Author: Len Moisan
Transformational Leadership
“Lead, Follow or Get Out of the Way.”
When he said it, Mitt Romney credited Thomas Paine as its author. The comment has also been attributed to Laurence Peter (Peter Principle) and General George Patton, but what does it tell us about leadership?
Leaders Establish Dynamic Relationships
Though we’re not exactly sure who first said it, the relevance of the quote is apparent inside any organization today. What the phrase really talks about is the dynamic leader-follower relationship that must exist if the organization is to be successful.
To that point, the late Peter Drucker commented, “The defining characteristic of leaders is followers.” Interestingly, without saying it directly, Drucker demonstrates the interconnectivity of the leader/follower relationship. Simply stated, you can’t have one without the other, and sometimes in that relationship (as James MacGregor Burns put it) leaders follow and followers lead.
Leaders Build Coalitions and Transform Followers by Addressing Mutual Needs
If you want to achieve anything through others; the relationships you have with followers can’t just be about your needs and priorities. It must also consider the needs and priorities of the people being led.
According to Burns attending to the needs and priorities of others helps leaders build coalitions of support. Building those coalitions is an important step both in getting things done and transforming followers into leaders.
Followers and Leaders Elevate Each Other
Burns explains, “Leadership is power governed by principle, directed toward raising people to their highest levels of personal motive and social morality. (It) occurs when one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise (elevate) one another.” That elevation is key to Burns’ idea of transformational leadership.
Well, you might ask, how does that elevation occur? Sometimes it occurs as leaders empower followers to lead and the leaders themselves follow their direction. Of course, at first this may be as simple as someone taking the lead, solving a problem for which they are equipped and receiving credit when they do so.
My son has been empowered to lead several times in his corporate career, and he’s had a lot more success than failure. In fact, company leaders recently promoted him to vice president, but that wouldn’t have happened without bosses who enabled him to lead in the first place. Likewise, he realizes that he also couldn’t have solved those problems without the help of followers.
Bernard Bass explained this elevation process, expounding on Burns’ theory in Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations. Transformational leaders:
- Model integrity/fairness so others willingly trust and follow
- Attend to needs and wants of followers including their need to lead
- Set clear goals for groups and individuals
- Encourage others in their work but also in their lives
- Establish high expectations, encourage people to reach beyond perceived limitations
- Provide support, recognition and appreciation for individuals and their contributions
- Stir the emotions of people and build engagement
- Pull together a team so they cooperate and look beyond self-interests
Others Get Out of the Way
This third part of the statement says simply that if you’re not leading or following, you’re in the way. While it seems self-explanatory, you’d be surprised how many people miss this point. When they need to get out of the way by resigning, they continue to stand in the way by resisting.
Now, I’m not suggesting that disagreements can’t occur inside organizations. They can and should occur. In fact, fighting through conflict is often the way we get to better decisions. However, for those who persistently disagree then it may be time to consider getting out of the way by finding greener pastures elsewhere.
Learning About Leadership from Peter Drucker (and Others)
The late Peter Drucker gave a simple distinction between managers and leaders. He noted that management does things right, but leadership does right things.
Articulate, Direct and Inspire
In these brief words Drucker offered a simple yet profound commentary. Leadership is more about vision than it is implementation. Not to suggest that leaders aren’t concerned about implementation; they are. However, in any organization that happens when a leader articulates a vision, gives clear direction and inspires others to follow.
When John F. Kennedy said, “We choose to go to the moon in this decade not because (it’s) easy, but because (it’s) hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we’re willing to accept, one we’re unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.”
Delegate
Now JFK didn’t supervise every detail of the Apollo 11 project. As President of the US he was much too busy and ill-equipped for that. However, by articulating his vision and providing the necessary resources, he was able to inspire others to a high level of success. In fact, so strong was that vision that it outlived its visionary, and was achieved in 1969, six years after President Kennedy’s assassination.
