Why I Question People Who Give Me Money

photo by rennan

I suppose the first thing most of us do when receiving checks in the mail for unimaginable amounts of money is to shriek and start to twist and shout uncontrollably.  At least, that is what I do.

It seems almost counterintuitive to do anything else but there is something that I do that does seem strange.

I take a deep breath, shake myself out of my celebrating frenzy and I pick up the phone to ask the person why they are giving me money.

That’s right.  I question their judgment.  Politely, of course, but determined to understand why.

I want to know what was it about my letter, my application, my anything that impressed them.  I want to know how well my request reflects their needs.  I want to know what was weak.  I want to know if they are excited about my project and why.

Most of the time, people will be very nice about sharing this information with you.  A lot of them are surprised that I am asking,  “Usually it is the person that did not get money that calls asking why, not the person who did get money.”

Let me share a little secret with you

I am a funder too.  Every year I read a stack of applications and actively participate in animated conversations over who deserves funding and how much.I would love to talk to an applicant and encourage them to tweak something in their narrative or rethink their workplan.  To share some insight that could transform their application into a success one.

I am in the business of funding creative people.  I want to help people become better at pitching their story and writing successful grants, especially the ones who call  for panel comments when they are not given funding.   It will demonstrates to me that you are passionate about what you do and you care about what people think of your work.  Do this whenever you get money too.  This is not done often enough and it should be the one of the first things you do.

I also send out letters of inquiry, grant applications and requests for funding to support the work I do.  I win some and I lose some.  But regardless of the outcome, I always call.   I can’t think of a better place to really start building a strong relationship with a person than in this very situation.  Your dream, their money.  Face it, it’s like being married.

Here’s what I include in every conversation with someone who gives me money and who doesn’t give me money:

Start every conversation with a thank you

Acknowledge, acknowledge, acknowledge.  Let people know how much you appreciate their support.

Ask for panel comments

By understanding how people judge merit is often an eye opening experience.  It can help you be more competitive if you know what criteria are more important to them than others.  You can also get a sense of the pool of applicants and the kinds of projects you are up against.

Listen and take really good notes

You are not going to remember anything if you don’t write it down. Repeat an answer for clarity if you need to.  Make sure you keep a record of your notes so that you can refer to them quickly the next time your speak to them.

Thank them for their time

Be grateful for their help.  Always begin and end with acknowledging a person by thanking them.  Be sure they are left with a good impression of you as a conscientious and gracious person.

Someone it would be a pleasure to continue giving money to.

Get more Wow!

If you want style notes and more for people who change the world, please check out:

Getting to Wow! to feel good, do good and look good

Nonprofit Knitwear for all things knit and nonprofit

Style Notes from me, your artspy

Hoong Yee

– Subscribe and get a little Wow! every day

– Forward the link to someone you think would be interested

– Link to a post on Twitter (follow me @hylkrakauer)

– Put a link to the blog in your Facebook status update

Thanks so much! I really appreciate your help.

Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?

Worker Bee Alert: The Five Warning Signs Your Inner Buzz Is Dying

I am standing with Chase, the beekeeper, and Jeff, the building owner

the rooftop farm of the Acumen building in Long Island City

“Me, I’m more of a big time enthusiast, “  said Chase.  He spoke reverently of the serious bee people who drive around the country doing bee related activities.  His involvement with this sweet little industry was a few hives at most.  “I’ve seen honey go for $15 a pound.  And all this, “  he waved towards the beehives at the far end of the roof.  “will yield a good couple thousand dollars.”

You have to love people who love what they do.  Especially bee keepers.

What about you?

Now I have been a worker bee in many former lives so I am very familiar with those unmistakeable signals from your inner soul that tell you that it is time to make a change.  If you are not eager to start everyday doing something you love, you may notice the following about yourself:

1 You hate Sundays

That stomach ache that announces Monday.  Your shoulders slumping as you think about the week gaping before you like a black hole.

2 You hate the rest of the week

Rinse and repeat.

3 Caffeine doesn’t work

No amount of Joe gets you going.  You are dragging your heels, physically and spiritually.

4 You are not curious about anything

There is nothing that seizes your imagination and allows your mind to visualize solutions or scenarios.  This is very bad because eventually you become satisfied with accomplishing less.

5 Graduate schools look appealing

What does grab your attention is the opportunity to learn something new to enable you to do something else.  You are already out the door and searching for the next thing.

I have spent a lot of time working with people in the arts who have all kinds of challenges making a life of making art.  But one thing they supremely and confidently revolve around is their inner buzz.  Their passion for what they do.  Their life is their art.  Their work is what they do to support their art.

Life is too short to be unhappily employed.  I say do what brings you the most happiness.

Penelope Trunk has a twist on common career advice.   Here’s her advice: Do not what you love; do what you are.

The weekend thread on Corporette offers some tips on changing jobs.

And if any of you are intrigued by the thought of working in a library, Josh Hanagarne can tell you all about his career as a librarian and what he loves about it.

Think about it carefully:  doing what you love and doing what makes you happy are not always the same thing.

