WEBVTT - Organizing Playbook: Fundraising 101 0:00:00.120 --> 0:00:04.080 Native Land Pod is a production of iHeartRadio in partnership 0:00:04.120 --> 0:00:06.040 with Reason Choice Media. 0:00:06.160 --> 0:00:12.239 Welcome, Welcome, Welcome, Welcome, Welcome. What's up everybody, It's been 0:00:12.280 --> 0:00:17.759 a minute, y'all. It's Andrew Gilliam here reintroducing myself through 0:00:17.760 --> 0:00:20.799 this through this mini pod. I hope everybody had a 0:00:20.800 --> 0:00:24.480 good weekend if you're listening on on Monday here live, 0:00:24.880 --> 0:00:27.520 and I know mine was eventful, that is for sure. 0:00:28.360 --> 0:00:30.800 So first point a personal privilege. I want to wish 0:00:30.880 --> 0:00:33.879 again a very very special and happy, happy happy birthday 0:00:34.840 --> 0:00:37.440 to my life partner, my wife, my everything, my best 0:00:37.440 --> 0:00:40.800 friend R J. Gillam, who turned blah blah blah blah 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:46.440 blah blah yesterday Sunday, and my son and the kids 0:00:46.440 --> 0:00:49.440 wrote their own cards out. I will I won't say 0:00:49.440 --> 0:00:51.640 a real age. I'll let her say it. But my 0:00:52.640 --> 0:00:56.440 oldest Jackson writes a beautiful note and then at the 0:00:56.520 --> 0:01:02.000 end says, happy fifty seventh birthday my me, and neither 0:01:02.120 --> 0:01:04.360 of those number actually only one of those digits in 0:01:04.400 --> 0:01:08.040 her is in her age. It ain't the five. Okay, 0:01:08.080 --> 0:01:15.160 that's it, And continuing, well, oh, one more update, my kid, 0:01:15.280 --> 0:01:18.560 my youngest Davis breaks his damn arm in two places 0:01:19.280 --> 0:01:24.119 and does it at school and the most wildest thing 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:28.480 you know I've seen, and what is great at the 0:01:28.560 --> 0:01:33.880 kid's threshold for pain is crazy good because shortly after 0:01:33.920 --> 0:01:36.600 I arrived to collect him and his siblings to go 0:01:36.640 --> 0:01:41.240 to the hospital, he starts comforting them. It's gonna be okay, Caroline, 0:01:41.280 --> 0:01:44.280 It's gonna be okay, Jackson. I thought, Davis Man, you 0:01:44.280 --> 0:01:48.160 are a soldier because I be screaming bloody murder, which 0:01:48.200 --> 0:01:50.080 he was when we got there. But everybody's doing well, 0:01:50.120 --> 0:01:51.920 and I hope the same is true on your end. 0:01:52.040 --> 0:01:54.920 I am not going to take up a terribly long 0:01:55.040 --> 0:01:59.280 amount of time. I wanted to continue this conversation about 0:01:59.320 --> 0:02:02.920 resistance and organizing in the political environment that we all 0:02:02.920 --> 0:02:06.600 find ourselves, and really doubling down in this idea of 0:02:06.680 --> 0:02:09.520 doing it right where you are in your own local community. 0:02:11.240 --> 0:02:15.160 And by the way, protests or opposition doesn't always have 0:02:15.280 --> 0:02:18.120 to come in the form of taking over a building 0:02:18.440 --> 0:02:21.360 or even lying the streets with people. A former protest 0:02:21.440 --> 0:02:25.239 could be running for your local school board, your local 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:32.120 city council, your county council. Places and institutions locally who 0:02:33.000 --> 0:02:37.400 people often under underestimate for their impact but if you 0:02:37.440 --> 0:02:42.880 were to really analyze what probably impacts your everyday lived experience, 0:02:43.280 --> 0:02:47.079 the roads you drive on, the power you know that 0:02:47.120 --> 0:02:49.920 you drive, you know, pull on for your electric supply, 0:02:52.240 --> 0:02:56.880 the schools that your kids attend, and quite frankly, the 0:02:56.960 --> 0:03:01.240 type of businesses that surround where you live and maybe 0:03:01.280 --> 0:03:07.720 where you go to church, or the kind of infrastructure 0:03:08.040 --> 0:03:11.720 that either does exist or doesn't, say, for instance, internet 0:03:11.880 --> 0:03:15.960 or high speed internet or fiber being available to you, 0:03:16.040 --> 0:03:17.960 and who are the people who provide that, and then 0:03:17.960 --> 0:03:20.200 who are the people who govern the rules that allow 0:03:20.240 --> 0:03:21.960 them to do what they do, if they if the 0:03:22.000 --> 0:03:25.680 local government itself isn't the entity that does it. And 0:03:25.720 --> 0:03:29.480 whether you're organizing an effort for a cause for people, 0:03:30.800 --> 0:03:35.119 or running for or supporting someone running for office, there's 0:03:35.320 --> 0:03:39.800 very very, very very little you can do without resources. 