All inquiries come from million dollar donors

I recently emailed a colleague at a community to ask if a donor who sets up a charitable gift annuity at the foundation can change their charitable beneficiary. Can they name more than one charity if the community foundation is managing the gift annuity asset? (This was in preparation for the teleclass I teach on the basics of gift annuities.)

Her response surprised me. Not the information itself, rather the way she answered my question - so that I would see myself as the donor. Her explanation began this way: “For example, you create a charitable gift annuity and name the Jean Craig Long Fund at the foundation as the charitable beneficiary….” She explained the mechanics of the process in a way that got my attention.

My thoughts instantly shifted from my original technical question to the rush of excitement I was feeling in the shoes of the donor. A fund in my own name that would support nonprofits....why not? ....which ones would I choose?

In less than the 10 seconds it took to read the email, my mind shifted from mechanics to the possibilities in front of me and I noticed that my energy soared!

My colleague answered me from a development perspective.....not as technician.

In personalizing her response to my question, she shifted my focus from the options for other donors to the possibilities in front of me and it became very real. I’ve used this approach with donors myself and now on the receiving end of it, I’m reminded of how relevant it really is.

Take a tip from my community foundation colleague: All inquiries come from million dollar donors. You can shift someone’s thinking in an instant.

What a powerful chain of positive energy it creates when we open to possibilities.
Re-reading that email, I still get a good feeling. I’m going to save it….

The next time you receive an inquiry about the mechanics of a planned gift, I hope you follow this example.

Sometimes the best development keeps things the same.

"You said something brilliant a minute ago when you said....." . This is the way my nonprofit client got my attention this morning. A flash through my mental rolodex came up with nothing that was brilliant. We had been talking about fund raising dilemmas facing conservation minded nonprofit development leaders and how important it is to talk with donors about the possibilities for change, about the difference their support makes, about the long-term vision for the environment and how they can change outcomes with big gifts. That's when I commented that when it comes to clean air and water, mountain vistas, and open spaces - we want them to remain as they are.

With all the changes swirling around us day in and day out, it is nice to go to sleep at night knowing that the moon will shine, the sun will come up, and the mountains will still be there. That's a stabilizing thought.

"Nature is telling us that in these years when we as a nation like to think how great we are, we would do well to remember that the process of life itself is only sustained by inches of topsoil and the fact that it rains every now and then." -Lindsay Pettus, founder, Katawba Valley Land Trust