Get more Wow!

If you want style notes and more for people who change the world, please check out:

Getting to Wow! to feel good, do good and look good

Nonprofit Knitwear for all things knit and nonprofit

Style Notes from me, your artspy

Hoong Yee

– Subscribe and get a little Wow! every day

– Forward the link to someone you think would be interested

– Link to a post on Twitter (follow me @hylkrakauer)

– Put a link to the blog in your Facebook status update

Thanks so much! I really appreciate your help.

Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?

Daniel Boulud’s Secret Recipe For Success

On the first Saturday night at Boulud Sud, we descended with an unexpected crowd of eight.

Mais sans doute, it was a typically magnifique!  Here we are, moi, Daniel and Mikki.

It is tres difficile for me to imagine the life of a successful restauranter as he continues to build his empire without wondering what the secret sauce is.

What is it about Daniel Boulud that brings him success, the three star Michelin rating, his restaurant’s ranking among the best in the world?

The vodka gimlet elegantly served in a slender carafe?

The Lamb Cleopatra that was simply delicious?  The accompanying roasted beets in pistachio yogurt?

How about that Turkish pudding surrounded by some kind of rhubarb swirl?

The edgy grapefruit sorbet?  The mint chocolate pave with pine nuts, jasmine flower and chocolate sorbet?  Yum!

The smartly attentive staff?

All that, and Daniel himself, working the room and making all of us feel extremely especiale and enchantee. Of course, the food and the service are exemplary.  The ambience is chic and inviting.  But I think that intuitive ability to connect with with his guests is the cherry on the cake.  It is what makes an evening out with friends memorable and it is what makes us his best word of mouth warriors.

Boulud Sud.  The new star in the empire.  Ask for Michael, the guy with the cool tie and glasses.  He will make sure your evening is heavenly.

Bon appetit.

Get more Wow!

If you want style notes and more for people who change the world, please check out:

Getting to Wow! to feel good, do good and look good

Nonprofit Knitwear for all things knit and nonprofit

Style Notes from me, your artspy

Hoong Yee

– Subscribe and get a little Wow! every day

– Forward the link to someone you think would be interested

– Link to a post on Twitter (follow me @hylkrakauer)

– Put a link to the blog in your Facebook status update

Thanks so much! I really appreciate your help.

Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?

The Zen Of Listening: How To Hear The Sound Of Money

photo by mang M

Before someone opens their wallet, you need to open your ears.

Getting someone to buy in to what you do, or to buy your product sounds like many different things.  If you listen well, you will be able to recognize the conversation that brings the cash.

What do I mean by that?

Have the conversation and listen

The best grants I have ever received are the ones that I got before I wrote the grant application.  The most consistent donations I have ever received were given before I asked.   In this type of relationship, pitching and closing the deal happens way before the check.  And it all begins with listening.

Penelope Trunk wrote a post about how to sell anything to anyone.  She recommends asking a good question and solving a problem to engage someone’s interest in you.  Open ended questions do this, yes/no questions do not.  You learn more about the person and what they need, what they want.  She says:

“People will buy stuff from you because you are solving a problem or capitalizing on an opportunity. In other words, people only buy stuff if it helps them make money or save money.

If you cannot trace your solution to either making money or saving money, then you have a problem.

A lot of people say that this rule does not apply to their job. But they are wrong. If you look up their chain of command, someone—somewhere—is evaluating them by whether they make money or save money, and they ignore this at their peril.

Pick three questions you want to feel comfortable asking—questions that are open ended and encourage people to talk about the problem area where you have solutions. The more you practice these questions, the more you own them.”

Peter Deitz has a post called “How Will Your Nonprofit Raise Money in 2012?  He acknowledges the bad economy and it’s impact on fundraising, but makes the following point about the shift in donor expectations:

In 2012, individuals will come to your organization with the expectation of being full partners in your work, not just dollar wells to be tapped when cash is needed. Donations will be a consequence of meaningful engagement, not a measurement of it.

Some things to listen for:

Dreams

I met with a boxful of budget weary city council members and their chiefs of staff this week seeking their support for my requests.  This is the time of year when they railroad meetings with people clutching expense and capital request forms in their hands.  I like to keep my pitch short and compelling, under five minutes and for the balance of the twenty minute meeting, I ask, “So, are you an artist?”

This is where I start making notes that this person likes attending classical symphony concerts, the community liaison person is crocheting a very brightly colored purse with no straps.  Here’s a picture:

Kat Thompson, from NYC Councilman Leroy Comrie’s team

A light in the eye

She absolutely lit up and breathlessly told me about the design of the bag, where she got her yarn and how she got the pattern for her next project – a monokini.  I am not sure what that is but I was told that they are selling in chic stores for a lot of money.  I promised to send her the link for Ravelry, a community of knitters and crocheters I belong to.

Laughter

Don’t you like being with people who are fun, who can make you laugh, who smile and remember your name?  It doesn’t require a steel trap memory to do this, just a gentle reminder to jot down a note or two on the back of their business card.  The returns on this are tremendous.  And if you do a lot of meetings, this will make your follow up calls more personal and powerful.

