On the Hunt
I have friends who like to hunt. For some it is an active sport. They’re out moving all the time, flushing out the game. Others just park themselves in a tree stand and wait for something to come by.
Even if you see hunting as a “blood sport,” my guess is that how you approach your development job is what kind of hunter you would be. Are you sophisticated — would your prospect benefit from a lead trust? — or do you take the simple path — just ask for the big gift now? Do you scatter a lot of bait, like a direct mail campaign, or put all your effort into a single, well thought out snare, like a foundation proposal?
How does this reflect on your career? Do you sit in the tree stand waiting for the perfect job to pass by (it’s easy to fall asleep on a nice warm day — when things are easy at work) or are you working with your dogs — your network — with a “nose for a job” ready to point out the best opportunities?
What We Learned as Kids
You know, we’re still children, just grown up a bit.
Your tastes may have become more sophisticated, but I’ll bet that you’d rather have a favorite childhood food than what’s good for you, and while you may not be in school, you probably approach your work in much the same way as you did back then.
Did you always engage others in conversation, Mr. Major Gifts Officer? Ms. Annual Fund, did you like to write? Or did you solve big problems, like the development manager you became? Yet there are days when I know that I feel like I’m just not quite placed where I should be, and I sit back to wonder, “What will I be when I grow up?”
How is this a career lesson?
There are a lot of clues from our childhood about what we can be successful at doing today. When I was a teenager, some of my best experiences were teaching environmental studies at a local park. Today I don’t teach 6th graders about the water cycle, but teaching about the fundraising cycle has become a big part of my life.
So what can you pull from your past that can tell you how you will be successful today? Since almost none of us grew up saying, “I want to be a fundraiser,” you are likely to bring a very unique, career changing perspective!
Networking, Fueled by Starbucks®
I am certain that coffee is the parent of the tech revolution. At least from afar, it looked like the rise of Starbucks® in the West came at about the same time that personal computers were getting a grip on the American economy.
I am just as certain that the rise of Starbucks® and the local coffee shop can fuel your career just as effectively. Do you need to be a “coffee achiever”? No, tea or water will work just as well. The point is that Starbucks® and their ilk make great places to see people to promote your career and theirs.
Your assignment today? Just like you would with a gift prospect, pick up the phone and call someone you haven’t seen for a while to meet and “just catch up” at a local coffee shop. Then do just that. Catch up on your respective careers, mutual contacts and aspirations for your next five years — then watch that fuel, I mean coffee, do its thing!
Time for Your Campaign
When is the best time to start a campaign? Now. Now? Yes, whenever “now” is, now is the best time.
Why is that? In good times, it may not be great because everyone is doing a campaign. In times of transition from bad-to-good or good-to-bad, lots of campaigns are starting to either get a head start or catch the wave before it ends. Bad times are just that — a bad time to do anything, right?
Maybe, but likely not. The best time to start a campaign — a fundraising campaign or a campaign for your next job — is when your schedule says it is right, not the economy’s schedule or your friend Sue’s or anyone else’s. Will it be easy? No, but was running a campaign ever easy?
Take heart, and if it’s the right time, let the campaign begin!
Follow the Money
A lot of people have budgets — whether you write down and track exactly what you spend each week or month, or if you have a sense of what you can spend from one day to the next, there’s only so much money and knowing where it goes is a whole lot better than the alternative.
But have you budgeted for career advancement?
What do you plan to spend this week, this month, in money and time to move your career ahead?
Think of it: you wouldn’t start raising funds without an idea of how much you’ll be spending on mailings, phone, transportation and more. Why should you be financially blind to moving your career ahead?
We’re not talking about much, but it can add up. Maybe you get a Starbucks’ card specifically for meeting contacts? Is there a piece of software — like a database for your network names — that you need to get to be more efficient? Who pays your AFP dues? If not your employer, then that’s a career expense.
Writing these down and adding them up will not only help your checkbook, but it will give you focus. Remember “follow the money”? If you follow where you spend your money on your career, and plan where you should, you’ll stop running behind on your expenses and start leading them to a better paycheck.
