I was recently interviewed for a newspaper story about nonprofits and fundraising. The reporter asked me: "What is the biggest barrier you see to people adopting your model?" I had no trouble answering. "Two things," I said. "First is the ever-pervasive scarcity mentality. Second is the need to be special."

These are two major hurdles for self-implementers of our model to overcome. This week's article for the E-New$ will address the first barrier—the ever-pervasive scarcity mentality. In a future issue of the E-New$, I will address the second barrier—the need to be special.

-Terry

There is a wonderful new book out called "The Trance of Scarcity," by Victoria Castle. The title alone makes the point: we are numb to the pervasive paradigm of scarcity. Whether a scarcity of time, money, or guests to attend your next gala or Point of Entry^®, human nature as we know it today operates as if there is not enough and there will never be enough.

Self-implementers are no exception to this. Every honest self-implementer will tell you that they would love to implement the model the right way, by bringing a team to the two-day workshop and letting our coaches guide them through the process, but they will claim they can't for several reasons: the money, the time, not enough passionate board members, etc.

This scarcity mentality is a given in all of our conversations. It infects and affects everything we think and say. Is it any wonder then, when considering using this abundance-based model, this pervasive context of scarcity would interfere? Here are three recurring scarcity-based concerns of self-implementers and some suggestions for overcoming them.

Concern #1: I'll never get the support I need to fully implement the model in this organization. How do I get the board's buy-in?

Educate your board about the model. Until they have seen, read, or heard a presentation of the full model and its long-term implications, they will naturally presume they already know what it is. Many groups tell us, "Now that my board members have watched the online video or attended a conference call they finally understand what we are trying to accomplish." Suddenly the model makes sense.

Most board members can relate to systems, and they find that this model offers just the type of systematic approach they have been looking for. Furthermore, they see the long-term impact of the model in building sustainable funding. Any board member who is passionate about your work will be interested in sustainable funding.

Do not aim to convert your entire board at once. Remember that most board members did not join the board with the goal of learning to become better fundraisers. While it is a good idea to explain the model to the entire board, as a self-implementer you are more likely to be successful if you select those board members who are already interested in fundraising or who have expressed frustration with the way you are currently raising money. They are likely to be the most receptive to a new, mission-focused approach.

If you can get one or two board members to learn about the model through one of our official sources (as opposed to you trying to explain it to them), they will get the message and become your supporters as you begin the implementation process. Even in organizations that have fully implemented the model, 100% board support takes several years to achieve.

Concern #2: We will never be able to come up with that much money. How can we find the money to attend your workshops?

While $12,000 is a large sum of money, many options will open up for you once you have educated your board, volunteers, and staff about the model. We often have people attend our live introductory events who arrive saying, "I am the sixth person from our organization to come to one of these sessions. They told me that if I like it, we are going to just take the money out of our budget to attend your workshop and get you to coach us through the process."

Last year, the average group we trained and coached raised $195,000 within the first twelve months after attending our workshop, including gifts and pledges. While there is certainly no guarantee that your group will raise that sum or more, we do have one other formula you might consider. Groups that send a team to our two-day workshop, participate in all of the coaching calls, and follow their coach's advice can expect the following results: an Ask Event^™ of 200 people would raise $100,000, including pledges.

In other words, assuming you have put on the requisite number of Point of Entry Events, done the proper follow up and cultivation, and followed our formulas (such as 20% minimum of "ripened fruit" at your first Ask Event), you can take the number of people you expect to have attend your Ask Event, divide by two, and then multiply that by $1,000 to determine the amount you will raise.

This formula tends to give our self-implementers the confidence to go to their board or senior executives and ask for budget approval to attend our workshop.

Here are some other creative ideas we have seen used to find the money to attend our workshops:

• Borrow the money, i.e., get a loan from a board member or donor, with the promise to repay it after your first Ask Event. Or, better yet, ask that same donor or funder to set up a revolving loan fund for you to borrow against year after year as you continue to train your organization to ultimately build sustainable funding.
• Ask one or more donors or board members to contribute the money to your organization, knowing it will be earmarked for your team to participate in the two-day training and coaching process. Invite them to attend the workshop with you as part of your team.
• Divide the tuition among your team members (or those who might be willing to sponsor your team's participation). We recommend that five of the seven team members be volunteers or board members. Ask them to consider supporting the tuition to whatever extent they can. This has worked well for many groups.
• Submit a grant request to a funder who already knows and supports your organization. Your existing funders will be likely to see the value in building your capacity and helping you become self-sustaining. Funders are well-aware of the statistics: 84% of the money given to nonprofits in America comes from individuals—not from foundations or corporations. They want to see you access the larger piece of the pie: individual donors.

Notice that I have listed grant requests as the last option. Too often, nonprofits turn to foundation funders or default to "writing a grant" as a way to perpetuate the scarcity mentality. By asking individuals who already support you to loan or give you the money to pay for your training, you begin taking your financial future into your own hands. You learn the benefits of asking for money from individuals, especially individuals who already understand and appreciate your work. You can look them in the eye, face to face, explain your needs, and they can often make a decision without having to consult another board or committee.

Concern #3: Our limited staff is already overloaded. Even if we could afford to come to the two-day workshop, how would we pay for the person to work full time to implement this?

Your team of seven will spend—collectively—twenty hours per week to implement the model the first year. If everyone on the team were to participate equally, that would be about three hours per week per person. Odds are, some will do more and some less. If you have a full-time development person now, that person would probably be your team leader and therefore take on a bit more time and responsibility for implementing the model.

Consider how you could reduce some of the labor-intensive activities your staff currently spends time on. While your golf tournament or gala may yield good results that you want to continue, reducing other activities (such as publishing your newsletter a little less frequently) could free up valuable time for implementing this new systematic approach.

After the first year of using the model successfully, most groups can more than justify reallocating staff time or discontinuing some of their less productive special events. At that point, they usually designate one full-time staff person to the implementation of the model.

Ultimately, we want your organization's development department to operate more like that of a well-run major gifts department in a major university. You won't find those people spending time procuring items for the silent auction or putting on golf tournaments. They are out talking with donors one-on-one, cultivating, listening to individuals' interests, and customizing the cultivation process for each major donor.