Unfortunately, not all heads of organizations understand this. In Peter Drucker’s last interview, encouraged by his friend and pastor Rick Warren and conducted by Forbes writer Rich Karlgaard, he talked about this. In fact, the article gave several important jewels of advice:
Don’t Be a Know it All
Drucker has seen many organizations fall as a result of this. He noted, “Never try to be an expert if you are not. Build on your strengths and find strong people to do the other necessary tasks.”
Charisma is Overrated
Too much emphasis is placed on charisma today. Said Drucker, “The most charismatic leaders of the last century were called Hitler, Stalin, Mao and Mussolini.” They had a lot of power and charisma, but Drucker called them misleaders rather than leaders.
In fact, in Good To Great Jim Collins noted that companies that achieved the “good to great” status all had level 5 leaders. Collins noted that these leaders all possessed a combination of fierce resolve and commitment to the mission of the company and at the same time, personal humility.
Encourage Volunteer Work
Keeping people engaged is not always easy, particularly when they’ve been in their career for a while. They need to be re-invigorated and Drucker suggests that leaders provide parallel challenges by encouraging volunteer work outside of the organization.
Choose Character, Character.
According to Drucker, organizations offer plenty of management training, but character develops differently. He argues that character is learned over a longer period inside families, churches, synagogues and 12-step programs.
Certainly character is important, because people of character pattern their lives in a consistent manner. They are principle centered and not duplicitous. Character leaders operate from a position of integrity and use power for the good of the organization and not themselves; whereas people lacking character wield power at the expense of the organization and often for their own benefit.
So what is the answer? First, err on the side of character when selecting leaders. Regardless of whether the objective is revenue growth, church growth or nonprofit fundraising growth, people of character keep your mission primary.
Additionally, training people to understand your core values and then holding them accountable for working in a manner consistent with those values is crucial. Finally, the “holding people accountable” also depends on having people of character both leading the way and following in the first place.
What Can We Learn About Leadership From Marriage?
The Case for Marriage
Syndicated columnist, Maggie Gallagher, and University of Chicago sociologist, Linda Waite, wrote The Case for Marriage. We’ve all heard that 50% of marriages end in divorce, but according to a New York Times report those numbers are “fake news.” They put the number closer to 30%, and for all Christians it’s about 15%.
The results of The Case for Marriage are based on Dr. Waite’s original research and her synthesis of hundreds of studies. Their book also includes excerpts from interviews. So what is it that we can learn?
The authors note that empirical and anecdotal evidence is quite contrary to popular negative myths about marriage. They demonstrate overwhelmingly that the marriage covenant is better physically, materially and spiritually than being single or divorced.
Better Payoffs for Partners
The findings demonstrate that married people live longer, enjoy better health, earn more money, accumulate more wealth, are more fulfilled, have more satisfying sex lives, are at less risk of being victims of violence and raise happier, more successful children than people who are single, divorced or cohabiting.
According to Waite and Gallagher, marriage benefits partners in much the same way business partnerships do. Specifically, mechanisms working in business (and also in nonprofit organizations) to provide payoffs for partners “are some of the same mechanisms we believe underlie the advantages (and benefits) married people demonstrate in just about every realm of life.”
Engaging People by Attending to Their Needs
Of course, in business and nonprofits many more people are involved, but the principles are the same. When the benefits are there, employees (and donors) become more engaged and more vested in the success of the organization. The authors note that the trust and promise of permanence implied in the partnership encourages partners, “to make decisions jointly and function as part of a team. Partners also expect to be able to count on others to be there and to fulfill their responsibilities.”
While this is true, it appears that businesses and organizations of all kinds are lacking in engagement. According to a recent Aon-Hewitt study, 61% of worldwide workers said they don’t feel engaged in their jobs. Gallup found that 70% of all US workers indicate they are not working to their full potential. Estimates indicate that this costs between $450 and $550 billion each year in lost productivity.