0:03:40.520 --> 0:03:44.560 Those resources can come in the form of time, which 0:03:44.600 --> 0:03:47.920 a lot of times is exactly what you use the 0:03:48.040 --> 0:03:52.200 raised financial resources to do. Pay somebody to provide a service, 0:03:52.240 --> 0:03:54.000 to do a thing, and if you were able to 0:03:54.040 --> 0:03:57.280 have someone's time in the right someone's time, they would 0:03:57.280 --> 0:03:59.440 be doing that work. And so by resources, I'm being 0:03:59.480 --> 0:04:04.640 a little bit elastic in that definition, but very specifically. Now, 0:04:05.080 --> 0:04:07.320 I wanted to just chat with you all about what 0:04:07.360 --> 0:04:11.720 it means to do direct fundraising, to ask someone to 0:04:11.760 --> 0:04:15.200 support what it is you're doing, or to support you directly. 0:04:16.120 --> 0:04:19.920 And I will not lie. Fundraising was uh and has 0:04:20.000 --> 0:04:22.479 been for a long time like the bane of my existence. 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:24.880 When I had to do it pretty regularly, I really 0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:29.119 really really hated people. Hey, hated call Not hated people 0:04:29.279 --> 0:04:33.640 some people, No, I hated uh calling folks to ask 0:04:33.680 --> 0:04:36.640 for money. And I think it has something to do 0:04:36.680 --> 0:04:40.920 with just maybe my childhood and how I grew up 0:04:41.160 --> 0:04:47.480 very proud family, you know, maybe poor by objective standards, 0:04:47.480 --> 0:04:50.680 but and my parents, you know, in their minds, I 0:04:51.279 --> 0:04:54.920 and they communicated the same to us, is that you know, 0:04:55.000 --> 0:04:56.880 we were rich in love, we were rich in family, 0:04:56.880 --> 0:05:00.040 we were rich in spirit, and and you know, I 0:05:00.160 --> 0:05:04.400 just don't be rich in money. But whatever, they didn't 0:05:04.680 --> 0:05:07.000 sort of they didn't sort of raise us with a 0:05:07.040 --> 0:05:10.440 beggar's attitude, if you will. And I've associated asking people 0:05:10.480 --> 0:05:14.640 for things money specifically, but even other things. I sort 0:05:14.640 --> 0:05:18.520 of break in that cardinal rule that I think was 0:05:18.520 --> 0:05:21.840 instead of me early and so I had to walk 0:05:21.920 --> 0:05:24.839 myself back off the fact that it is not a 0:05:25.240 --> 0:05:28.200 burden that you're giving someone when you ask them to 0:05:28.279 --> 0:05:30.840 so accede into what you believe in, or even into 0:05:30.880 --> 0:05:33.560 you directly say, for instance, you were a candidate and 0:05:33.600 --> 0:05:36.440 you needed to raise money. But rather it is a 0:05:36.440 --> 0:05:44.680 sign of respect and humility to be willing to go 0:05:44.839 --> 0:05:47.760 to someone and to respect them enough to say I 0:05:48.160 --> 0:05:50.760 want you and I need you with me in order 0:05:50.760 --> 0:05:55.000 for this thing to be possible. People love to be asked, 0:05:56.240 --> 0:05:58.520 and that's exactly what a lot of candidates don't like 0:05:58.560 --> 0:06:00.360 to do. Do the asking. And some people are in 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:02.920 love with it, y'all. You know, you listening, you may 0:06:02.960 --> 0:06:04.240 be in love with You may like the idea and 0:06:04.279 --> 0:06:06.840 the challenge. I didn't. I would much prefer to call 0:06:06.920 --> 0:06:09.840 and check up and see how you're doing, then call 0:06:09.960 --> 0:06:13.360 and ask for money. But to an extent, I got 0:06:13.400 --> 0:06:14.839 over it. I had to get over it, and my 