A Crisis is a Terrible Thing to Waste

That’s the title of Chapter 10 from the book I read in late 2020 by Keith Cunningham. Keith would know about this topic. He shares how his business was making scores of millions from real estate deals, but then lost every last penny they had!

Ouch.

He said, “We needed to hear, recover, and rebuild - but do it differently next time. We wanted to be certain that we NEVER had to experience this kind of disaster again. The thinking was not that we could somehow control the economy or interest rates. We couldn’t. But what we could control was the thinking, disciplines, and strategies that allowed us to get caught in the tsunami in the first place.”

Now, if you’re reading this I hope your organization didn’t lose every penny it had last year. That’s a bit dramatic. 

But, I worked with dozens of organizations last year who’s desire was to commit to doing it differently going forward. They wanted to rebuild their funding model so that they weren’t exposed to such risk during the next crisis or economic downturn. 

Here’s a vulnerable and partial list of favorite lessons Keith took the time to outline in his book during the week he lost it all. Some of these really ring true in our sector:

☑️ Keith: A lack of rules, skepticism, and discipline caused every mistake we made.
Questions to ask yourself: Is your staff in a pattern of reactive activities that keep you on the spin-cycle that never fully funds your big vision? Are you skeptical your team and board can help scale your revenue?

☑️ Keith: Catching a big wave is not the same as being a good swimmer.
Questions to ask yourself: Are you spending too much time on one-off activities like galas or celebrity endorsements that keep you from learning the daily activities that steadily grow your annual fund?

☑️ Keith: No team has ever won the game with an “offense only” strategy. Great teams, the ones who win championship rings, all have fantastic defenses. They think about prevention, protection, and risks. 
Questions to ask yourself: Is your annual financing model protecting you from the next crisis? Is it diverse, not overly dependent on one revenue source, and made up of a majority of unrestricted funds?

☑️ Keith: We acted like it was a sin to miss a revenue opportunity. That makes as much sense as needing to eat everything at a Sunday buffet.
Questions to ask yourself: What activities do we need to STOP doing that are generating low dollars and taking way too much of our time? Are you doing appeals, campaigns, and events every year just because, well, you’ve done them every year? (And side note, am I alone on missing buffets in 2020?)

Seriously, this book is good. There’s a list of probably hundreds of these lessons. 

Let’s not waste what our eyes were opened to in 2020. Let’s do this together. 

You've needed MUCH MORE for too long:

• A larger cash balance on hand for all things overhead and emergency

• Unrestricted cash in the bank to pivot programs and staff

• Relationships with large donors who understand your need and want to fill the gap

Will you look back on 2020, knowing it propelled you into a better future of funding?

Are you ready to change and rebuild?

I’m cheering you on!

Sherry

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P.S. Whenever you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you grow your nonprofit revenue:

1. Follow me on LinkedIn for content and resources first
I give away trade secrets and insider info every week - the same lessons I teach my clients about what they can do to start attracting larger dollars and generate more unrestricted money for your nonprofit.

2. Read my WHITEPAPER to see if your overall approach to financing your mission every year might be keeping you from growing.
Here you’ll learn THE BIG FUNDRAISING SECRET that keeps organizations from having the funds to achieve what’s in their strategic plans. Click here to get it.

3. Work with me to reimagine your overall approach to revenue generation
If you'd like to add 7+ figures of charitable revenue to your nonprofit, just send me an email at Sherry@QuamTaylor.com with the subject line “grow.” Tell me a little about your nonprofit and what you need to raise this year. I’ll get you the details! 🎯