Caring for the Real Competitive Advantage
Accordingly, if employees represent the real competitive advantage, then it certainly make sense to try and meet their needs. This certainly represents a good start in enhancing engagement. However, other methods cited by the Gallup study include measuring engagement, hiring the right managers, coaching those managers, setting engagement goals and finding ways to connect with employees.
Connecting With People Through Covenant Partnerships
Finding ways to connect, means creating partnerships or covenants with employees and in fundraising, with donors. Gallagher and Waite observe that partners in marriage bring value and receive value. As a result of the covenant they share, the partners achieve more and create more value than they ever could on their own. Empirical data supports that this same concept, applied in business or any other kind of organization, works the same way.
Growing Through Retention and Loyalty
Of course, retention is directly related to engagement and profitability. Business guru Frederick Reichheld found that companies with the highest customer and employee retention were also the most profitable. He explains that building strong relationships with both groups by serving their interests is crucial to retention. When employees are treated like, “partners” they work to create value. That value adds directly to customers and thereby enhances retention. It also, “increases employees’ loyalty by giving them pride and satisfaction in their work.” As capital campaign consultants, we counsel our clients that donor retention works in much the same way. In nonprofit fundraising it is important to create a meaningful experience for the donor that conveys appreciation and builds engagement.
Reichheld notes that, “loyalty leaders” treat employees like partners. “Whether they use independent employee teams or vendor partnerships, the same principles of partnership apply. The key is to compensate partners by sharing the value they help to create for customers.”
These kind of relationships can exist in marriage, business, nonprofits or any other kind of organization, but wherever they occur covenant partnerships create value that can be measured in real, life-enriching, bottom-line results.
A Celebration of Freedom from a Servant Leader
The First Servant Leader
Leadership comes in all shapes and sizes, but most literature on leadership tells us that the best leaders are servants. Of course, Jesus defines servant leadership. He led his disciples and even washed their feet. He also inspired, fed, challenged, encouraged, occasionally rebuked and ultimately equipped them to lead.
And the effects of His leadership were powerful. Consider that all of His apostles except one, died for the cause He established. Beyond that millions over millennia have received faith, forgiveness, hope, healing and an eternal blessing through the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Some History on Easter
On Sunday we celebrate Easter, the most sacred event of Christianity. Ironically, the actual name “Easter” comes from pagan celebrations. In fact, many pagan customs were combined with Christian resurrection traditions and became symbols of the resurrection of Jesus.
That said, the essence of Easter is not about Easter eggs, candy or the Easter Bunny. Those are all fun traditions, but they are unrelated to the main event. We actually celebrate the power and benevolence of the resurrection. Those effects are manifest in the many transformed lives and positive changes witnessed for more than two millennia in families, communities and countries.
Evidence for the Resurrection
True, critics argue that the resurrection of Jesus and even His existence are mythology. However, there’s so much evidence to the contrary that serious scholars don’t even consider those options.
Beyond Biblical accounts, many non-Christian sources testify to the existence of Jesus. Consider the writings of Josephus the Jewish historian, Tacitus the Roman historian, Mara Bar-Serapion the philosopher and Pliny the Younger the Roman Governor to name a few.
My friend, Dr. Gary Habermas, has devoted most of his academic career to studying the resurrection of Jesus. He notes that there are five historical facts about Christ on which there is virtual consensus among all ancient Historians. Three of these facts include the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
The death and burial of an innocent man by scourging and crucifixion are what we remember during Lent. We deny ourselves to reflect on His sacrifice for us. Yet, that wasn’t the end. The victorious resurrection is what we celebrate on Easter Sunday and every Sunday.
Good News for Everyone
Why celebrate? Because by faith in that victory through which our sins, and the sins of the world were poured out on Jesus, we receive forgiveness, peace and everlasting life. That truly is the Good News of the Gospel both for you and for me!