0:06:14.920 --> 0:06:17.480 race for governor we raised, you know, were sixty million 0:06:17.560 --> 0:06:21.599 dollars through various outlets and arms, wherein I had to make, 0:06:22.320 --> 0:06:26.080 you know, significant asks all along the way. In fact, 0:06:26.120 --> 0:06:30.880 in the primary process, and those of you around campaigns 0:06:30.920 --> 0:06:34.799 might be able to relate. I would go entire days, 0:06:35.040 --> 0:06:40.080 seven eight hours of call time on the phone calling folks, 0:06:40.120 --> 0:06:42.479 and some folks, you know, being willing to engage me 0:06:42.560 --> 0:06:46.640 in rather extended conversation and to a person at the 0:06:46.760 --> 0:06:50.320 end of that day, every answer, and I'm not giving 0:06:50.360 --> 0:06:54.039 folks credit for their excuses, but for every question of 0:06:54.160 --> 0:06:56.479 around the money I wanted to raise, the answer was 0:06:56.560 --> 0:07:00.640 no from every single person to a person, and that 0:07:00.800 --> 0:07:03.560 was really challenging. And these were largely not people who 0:07:03.600 --> 0:07:06.760 I knew personally, or if I knew, didn't know very 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:09.640 well personally. But these are people whose names were on 0:07:09.680 --> 0:07:13.720 a call list, a call sheet that was provided to me, 0:07:14.200 --> 0:07:19.480 who had the characteristics through their previous giving of looking 0:07:19.640 --> 0:07:23.600 like I would be the type of person they might 0:07:23.640 --> 0:07:27.600 give to if asked. There was a lot in that 0:07:28.560 --> 0:07:31.720 by way of what I wanted to communicate because a 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:34.880 lot of folks are, I think, confused about how the 0:07:34.920 --> 0:07:40.840 process works around trying to raise money. One one big 0:07:40.920 --> 0:07:43.840 I think you know misno more about it, And I 0:07:43.840 --> 0:07:45.800 think this is on the candidate side more than it 0:07:45.880 --> 0:07:49.320 is the organizational or the cause side of things, and 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:56.000 that is that that people, how do you say, are 0:07:58.200 --> 0:08:01.120 are sort of just sort of that it's the scariest 0:08:01.120 --> 0:08:03.480 thing in the world that you could possibly do is 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:06.720 to pick up a phone and call a person whom 0:08:06.760 --> 0:08:09.160 you don't know and ask them for money. But the 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:12.480 truth is is, over time a profile gets built on 0:08:12.480 --> 0:08:15.600 those individuals. If you have a finance staff person they'll 0:08:15.600 --> 0:08:19.600 bring they'll make you aware that, hey, John Doe looks 0:08:19.680 --> 0:08:23.760 like he gives the Sierra Club and also a big 0:08:23.760 --> 0:08:27.880 supporter of criminal justice reform because he gives to uh, 0:08:28.360 --> 0:08:32.240 you know, whatever democracy project that that that might be 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:35.920 out there. You may not know them, but by reading 0:08:35.960 --> 0:08:37.960 a little bit about them and their interests kind of 0:08:38.000 --> 0:08:39.840 gives you a little bit of the courage and necessary 0:08:39.840 --> 0:08:41.880 to pick up the phone and say, hey, John, you've 0:08:41.880 --> 0:08:43.679 been a you know, a supporter of such and such 0:08:43.720 --> 0:08:48.360 and such, and my position on the environment aligns with 0:08:48.640 --> 0:08:50.720 what I understand yours to be. And you know, if 0:08:50.760 --> 0:08:54.240 you give me this amount, you know we'll be able 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:57.520 to do great things and build a beautiful future prioritizing 0:08:57.559 --> 0:08:59.360 the things that both you and I care a great 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:06.560 deal about. Those individuals are not unaccustomed to getting phone calls, 0:09:07.200 --> 0:09:11.760 to being asked for money. If you're nervous or a 0:09:11.800 --> 0:09:16.920 little bit uneasy