It’s through one’s ability to motivate that a Non-profit Leader can Activate. Activate what? The written plans and internal passion they have for their cause, organization, or department. Where does this begin? With the self-talk and self-motivation of the leader. From there it’s important to be able to motivate and inspire others.
- Be they paid staff, Board members, unpaid volunteers. or large donors, those who have succeeded in both types of motivation will be the masters of their own destiny.
3 women have shared their thoughts on motivation on this blog. Twelve (12) quotes from our Leadership Keys posts should serve as good food for thought too.
Toni Jackson speaks on managing and motivating volunteers.
Getting people to ‘work in their gift‘ was a critical key Sofia Crisp told us, in a July 2016 post, to running her Greensboro NC non-profit – Housing Consultants Group. Executive Directors and non-profit leaders who are skillful at self motivation and inspiring others will be at worst bent, but never broken!
Even in fundraising, as we learned from Leah Lamb, one’s understanding of the role of motivation plays a role. Big donations take time to get – so one must remain motivated for 18 – 24 months to succeed in getting them. That patience is based in being self motivated.
- Dream more than others think practical. Expect more than others think possible. Care more than others think wise.” ~ Howard Schultz
- “I never lose; either I win or I learn”. Anonymous
- “Victory teaches you nothing. Identifying what went wrong, and then adapting accordingly to it, is the only way to success.” ~ Jordi Alemany
- “Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat”. F. Scott Fitzgerald
- “I am a slow walker, but I never walk back”. ~ Abraham Lincoln
- “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”~ Maya Angelou
Toni Jackson, in discussing her previous role as Theatre House Manager for the High Point Theatre:
“I developed a sense of the spirit of the Volunteer. What truth did this position help me discover? Folks are going to give their time, their money, and their space to things that they are passionate about.
Once one embraces this, a person with the role of Volunteer Leader will, I feel, succeed in managing and motivating volunteers if they are able to do two things: Understand the distinct interests of their volunteers; set expectations for the roles they fill”.
Volunteers: An Essential Element of Many Non-profits
- You drown not by falling into a river, but by staying submerged in it. ~ Paulo Coelho
- “People lose their way when they lose their why.” ~ Michael Hyatt
- “There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure” ~ Paulo Coelho
- Don’t confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but doesn’t make any progress. ~ Alfred A. Montapert
- “The strongest people aren’t always the people who win, but the people who don’t give up when they lose” ~ Liam Payne
- “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure”. ~ Marianne Williamson
Leah Lamb, in addressing the fundraising strategy behind getting a donor to make a large donation to a non-profit:
“Too often I’ve observed non-profit organizations seeking to get major gifts in 12 months or less. Setting such expectations will likely lead to frustration and disappointment . . . While smaller donations can be solicited quickly, it takes time to solicit major gifts. Are you willing to make the investment and be patient? Placing unrealistic expectations on your fundraisers isn’t a strategy for success. Be willing to make the investment. Funding large programs (and capital projects) which will have real impact can’t be done overnight. A major investment is required”.
Fundraising 202: Making the Investment, Getting Major Gifts
Photo credit (team/success): Flickr/ccPIXS.com (CC BY 2.0)