During this glorious season I am compelled to tell you that through faith, I too have received God’s wonderful grace! Not that I would have ever deserved it, but through God’s unmerited favor I’ve been forgiven and freed indeed!
I am freed to repent from sin’s great plague inherited at life’s start, freed to escape from the heavy burdens that resided within my heart, freed to forgive in thanks for God’s grace and freed from the judgment He took in my place, freed to live and free to die and free forever in Christ to abide.
Best of all, I’m freed to experience the new life in Christ through the amazing grace and forgiveness God has provided. This new life is directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit, Who enables me to overcome the challenges I face. But the Holy Spirit is also a guarantee of all that I will continue to receive forever in Christ.
That’s why I’m eternally grateful and I celebrate this victorious resurrection of Jesus! What does all of it mean? At the expense of extending this blog a little longer than usual, I will include a resurrection perspective from Tim Keller, one of my favorite authors:
A Perspective From Tim Keller
“If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what he said? The issue on which everything hangs is not whether or not you like his teaching but whether or not he rose from the dead.”
Of course, Keller’s point is simple. If the Resurrection didn’t occur, then everything else about Christianity can be ignored because the Christian faith rests on that single occurrence. In fact, the Apostle Paul told us that if the resurrection didn’t occur then our faith is in vain and we are to be most pitied.
However, if Jesus did live and He was actually raised from the dead (a fact to which over 500 witnesses attested) then He merits our attention, our worship and our obedience.
Finally, during this season I offer that glorious Paschal greeting: “He is risen; He is risen indeed!” To you and yours, I send my warmest greetings in Christ for a happy and holy Easter!
Giving is Spiritual
Recently I made the case that giving is a spiritual activity. I came across a few quotations supporting that point and I thought I’d share them.
Giving Because Mankind is My Business
Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol is one of my favorite stories about redemption. We see a crusty, stingy man transformed into a kind and benevolent giver. At one point, Scrooge replies to Marley’s ghost that Marley had always been a good man of business. He responds:
“Business! Mankind was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The deals of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”
Dickens was saying that the world and money and fundraising are primarily about helping others and not about commerce. Business is certainly a vehicle for that, but it’s really a means to benevolent ends. In fact, Dickens said as much when he noted, “No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another.”
Giving so Love is Manifest
Mother Theresa said that giving is actually a manifestation of love. She explained, “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
If you don’t love people you’re not likely to be compelled to help them by giving. And even if you do, it’s a lot less meaningful if your motivation is something other than love. Robert Louis Stevenson made that point when he said, “You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving.”
Giving Beyond a Tip
It’s relatively easy to give a few dollars to a bell ringer at Christmas, or to buy a few boxes of girl-scout cookies or give $50 to volunteer firefighters. That kind of giving is important, but for most it’s more of a tip than a gift.
In my capital campaign consulting, I’ve found that major giving requires a time of reflection prompted by hearing or experiencing a compelling case. In fact, as a university vice president, one of my responsibilities was to tell our story, and then invite people to share our vision and make a major gift. I found (painfully) that good-sized gifts rarely came from one visit. People need time to think, discuss and often pray about the request. As fundraising consultants, we advise our clients to incorporate this mentality into their major gift requests.
Part of that time is used to answer critical questions. Is what they’re asking affordable? How are people affected by their work? How will my gift touch more people? What am I being led to do? That’s why I wrote previously that giving is a spiritual experience, particularly if I’m trying to give from the heart with grace.
Giving Under Grace
John Paul Warren explained the difference between giving under grace and under law.
“When you give under “compulsion” or “Grudgingly” you are giving under the law of giving and not grace. God loves a cheerful (thankful) giver, which is giving under grace.”
Grace is unmerited favor. When people give under grace they’re giving freely to someone or something at a major level, knowing that the organization or individual will never repay them. That’s really the point of grace.