about that process, please satisfy yourself by 0:09:16.960 --> 0:09:20.360 knowing that these people are used to this and right 0:09:20.440 --> 0:09:24.240 now at this stage, expect that if they're going to 0:09:24.280 --> 0:09:28.760 give money politically to this cause or to this individual candidate, 0:09:29.720 --> 0:09:32.680 that that person or someone from that institution or that 0:09:32.760 --> 0:09:35.640 effort is going to reach out to them directly and 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:38.160 ask them for money, and frankly would take it as 0:09:38.200 --> 0:09:43.640 an insult if the ask came through somebody else. The 0:09:44.080 --> 0:09:49.520 other thing about asking that was really important for me 0:09:49.600 --> 0:09:52.760 to learn and to understand and to really accept receive 0:09:53.600 --> 0:09:56.640 was this notion of respect, that it's respectful to ask 0:09:56.840 --> 0:09:59.520 someone for their money. I'm not sure respect is what 0:09:59.600 --> 0:10:03.680 I would have initially associated with it, but in truth, 0:10:05.600 --> 0:10:10.320 data from fundraising outlets and experts does show that people 0:10:10.920 --> 0:10:12.959 want to be asked. They want to be asked by 0:10:12.960 --> 0:10:15.240 the candidate or the person leading the cause or high 0:10:15.320 --> 0:10:22.040 up in it, and largely don't give significant money. May 0:10:22.080 --> 0:10:24.120 give twenty five to fifty here, but I'm not going 0:10:24.160 --> 0:10:29.000 to give significant dollars unless they're asked. It's important to 0:10:29.080 --> 0:10:31.520 know that because it should assuage us a little bit 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:35.600 of some of the concern there. But it's really important 0:10:35.640 --> 0:10:37.920 to be able to raise these resources to get across 0:10:37.960 --> 0:10:41.880 the finish line on whatever the mission is. People can't 0:10:41.880 --> 0:10:44.280 work forever for free. There are a lot of folks 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:46.280 who want to be in movement based work and they 0:10:46.400 --> 0:10:51.280 looking for a job full time. I think as progressives 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:54.160 who go around advocating for a higher minimum wagent, for 0:10:54.360 --> 0:10:57.160 health care for all, and for the ability for people 0:10:57.240 --> 0:11:01.480 to work to earn a respectable living for themselves, we 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:03.520 can advocate all those things, but then when it comes 0:11:03.520 --> 0:11:07.880 to asking for us a candidate or asking for an organization, 0:11:08.000 --> 0:11:11.199 we get real shy and we sort of forget about 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:13.920 what it means to pay these individuals for their time, 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:18.880 energy effort when the resources are allocated, and you got 0:11:18.880 --> 0:11:22.520 the resources to do that, and so let's just release 0:11:22.600 --> 0:11:26.240 the burden of shame with fundraising. And I'm still pulling 0:11:26.280 --> 0:11:28.920 back the layers of mind. But having raised for an 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:33.920 organization before my professional life and for causes, and also 0:11:34.040 --> 0:11:36.880 raising significant money as a candidate, I will tell you 0:11:37.000 --> 0:11:40.120 I always found it easier to raise for a cause, 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:42.680 for a purpose, for an organization, at least easier for 0:11:42.760 --> 0:11:48.680 me making the ask. But in fact, in politics it 0:11:48.760 --> 0:11:52.520 is you're dealing many times with people who are used 0:11:52.520 --> 0:11:54.920 to being asked and are used to giving, and it's 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:57.800 sort of you if you allow yourself, you make a 0:11:57.840 --> 0:12:02.520 game of the process of asks and how many ways 0:12:02.600 --> 0:12:05.120 you might ask in a single call to help that 0:12:05.160 --> 0:12:09.640 person get to