowfall this past winter. You’re right.

Why is that? A blizzard brings cancellations and therefore “found time.” Plus, as much as I love my children, with them out of the house on their own or in college, there’s no compulsion to build snowmen or go sledding (besides, the last sledding experience ended in knee surgery!) Shoveling? That’s just good exercise after I’ve spent too much time at the keyboard.

Is there a career lesson in all of this? Yes. Know how you work — and when you feel best to contact others versus when you do your best paperwork. Fundraising calls for high levels of productivity in both. While I know that it’s not always possible to sync my schedule to the weather report, when I can optimize my activity with my environment, I’m much more productive, and I’ll bet you are, too.

Kasser’s Paradox

As you might know, I teach a course in Philanthropy at Eastern University’s Masters in Nonprofit Management Program. One of the books that I require is Tim Kasser’s “The High Price of Materialism.” I tell people that Kasser quantitatively proves what theologians have been telling us for centuries: “Money don’t buy you love.”

The thesis is pretty simple. Beyond a certain point where we can have all the food, shelter, and anything else we need (that’s need, not want), most things beyond that do not give us any more happiness than not having them. Yet Kasser was able to show that people pretty much divide up into two camps (across most cultures, as it turns out): those who want more, and those who are pretty happy with what they have. As it turns out, the people who want more get more, and are the least community minded (read: give less philanthropically). Those that have less and want less are the most generous, yet have the least to give. It’s what I call “Kasser’s Paradox.” It’s something that most fundraisers know intuitively, so seeing the numbers is refreshing. It’s also why finding people who have great means AND great generosity is so rare.

So how is this a career discussion? Are you so focused on moving ahead in your own career that you forget about those around you? Are you rich in potential but oblivious to the needs of others? Don’t worry; it’s easy for that to happen, and according to Kasser, normal. There’s only so much time and you might not know what to do anyway. Yet those who are generous in their interactions — those that help others get ahead — feel better about themselves and often are paid back with the same generosity from others. Like a rare donor, career generosity doesn’t need to lead to “Kasser’s Paradox.”

Can You Withstand a Major Earthquake?

Thing are serious in Haiti. That’s the understatement of the year, I’m sure, but for a country that was known as the “Republic of NGO’s” for all of the international relief missions that served the people on a good day, the world went from very, very bad to unimaginably worse in a matter of seconds.

There are lots of lessons we can learn from Haiti. But a big one that comes to mind is one of preparedness. Are you ready for a career earthquake? Tremors may come with some frequency — a new boss, the loss of a key volunteer or maybe the illness of a significant donor — but “the big one” like the loss of a job or the illness of a close family member that impacts your time at work may only happen once in a great long while.

Like the Haitian people, we suffer and are frustrated by these earthquakes in our lives. Yet they are also times when others can demonstrate that they’re our true friends. The “relief” they bring won’t necessarily be in food, water and medical care, but it could be in coffee, counseling and connections. If you’re lucky, these friends will be around to help you rebuild your “career house” into the solid, earthquake resistant structure that never existed before.

The career task here? Line up your friends, now. Think of who you can support in their times of trouble and who can support you when “the big one” strikes. And maybe most of all, make sure that you have plenty of big, wide runways built now so that when you need the help, aid can get there quickly.

What Do You Call Yourself?

I have a friend who calls herself “The Grant Writing Girl.” Guess what? She writes grant proposals for a living. Who’da thunk?

If you were to give yourself a name, what would it be? What word or phrase characterizes what you like to do or what you’re great at doing professionally?

Of course, The Grant Writing Girl doesn’t describe my friend in her entirety. She’s a wife and mother and has a number of opinions about a variety of subjects, just like we all do. But being The Grant Writing Girl gives a “memory hook” to friends and colleagues who might need her services someday (can you guess the name of her web site?).

So what’s your name? Not the one that your parents gave you, but the name you give yourself? Are you Major Gifts Matt? or Annual Fund Ann? (No, alliteration is not required!)