The famed John Wesley reminds us that it’s, “Not, how much of my money will I give to God, but, how much of God’s money will I keep for myself?”
Unfortunately, when it comes to giving, many of us operate as Oswald Chambers described, “like the Dead Sea, always taking in but never giving out.”
Celebrating the Greatest Gift
This season we ready ourselves to celebrate God’s greatest gift to us. In the spirit of that grace let us give generously, knowing that our redemption is freely given to us through God’s costly benevolence; namely the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
So How Do I Make My Capital Campaign Successful?
Most of us want our efforts to be successful. In business, it might be the introduction of a new product, service or a new initiative, but the goal is to make it profitable. Sure there are always questions and mysteries surrounding something new, but the potential for future earnings make it well worth the risks.
Can Campaign Success Be Guaranteed?
That’s true in the nonprofit world as well. In fact, there is one major question that just about anyone involved in a capital campaign thinks about but rarely asks, “What can I do to guarantee campaign success?”
While there are lots of variables that make or break campaigns, most organizations want to position themselves to achieve maximum productivity. To that end, in our capital campaign consulting we have found at least 5 essentials that enhance the probability of success. They include the following:
Mission and Vision
These are essential parts of your story. Mission addresses who you are organizationally and why you exist, usually in one sentence. Vision addresses what you want to be or become. Success in fundraising demands that people understand your story and the need that flows from it. Yet simply understanding mission and vision is not enough. Your story must also be compelling in ways that move people. The case actually flows from the vision, but it needs to be articulated with a strong sense of passion.
Leadership
No doubt, strong and engaged leaders can make a big difference in campaign outcomes. Organizations that struggle are typically ones with weak or less visible boards. It’s important that every board member be involved first in giving and then in helping raise additional funds for the campaign.
In organizations with smaller or less visible boards, we typically recommend recruiting 15-20 additional people of means and influence to help as steering committee members. If the organization can’t do this, it’s unlikely that the campaign will get any traction.
Prospects
It’s important to have a sizeable prospect pool of at least 400-600 prospects or more. In the past, we’ve been approached by organizations that intended to kick off multi-million dollar campaigns. When I asked how large their database was, in every case it was less than 100. Not that you can’t have a successful campaign with a relative start-up, but you are greatly increasing the degree of difficulty. And even if you have a large database that’s no guarantee of success.
Plan
John Wooden once told me, “failing to plan is planning to fail.” You don’t raise millions of dollars without a solid plan, and that plan should be comprehensive. In other words, a campaign is not an entity unto itself. It occurs within the context of all of your operations, which must continue along with the campaign. A good campaign plan will take this into account and also provide strategies on how to incorporate and enhance public relations, annual giving, special events and more.
Action
You can have a good understanding of mission and vision with a strong case, a great leadership team, a rich prospect pool and a well-conceived plan. However, if you don’t have action you won’t be successful.
Why Campaigns Fail
As fundraising consultants we tell clients that when campaigns slow down or fail to achieve goals, it’s rarely because of a lack of prospects. Instead, it’s usually because of a lack of action by volunteers in making cultivation and solicitation visits. Remember, success requires that someone must ask someone else for financial support. Timely action on this is really an important part of success.
There they are, 5 essentials for campaigns. Do they guarantee success? No, but if you put them in place they’ll surely enhance the likelihood. For more information on campaign strategies check out our E-book “5 Sure Strategies to Make Your Capital Campaign Successful”.
I Don’t Want to Talk About It!
An Emotional Topic
Few topics are closed to discussion, but this is one of them. While this promises great reward, it can also produce considerable embarrassment. It can help feed, clothe, house, heal and educate people, or it can shrink one’s heart. It demonstrates grace and benevolence, but it can also lead to a lack of mercy.
What can possibly produce such diverse results? The answer is philanthropy or giving or the lack thereof. Gallup recently revealed that 83% of Americans give and over half give to religious organizations. Of course, that doesn’t include giving to hospitals, schools and social service agencies for religious purposes. Why such a reluctance to talk about giving and why so much religious philanthropy? I believe it’s because giving is a spiritual activity.