yes. Another misnomer is that people on 0:12:09.679 --> 0:12:12.240 the other end of the phone, on the other end 0:12:12.280 --> 0:12:21.880 of your ask, I guess you'd say, don't feel like friends, 0:12:22.679 --> 0:12:26.600 don't feel like good friends, and real friends would be 0:12:26.760 --> 0:12:29.720 the sort of same individual who would then turn around 0:12:30.080 --> 0:12:33.679 and ask you for money. I never stumbled on that, 0:12:33.840 --> 0:12:35.400 but there were a lot of people who are basically like, 0:12:35.440 --> 0:12:37.680 if I have an authentic and maybe friends isn't the 0:12:37.720 --> 0:12:41.240 right word I should use people with whom they've worked with, 0:12:41.679 --> 0:12:45.640 have worked for, or they know through some other association 0:12:45.800 --> 0:12:50.640 and not really a very familiar one. They believe that 0:12:50.840 --> 0:12:57.280 it might present as unsincere or insincere a relationship, that 0:12:57.360 --> 0:13:00.280 the person being asked might conclude that, oh, you're only 0:13:00.320 --> 0:13:02.360 my friend, or you're only trying to casey up to me, 0:13:02.679 --> 0:13:05.160 to ask me for my resources, to take something from me. 0:13:06.200 --> 0:13:10.480 And truth, you're an authentic person, You're a real person. 0:13:10.520 --> 0:13:15.120 You're real wherever you are. I hope and the same 0:13:15.160 --> 0:13:18.280 passion you would put into asking for yourself you would 0:13:18.280 --> 0:13:21.440 put into asking for a cause, and that's probably the 0:13:21.440 --> 0:13:24.440 same passion that landed you in relation to this person 0:13:24.480 --> 0:13:27.959 in the first place. So people are more complex than that, 0:13:28.280 --> 0:13:31.640 and they also get it. So just we've got to 0:13:31.679 --> 0:13:44.960 let ourselves off the hook. One common mistake that I 0:13:45.000 --> 0:13:49.319 find when fundraising, especially if you're one of these people 0:13:49.360 --> 0:13:53.079 who has an ethos or grown up with a habit 0:13:53.160 --> 0:13:58.199 around not asking and having shame around asking, you talk 0:13:58.280 --> 0:14:00.480 yourself and you talk to the person who you're asking 0:14:00.520 --> 0:14:06.920 to give out of the gift. I'll give you an example. Hey, Jody, Uh, 0:14:07.200 --> 0:14:09.200 it's been a minute, but I hope you're doing well. 0:14:09.360 --> 0:14:11.200 I'm doing well, well great. I'm not gonna do both 0:14:11.200 --> 0:14:13.720 ways is I'll just do my You can assume pluging 0:14:13.800 --> 0:14:17.720 what you want. Y'all know how I humor myself, and 0:14:17.760 --> 0:14:19.160 I'm like humoring myself right now. 0:14:20.360 --> 0:14:20.480 Uh. 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:24.040 But Jody, Hey, I just wanted to reach out and 0:14:24.120 --> 0:14:25.720 let you know that I've decided I'm a run for 0:14:25.760 --> 0:14:28.040 the local school board and and and do everything that 0:14:28.080 --> 0:14:30.000 I can. Jody's probably screaming at this point on the 0:14:30.360 --> 0:14:33.520 other end while you're still talking. And I would love 0:14:34.600 --> 0:14:37.640 for you to be one of my early donors to 0:14:37.720 --> 0:14:40.880 show you know your support. Now Jody, if she homegirl, 0:14:40.920 --> 0:14:43.000 she's probably already screaming and it's like, why could I 0:14:43.120 --> 0:14:45.560 do all this kind of stuff. But if she's less 0:14:45.560 --> 0:14:49.080 of that, she's saying, yeah, well of course. And then 0:14:50.400 --> 0:14:54.280 you make the amount asked, or maybe you don't mention 0:14:54.360 --> 0:14:57.480 a number and you just say, I know times are tough, 0:14:57.600 --> 0:14:59.720 and I know the kids are getting ready to go 0:14:59.720 --> 0:15:02.120 back to school, or I know summer's coming up and 0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:03.680 you're gonna be paying a lot for those camps. So 0:15:04.040 --> 0:15:05.720 you know, you got a lot to think about. But 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:07.840 I would really love if you would do this for me. Well, 0:15:08.800 --> 0:15:12.320 you've already started negotiating