MANAGING THROUGH UNCERTAINTY

With the election now less than a week away, not only is there uncertainty about the outcome, there is also uncertainty about what may happen in the days, weeks, and months to follow.

In this atmosphere, it can be challenging to feel confident about your strategy and campaigns in the lead-up to crucial year-end fundraising.

Here are three tactics to help get you through successfully.

1)       Don’t panic. Take a deep breath and resist the urge to react hastily based on what is happening in the moment.

2)       Stay close to your team. Make sure your team of internal and external partners stays in close communication on your plans and messaging. If possible, include someone who has experience managing campaigns in challenging times.

3)       Keep your fundraising active. Resist the urge to pull or delay campaigns. Over and over, historical results have demonstrated that organizations that pulled back campaigns or delayed, suffered revenue declines as a consequence. This has been true in times of economic downturn, after natural disasters, and in early COVID times, for example.  

Most important, be sure to vote! And take care of yourself to maintain the energy and you’ll need to lead your fundraising efforts through the important weeks ahead.