Nouwen on Giving
The late Henri Nouwen emphasized that very thing. “Fundraising (and philanthropy are) not a response to a crisis. First and foremost, they’re a form of ministry, a way of announcing our vision and inviting other people into our mission. Whether we’re asking for money or giving money we’re drawn together by God to do (something) through our collaboration.”
In the Bible the Greek word for giving is metadidomi, which means, “to impart” or “give.” Often it is accompanied by haplotes, which means, “sincerely, generously and without pretense.” To give that way requires being moved emotionally by someone’s vision and the hope of what that vision can achieve.
A Spiritual Activity
You might witness homeless people receiving help, an alcoholic being redeemed or dozens of other outcomes that in our capital campaign consulting we see churches and non-profits regularly achieve. However, the degree to which organizations connect deeply with prospective donors will be the degree to which their generosity is provoked. That’s why I believe that giving is a spiritual activity.
Again Nouwen explained, “If money touches our relationships with family members (and) the world beyond our home, it also reaches into our inner life. It is interesting that the phrase “personal worth” can mean both the extent of our financial assets and our value as a human being.”
Value the Contributor More Than the Contribution
As fundraising consultants, we often tell clients that whether it’s in a church or nonprofit organization, people desire to be valued based on who they are and not what they give. In fact, when the former is prevalent the latter tends to take care of itself.
I heard a story about two shipwrecked men on a remote island. One man paced and worried while the other got a suntan and relaxed on the beach. The worrier asked, “Aren’t you afraid that we’re going to die?” The second man responded, “Nope. I make a $100,000 per month and I tithe. My pastor will find me.”
Giving is Stewardship
While humorous, most pastors and many nonprofit executives avoid talking or teaching about stewardship, because giving is private and they are uncomfortable invading that privacy.
However, this is contrary both to sound practice and Biblical wisdom. In fact, sixteen of Jesus’ thirty-eight parables were about handling money and possessions. The Bible offers 500 verses on prayer but over 2,000 on money and possessions.
Pastor Sid Litke argues, “Giving is actually a deeply personal indicator of our spiritual maturity and love for God. If we understand that our ‘treasure’ is an indication of our ‘heart,’ how can pastors avoid teaching on the important issue of giving?”
Giving As a Form of Worship
Litke believes that giving is our stewardship responsibility for using wisely what He gives us. “As God’s stewards, giving decisions are simply thinking through how He wants us to allocate His money.” He believes that giving is a form of worship allowing us to give back in thanksgiving for what has been given to us.
If more churches and even nonprofits embraced that idea, philanthropic conversations and activities would grow exponentially. And from my perspective, it can’t happen soon enough!
Leadership Wisdom From the King of March Madness (Part 2)
You can’t mention March Madness without including Coach Wooden. His UCLA teams won an unprecedented 10 National Championships in 11 years.
Last week I told you that I had the opportunity to spend a few days with Coach Wooden, and in that short time I learned a great deal about both the man and the success he achieved. In the last blog I mentioned that he was,
- A Humble and Value Centered Man….who had a
- A Strong Commitment to Excellence…and was
- A Repository of Wisdom and Success…and conveyed
- A Caring Beyond Performance.
Now today I’ll cover a few more traits that I believe contributed to Coach Wooden’s success.
An Acknowledgement of all Contributors
Organizations generally tend to acknowledge contributions of the stars and high performers. However, Coach Wooden believed it was essential to acknowledge the contributions of all of the players on his team. He did this regardless of how small that role might be.
Using an analogy he explained his logic:
“I’d say, we’re like a powerful automobile and Jabbar is the engine. You now, are only a wheel; and you over here are only a nut that holds that wheel on. Now which is most important? What good is that engine if we don’t have wheels? What if you don’t have the nuts holding that wheel on? You also need somebody behind that wheel or you’ll go in circles. You all have an important part to play. And I made a special effort to let those who weren’t playing very much know how much I appreciated them.”