against yourself with Jody, telling her 0:15:12.400 --> 0:15:14.720 all the things she ain't even thinking about right now 0:15:15.040 --> 0:15:19.720 that may be expense coming up, and giving her all 0:15:19.800 --> 0:15:23.320 kinds of reasons to either one not give or two 0:15:23.480 --> 0:15:26.600 to give, which is probably more likely she would, but 0:15:26.720 --> 0:15:29.080 to give a lesser amount because all the things you 0:15:29.200 --> 0:15:33.320 just reminded her are upcoming expenses that she wasn't even 0:15:33.360 --> 0:15:36.800 thinking about. People know their wallets generally, and they have 0:15:36.880 --> 0:15:39.640 a general understanding of the capacity that they can give 0:15:39.680 --> 0:15:45.880 at A person who knows their financial situation enough is 0:15:46.440 --> 0:15:48.800 it knows that the most they can give is fifty. 0:15:48.800 --> 0:15:51.000 But you their friendly ain't on spring for five hundred. 0:15:52.720 --> 0:15:55.120 They're probably a delusional because you know, you got other 0:15:55.200 --> 0:15:58.600 things you gotta do. But generally a five hundred dollars 0:15:58.640 --> 0:16:02.440 person is not is not in the same bracket generally 0:16:02.920 --> 0:16:05.080 with the person who's only got the capacity to give, 0:16:05.240 --> 0:16:07.520 you know, twenty five dollars in may spring for fifty, 0:16:07.840 --> 0:16:09.480 but they're not gonna go from twenty five to five 0:16:09.560 --> 0:16:14.280 hundred generally. But you talk yourself out of the ask. 0:16:14.920 --> 0:16:17.960 And one of the habits that I sort of observed 0:16:17.960 --> 0:16:20.200 and I've now heard later taught, I wish I had 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:25.040 been taught it before I observed it for myself, having run, 0:16:25.200 --> 0:16:26.720 you know, when I was twenty three years old, and 0:16:27.960 --> 0:16:31.040 talked a lot of people out of giving, if not 0:16:31.080 --> 0:16:34.640 giving generally, certainly giving what they could if they were 0:16:34.640 --> 0:16:38.960 really stretching themselves. But that habit, that tool was to 0:16:39.120 --> 0:16:41.320 make the ask and not just we need you to 0:16:41.360 --> 0:16:43.760 give money or we want you to give money, but 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:46.480 more specific than that, I would love for you to 0:16:46.640 --> 0:16:48.800 invest in me and in this race and in the 0:16:48.840 --> 0:16:52.840 future of our state by giving one hundred dollars to 0:16:53.440 --> 0:16:56.320 this effort, you know, in time for our next reporting 0:16:56.360 --> 0:17:00.320 period at the end of the month, or five undred 0:17:00.400 --> 0:17:03.760 or a thousand a lot of times early on. And 0:17:03.800 --> 0:17:06.560 if again, if you aren't well trained in the art 0:17:06.600 --> 0:17:10.760 of asking for the gift, you're going to negotiate yourself 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:13.600 out of the gift if you keep talking, and so 0:17:14.320 --> 0:17:18.040 developing a habit of something to do as a distraction 0:17:19.080 --> 0:17:22.800 from having to keep talking silence can be uncomfortable, especially 0:17:22.840 --> 0:17:24.720 after you don't ask the people for the eight dollars. 0:17:24.720 --> 0:17:29.040 They're harder money money, but you have to force yourself 0:17:29.040 --> 0:17:32.480 to stop. So to role play this real quick, it 0:17:32.520 --> 0:17:35.679 would be you know, and I would really really appreciate 0:17:36.280 --> 0:17:39.040 you making a five hundred dollars contribution to help us 0:17:39.960 --> 0:17:42.680 change our state or change our community and make our 0:17:42.800 --> 0:17:45.720 schools better for our kids. I know you feel like 0:17:45.800 --> 0:17:49.960 I do about how desperately things need to change. This 0:17:50.040 --> 0:17:52.040 is a way that we can really do something about it. 0:17:53.080 --> 0:17:56.920 And if you could make that contribution, firstly, how would 0:17:56.960 --> 0:18:01.359 be eternally grateful. But secondly, in time for us to 0:18:01.440 --> 0:18:05.320 report that gift and our next fundraising