Here are ten tips to make the holiday season great:

1. Play a game this holiday season to see how many new friends you can make for your organization. You should actually keep a list of new folks who come your way and become excited about your work. That way, rather than feeling like a victim to the slippery slope of holiday busywork, you can be building something for the future.
   
   
2. Keep a score sheet of all the cultivation contacts you are having. You will quickly see that you can give yourself credit for many phone calls, e-mails, and events, and it will remind you to slow down and listen to people, rather than just push through your agenda. You might even hear how they'd like to become more involved.
   
   
3. Missionize everything! Figure out how you can insert your mission into everything you are doing. Have the annual holiday card include a story or letter from a client or member, have an alumni speaker at the open house, and have a volunteer tell why they are personally involved with you at every event. Wherever possible, Capture the Names with permission and invite these people to Point of Entry^® Events.
   
   
4. Remember that people get sentimental at the holidays. You can be a little sappier and they will respond to the emotion. Let yourself get caught up in the spirit of the season. Ask your program staff to provide you with some new client stories you can be telling over the holidays. Odds are, just hearing the stories will reconnect you to the mission. While you're at it, remember to use this as an occasion to thank your program staff for all they have done to support you all year.
   
   
5. Remember that people are especially generous around the holidays. They give the most in this season. Take the time now—before the holidays—to make a list of donors you have been cultivating all year. Plan to see each of them over the holidays (either individually or in small groups) to thank them for their past giving, tell them what their gifts have allowed you to do, and—if appropriate—ask them to give again this year. This is also an excellent time of year to be planting the seeds for next year's leadership and challenge gifts for your Ask Event^™. Think of every one of these meetings as a cultivation contact.
   
   
6. A genuine "thank you" counts as a cultivation contact, as long as you do it personally. Make a list of all the people you want to thank, and figure out the most personal way to do that. For some, it will be a handwritten note on their holiday card, for others it will be homemade cookies with a note from a client dropped off at their door, and for others it will be a nice holiday lunch with the person on your team who would mean the most to them.
   
   
7. Capture everything in your database. Things can get moving pretty fast, and before you know it, a week has gone by and you haven't tracked that great conversation you had with a donor last Monday. Allow an hour at the end of each day just to regroup, enter your notes into your tracking system, and plan for tomorrow.
   
   
8. Take care of yourself. Make a list of the five people in your work who make you feel great when you're around them—donors, staff, volunteers—and be sure to schedule time with each of them over the holidays.
   
   
9. During the last week of the year, if you're lucky enough to have it off, enjoy! Take a well-deserved break and recharge your battery for next year. If you will be in the office, use the time to catch up on the stacks of work that may have landed in the corner or on the floor to be tackled "later." Clear the decks so you are set to start the year refreshed. Treat yourself to a special lunch or coffee meeting with one of your favorite colleagues or donors each day that week.
   
   
10. On December 15, stop and take stock. Close your door and put on the "do not disturb" sign. Make lists of your proudest accomplishments and greatest regrets of the year. Share that list at a year-end celebration with your team. Toast to their commitment and dedication—and yours!
    
    

To listen to a podcast on this topic, click here. (Note that this audio file is large and may take some time to download.)