A Passion for Planning
In my fundraising consulting with organizations I’ve found very little consistency in strategic planning. Some organizations rarely plan, while others plan annually. However, Coach Wooden planned regularly. In fact, he shared something with me that made a lot of sense. He said simply and with conviction that, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.”
While it’s a catchy phrase, clearly Coach Wooden lived it. He planned everything practices, recruiting, drills, player development and much more. And to think that the Coach planned just once a year is silly. He actually did annual planning, but he also planned monthly, weekly, daily and minute-by-minute during games.
A Foundation of Trust
The empirical data on the benefits of trust is clear. Leaders who build trust produce both higher productivity and profitability. I reference the following examples frequently in capital campaign consulting. These are the results of just two of hundreds of studies on trust:
- A Cornell University study of 6,300 Holiday Inn employees found that hotels where managers followed through on promises and demonstrated integrity were more profitable.
- A Watson Wyatt study found that organizations where front-line employees trusted senior leaders had a 42% higher return on shareholder investment than organizations where distrust was the norm.
Coach Wooden clearly was a trust builder. In addition to acknowledging team member contributions, he built trust relationally.
He noted, that he,” wanted them to be considerate of each other. To my wife and me, our players were an extension of our own family. I’ve had players refer to my wife as kind of like their mother. And I wanted that. I wanted them close with each other and to know that I was concerned about them as I would be my own children and their future – not just as basketball players. They wouldn’t know this (at) first, but I hoped they would perceive it as time went by.”
The coach’s intent was captured in the words of former UCLA star and NBA great, Bill Walton: “Coach Wooden represents everything that is good, not only in the world of basketball, but in life in general. He is such a positive influence on everyone. He has taught me everything I know. Not so much about basketball, but about life.”
Leadership Lessons From the King of March Madness
While I’m not like I used to be, I’m still somewhat of a basketball junkie, particularly during March Madness. I grew up playing in the schoolyards of Chicago and actually had the opportunity to play for a while in college.
However, I don’t want to create any illusions about my ability. Though we were a good Division I team, I only played (and I’m using that term loosely) for two years, and my skills were mediocre at best. Still, I always enjoyed the NCAA Tournament, and one of my heroes was the unofficial King of March Madness, UCLA Coach John Wooden.
A Man to Admire
After college, I continued in education, first as a teacher and coach and eventually as a Vice President at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. We actually brought Coach Wooden to town to receive a prestigious leadership award and to speak with our students. Coach Denny Crum was instrumental both in helping us invite him and in securing an affirmative answer.
His three-day visit culminated in an awards banquet with some 1,500 guests in attendance. Of course, as his volunteer escort, I learned many valuable lessons from Coach that were not necessarily about basketball. At heart, he considered himself a teacher, and it was as a teacher that he wanted to be remembered. And if you watched him in action, you’d quickly see why.
A Humble and Value Centered Man
Despite his acclaim, the coach was a most gracious and humble man, which incidentally is one of Jim Collins’ key traits in “Good to Great” leaders. During tight games, I never saw Coach loose his cool. On the contrary, he held the familiar game program rolled up in one hand while the other hand was in his pocket, where he carried a cross. He’d rub that cross during tight spots to remind him of, “who he was and whose he was.” The cross and the values it represented allowed Coach to keep a cool head and the game in perspective.
A Commitment to Excellence
The coach’s practices were timed and well organized in ways that spoke to his commitment to excellence. His planning was detailed and masterful, including inviting a tailor to practice to fit uniforms. He wanted to take any excuses away from players for not performing with excellence. His standards were high and his teams were famous for their outstanding execution. He also considered the games to be a test of his coaching. If his players failed to perform well, he considered that to be his failure and not that of the players.