report, which would 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:08.119 be an impressive display for people to see and to 0:18:08.240 --> 0:18:11.960 know that you're giving one, but two that we're also 0:18:12.080 --> 0:18:15.439 raising real resources here to make this thing happen. And 0:18:15.480 --> 0:18:19.720 then stop and take a drink of water. Don't ever 0:18:19.720 --> 0:18:22.879 go to fundraising meeting without a bottle of something or 0:18:23.600 --> 0:18:26.840 a container or something that you can drink, hopefully not alcoholic, 0:18:28.080 --> 0:18:32.080 something you can drink as a way of shutting yourself up. 0:18:32.119 --> 0:18:35.960 And if you don't figure out practice practice, I mean 0:18:36.040 --> 0:18:40.120 that what method you're going to instrument to keep yourself 0:18:40.240 --> 0:18:44.960 from talking. I would suggest something non distracting, not like dude, 0:18:45.000 --> 0:18:49.280 do do do? That's not I want to do that thing, 0:18:50.119 --> 0:18:52.439 but maybe a different habit that you might develop. But 0:18:52.480 --> 0:18:55.680 my habit was taking a drink. So I'd make that ask, 0:18:55.840 --> 0:18:58.080 I'd save the amount, and I'd say when I'd like 0:18:58.119 --> 0:19:03.000 to get it, and I appreciate you listening to my vision, 0:19:07.040 --> 0:19:10.680 put it down. And by that time they've already taken 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:13.480 up the task of responding. It's either quick one yes 0:19:13.560 --> 0:19:17.359 I can do that, or no, I can't. But generally 0:19:17.440 --> 0:19:20.320 people want to get to yes, and sometimes it's your 0:19:20.600 --> 0:19:24.840 job to help them get there. So two different potential 0:19:24.880 --> 0:19:29.879 outcomes aside from the yes scenario might be ah darn 0:19:29.920 --> 0:19:33.640 I wish. I wish I could, but I am. I've 0:19:33.760 --> 0:19:36.600 decided I think I may I may stay out of 0:19:36.640 --> 0:19:38.119 this race. You know, I know a lot of you 0:19:38.200 --> 0:19:39.560 all in it. Da da da dada. And you said, 0:19:40.359 --> 0:19:42.840 you know, jem, I understand that, I know you've got 0:19:42.880 --> 0:19:46.359 a lot of friends throughout this race, and I certainly 0:19:46.400 --> 0:19:48.240 don't want to put you in a position where you're 0:19:48.240 --> 0:19:50.840 put out by them, and if you cannot find yourself 0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:54.200 and the course of the race that we're in to 0:19:54.200 --> 0:19:59.200 to to to to invest in me as a candidate. 0:19:59.680 --> 0:20:02.119 Do I understand you're also not going to invest in 0:20:02.119 --> 0:20:04.760 anybody else. Oh yeah, if I'm staying out, I'm staying out. 0:20:04.800 --> 0:20:08.280 I'm not gonna Okay, have you considered or maybe perhaps 0:20:08.320 --> 0:20:11.480 would you consider what it would mean to maybe make 0:20:11.480 --> 0:20:14.080 an investment in all of us as a show of 0:20:14.119 --> 0:20:17.480 support that you know, Hey, you know you're my friend 0:20:17.600 --> 0:20:19.439 enough that I will stay out of giving to anyone 0:20:19.440 --> 0:20:24.800 else in this race. I want to put some money 0:20:25.200 --> 0:20:26.960 behind you, and I'm going to do the same for 0:20:27.000 --> 0:20:30.280 a couple of other people, right, So just creating off 0:20:30.400 --> 0:20:33.919 ramps another off ramp might be okay. I understand that 0:20:33.960 --> 0:20:35.960 five hundred is a lot of money. I know, God knows, 0:20:36.000 --> 0:20:38.359 I work hard for every time that I that I 0:20:38.560 --> 0:20:42.600 that I earn. I'm wondering, do you think it might 0:20:42.640 --> 0:20:45.920 be possible to do one hundred or potentially commit to 0:20:46.200 --> 0:20:50.040 one hundred and over a period of cycles, pay a 0:20:50.080 --> 0:20:54.879 little bit toward that commitment, give them the opportunity to 0:20:55.400 --> 0:20:58.359 respond to that. People don't like silence A lot of 0:20:58.560 --> 0:21:00.680 unless you know somebody real well, a lot of folks 0:21:00.760 --> 0:21:05.280 generally don't vibe well with quiet. We always feel the moment. 