A place to begin

Opportunity often pokes its head through a conversation as a question.  “Do you know someone who can run a workshop for me?”  “How is your board?”  Exchange questions that reveal how you can be helpful.  Find that place to start a relationship that they want to be in.  I have a few fun arts events coming up and I extend a personal invitation to every elected official in Queens to attend and whenever possible, to make welcoming remarks in front of the audience.  Sharing the spotlight is a great way to spark a relationship.

Get more Wow!

If you want style notes and more for people who change the world, please check out:

Getting to Wow! to feel good, do good and look good

Nonprofit Knitwear for all things knit and nonprofit

Style Notes from me, your artspy

Hoong Yee

– Subscribe and get a little Wow! every day

– Forward the link to someone you think would be interested

– Link to a post on Twitter (follow me @hylkrakauer)

– Put a link to the blog in your Facebook status update

Thanks so much! I really appreciate your help.

Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?

Power Suit Alert!: Four Fashion Tips for the Nonprofit Ninja

photo by Maria Kristin Steinsson

You work in a field known for its passion.  For a better world, and for a mission.

You are either in the nonprofit world or you are a ninja.  Maybe you are both.  Either way, you must dress for success.  What you wear is just as critical to your success as what you do.  Consider yourself a hunter.  You need to move swiftly, blend into the background, have your hunting tools close at hand.  Your prey must not know where you are so you can move in for the kill successfully.  Consider yourself part of the pride.  To move among lions, you need to read the signals of their culture, move the way they do, understand their hierarchy,  behave appropriately so you don’t get eaten.  Consider yourself a creature of the corporate world.  Perhaps you need to wear something that goes from day into evening like this Crinkle Day dress from Banana Republic that I saw on Corporette so that you can network after hours and increase your presence in different circles.  Or something for a working weekend.

So many ways to not get it right!  And the consequences – I shudder.

Here are five tried and true tricks I have picked up in my years as an Executive Director for the Queens Council on the Arts. You may say, “Oh, but you can dress artsy and cute.  What about if you work in social services for the disabled, or for homeless animals?”

Read on:

1. Don’t wear lavendar

What you may love, what you may feel is really and truly you, you, you, what feels as comfortable as your skin may be a lavendar mumu.  Don’t do it.  You will be committing professional suicide for this unforgivable lapse of taste.

You need to understand what colors mean to your tribe.  This is a vital skill in the rainforest and the jungle.  What makes you think this is less crucial in your work life?

I am still trying to get beyond black.  It is so easy, so chic, so not a problem in the morning when I can’t open my eyes, forget about trying to match colors, are you kidding?  But I know better than to wear lavendar.

2. Wear what works

If you know what looks good on your body type, wear it.  And stock up.  If you have a tailor you trust, ask her what cuts and styles look good on you.  If you have an extraordinary tailor you trust, have her replicate pieces in your wardrobe that make you look good.  I have a tailor in Chinatown who can duplicate my favorite articles of clothing in different fabrics.  A luxury?  No!  She tells me I need to wear jackets that are classic and long.  So, I head over to Mood Fabrics in the garment district, buy a few yards of fabulous fabric that scream Wow! and in two weeks I have a custom made piece that I love.  Why?  Because it makes me look great.  What’s not to love?

3. Shoes, shoes, shoes

If you find yourself sitting in front of an audience waiting to speak as a panelist, or to receive a citation, or because you are about to present someone with an award, you need to wear great shoes.  A good pair of shoes sets off your whole outfit, especially on stage.  Do not underestimate the power of that slender shaped shoe leather in elevating your stature.

You can tell a lot about someone by their shoes.  I make my own shoes whenever possible.  Like these.

4. You could try your hand with a sewing machine

Don’t roll those eyes at me!  I happen to love my shiny black enamel Singer Sewing Machine and I know how to sew on buttons.  Sewing a straight seam is not rocket science and you can really add some stylish punch to any jacket or coat with unique buttons.  Here’s what Deborah Moebes, the author of  Stitch by Stitch has to say:

“Seems like for years, sewing was almost exclusively seen as an old-lady pastime. Then Project Runway hit, and it transformed peoples’ expectations of sewing—sewing wasn’t just for making curtains in your first place or making quilts whenyou’re ancient. Suddenly, sewing was a way to express yourself, a means of creativity and artistry, and a way of having some very, very cool clothes. I love that with that single viral idea, folks our age took to their machines in a way that really is unprecedented.

Be creative about what you wear.   Get used to getting second looks.

Get more Wow!

If you want style notes and more for people who change the world, please check out:

Getting to Wow! to feel good, do good and look good

Nonprofit Knitwear for all things knit and nonprofit

Style Notes from me, your artspy

Hoong Yee

– Subscribe and get a little Wow! every day

– Forward the link to someone you think would be interested

– Link to a post on Twitter (follow me @hylkrakauer)

– Put a link to the blog in your Facebook status update

Thanks so much! I really appreciate your help.

Word of mouth is the best way to share, don’t you agree?