A Repository of Wisdom and Success
Coach Wooden had a good grasp on life, and his quotes were famous. At times I have used these quotes in my fundraising consulting with clients, “Failure is not fatal but failure to change might be,” and “Learn as if you will live forever; live as if you will die tomorrow.”
Having been in his presence for only a short time, it was obvious that he was both well read and a repository of wisdom. In fact, one of his favorite authors was Robert Louis Stevenson, who said, “That man is a success who has lived well, laughed often and loved much.”
By those standards Coach Wooden was clearly a success. However, his record of 620 wins (81%), 4 undefeated seasons and 10 national championships wasn’t bad either.
A Caring Beyond Performance
Beyond basketball, Coach Wooden cared about his players on a personal level. That was obvious from their comments in the mail we received from them. He addressed their personal needs and shared with them from the wisdom he had accumulated. It all contributed to player success both on the court and in life.
There’s much more I learned from Coach Wooden that can be applied to fundraising and capital campaign consulting. As March Madness progresses I will share some more of those jewels.
Four Principles That Will Help Make Your Campaign A Success
Managing Church Campaigns
As capital campaign consultants, when working with churches we tell them that there are four principles on which we build our work that greatly enhance the church’s success.
However, beyond that, I believe these principles can help most organizations enhance fundraising success. What are they?
Principle 1 – Broad Information Sharing
Major donors want to know that you have created, tested and vetted strategies that best help you achieve your mission. The last thing anyone wants to believe is that a few people in a back room created most of these plans.
We’ve learned that the most effective fundraising comes from a strategic planning process. We typically test the proposed plans through a church survey and interviews. Also, during the campaign process we share information regularly about the campaign projects and processes through 7-8 articles that are posted in the bulletin and on the website.
We also host information meetings at the church, where people hear about the plans again and then are encouraged to ask questions. In fact, to ensure this kind of dialogue occurs, we suggest that clients plant a few questions (if necessary) to make it comfortable for others to ask questions.
Principle 2 – Involvement
Often institutional campaigns wind up having a few people do a lot of work. Among other things, that contributes to higher levels of burnout as campaigns wind down. In churches we try to reverse that model, having a lot of people do a few things.
We have six committees performing various tasks, but none actually does fundraising. Each committee meets no more than twice for an hour or less, and I (or one of my colleagues) create the agenda and then lead each meeting. Also, the actual work of each committee member takes no more than 1-2 hours.
Depending on the church size, we involve anywhere from 40-150 volunteers, typically 20-25% of the membership. Although that seems like quite a few, we rarely fail to recruit the volunteers we need. Also, with that many volunteers, you tend to get increased awareness, enthusiasm, advocacy and giving.
Principle 3 – Momentum
As a high school coach, I planned and used momentum to win quite a few games. I learned that from my college coaches. During my career in higher education, I figured out ways to apply that concept in fundraising campaigns. In churches we do that in several ways. First, the committees are all focused towards the “capstone” phase, which happens in the last 6 weeks. There are activities for adults and children, information blasts, testimonials and much more.
In addition, through a series of dinners we ask 10-15% of the church membership to consider making their commitment a few weeks in advance of the rest of the congregation. The results of this phase are announced prior to commitment weekend, which serves as a momentum builder for the rest of the congregation.
Principle 4 – Prayer
Campaigns are about capacity and will. Through the feasibility study we get a pretty good idea of the capacity and to some extent we can even influence the will of church members to give. However, we also depend on the Holy Spirit to influence that will by incorporating prayer into our effort.
Specifically, every meeting begins with prayer. In addition, we ask people to thoughtfully and prayerfully consider what they may be led to give. Finally, we encourage churches to organize a 24-hour prayer chain with 15-minute segments, right before commitment weekend.
Proven Results
Applying these principles may not work for every organization. However, using this model over 20 years, we have had nearly a 100% success rate!