0:21:05.880 --> 0:21:09.320 Use fundraising as an opportunity to not fill the moment 0:21:09.359 --> 0:21:12.320 with your voice, your presence ought to be there, but 0:21:13.359 --> 0:21:17.439 with silence, to give the other person the cue that 0:21:17.520 --> 0:21:19.399 it's not time for them to respond to you. So 0:21:19.520 --> 0:21:21.920 one way, again might be I can't meet that amount, 0:21:22.040 --> 0:21:26.439 as a form of rejection. The other I'm sorry. The 0:21:26.480 --> 0:21:28.280 form of rejection in this case is I've got a 0:21:28.280 --> 0:21:31.840 bunch of people I know, and so the off ramp 0:21:31.880 --> 0:21:33.320 you gave is can you give to all of us? 0:21:33.680 --> 0:21:38.480 Another potential scenario might be that the amount is too high. 0:21:38.600 --> 0:21:41.080 We work through that as part of this scenario with 0:21:41.160 --> 0:21:43.720 the friends. In that case, again, you can do this 0:21:43.760 --> 0:21:47.399 sort of step down, step off approach and then you know, 0:21:48.440 --> 0:21:51.840 sometimes the opportunity presents itself as as a chance to 0:21:51.960 --> 0:21:54.679 make your case and to make it very directly and 0:21:54.720 --> 0:21:58.280 strongly for why a person ought to be behind you, 0:21:58.440 --> 0:22:01.840 or be with you or give to you. And that's 0:22:01.880 --> 0:22:05.119 the instance where the potential donor says, you know, I'm 0:22:05.160 --> 0:22:07.680 still sort of taking my time and I'm waiting to 0:22:07.720 --> 0:22:13.119 see what's gonna happen there. I'll get involved at some point, 0:22:13.200 --> 0:22:14.880 but you know, right now, we're just sort of observing 0:22:14.920 --> 0:22:19.199 the field again with the spirit of never ever taking 0:22:19.400 --> 0:22:22.600 no or the or the response that you don't want 0:22:22.640 --> 0:22:26.520 as the ultimate response. Convince yourself that there is always 0:22:26.600 --> 0:22:30.640 a way too. Yes, there is always a way too. Yes, 0:22:32.040 --> 0:22:34.680 it's just our jobs as those who are going out 0:22:34.680 --> 0:22:37.479 to try to raise these resources for a cause or 0:22:37.520 --> 0:22:42.439 for candidate, to be creative enough and confident enough in 0:22:42.480 --> 0:22:46.439 ourselves and moreover, confident enough in the work that we 0:22:46.480 --> 0:22:49.520 are raising for. If it's a mission, you know, have 0:22:49.640 --> 0:22:51.760 that thing in your spirit and your soul. It'll power 0:22:51.800 --> 0:22:55.400 you through a day of seven hours of phone calls. 0:22:55.720 --> 0:22:59.120 And every answer is no, right, as the example I gave. 0:22:59.280 --> 0:23:01.840 But but but you out of feel strongly enough about 0:23:01.840 --> 0:23:04.520 the thing you're raising four that you'll be willing to 0:23:04.560 --> 0:23:08.359 go the extra step of being creative to help facilitate 0:23:08.359 --> 0:23:12.399 somebody getting to the answer. Yes, I want to invite 0:23:12.440 --> 0:23:17.640 Lolo in our sister Lo Lo and Lolo. I'd love 0:23:17.680 --> 0:23:20.720 to if you're able to join. I love if you're 0:23:20.720 --> 0:23:23.720 able to monitor whether there are any questions or anything 0:23:23.800 --> 0:23:26.639 like that, or if in the in the course of 0:23:26.720 --> 0:23:29.679 listening here I'm assuming you was listening, uh, and the 0:23:29.720 --> 0:23:33.000 course of listening here that maybe there's some angles here 0:23:33.000 --> 0:23:36.280 that I didn't go down that you think in the 0:23:36.440 --> 0:23:39.919 few moments we have remaining are worthwhile to do. What's up? 0:23:39.960 --> 0:23:45.440 Lo Lo Hio? We actually have some really good questions. Yeah, 0:23:45.560 --> 0:23:47.399 we had a few. So I'm gonna start off with 0:23:47.440 --> 0:23:50.240 the first one, and it is how do you create 0:23:50.280 --> 0:23:53.399 a leader list organization? I think that this is not 0:23:53.920 --> 0:23:56.199 very specific. We do have some that are specific to 0:23:56.680 --> 0:23:58.800 the fundraising aspect, but I've seen this one. It was 0:23:58.840 --> 0:24:00.320 one of the first ones, and it was like, how 0:24:00.359 --> 0:24:04.119