{"id":29697,"date":"2014-09-04T17:51:53","date_gmt":"2014-09-04T21:51:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joangarry.com\/?p=29697"},"modified":"2023-09-27T13:42:46","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T17:42:46","slug":"nonprofits-prepare-end-of-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joangarry.com\/nonprofits-prepare-end-of-year\/","title":{"rendered":"A Clever Way to Fire Up Your Board For Year-End (Before It’s Too Late!)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week, a client said to me (with na\u00efve surprise): \u201cIt\u2019s like my board disappeared on Memorial Day and I haven\u2019t heard from them since.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Your board has behaved like a den of bears all summer. Serious hibernation.<\/p>\n

And fess up. You gave up on them, assuming that if you knocked, no one would be home. So you didn\u2019t do much knocking.<\/p>\n

So here you are. Labor Day has come you are all officially \u201cback in school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Time to put a laser focus on the final four months of the year. Regardless of your fiscal calendar, year-end is everything when it comes to fundraising.<\/strong><\/p>\n

So what\u2019s the plan of attack?<\/p>\n

I have a pretty clever idea for you. In fact, I like it so much, I may even try it with a few clients.<\/p>\n

Here it is.<\/p>\n

BEHAVE LIKE YOUR BOARD IS GOING \u201cBACK TO SCHOOL\u201d<\/h2>\n

There\u2019s not a human being for whom the phrase “back to school” doesn\u2019t mean, \u201cOk, playtime is over. With a new lunchbox and sharpened pencils, I\u2019m ready to take on the challenge of a new school year.\u201d<\/p>\n

My idea is that you should play right into this theme with every single board member.<\/p>\n

Send every board member a box of sharpened pencils accompanied by a note that outlines the fall \u201csyllabus.\u201d If your board is small, consider lunch boxes.<\/p>\n

In the best of all possible worlds, this gift should come from the board chair and the executive director \u2013 the partners who lead the organization.<\/p>\n

What an incredible message that would send about the board and staff working in partnership.<\/p>\n

So I think<\/em> I\u2019ve had crazier ideas. But I bet it will have a very big impact.<\/p>\n

THE BACK TO SCHOOL \u201cSYLLABUS\u201d<\/h2>\n

The syllabus should contain a draft of the top 5-10 big things you\u2019d like to be able to say about the organization and its accomplishments on New Year\u2019s Eve. These statements should:<\/p>\n