A Visual Guide to Giving

It's that time of year again - at least it's the time when nonprofits make one more appeal before the year ends - and before they start appealing again in the new year. Nothing like a deadline - real or self imposed - to make something happen.

Earlier this month, a terrific infographic on giving, Charity: Who Cares?, was released by mint.com and WallStats.com. As a visual kind of guy who thinks in terms of who gives what and why, I love this kind of information.

It puts into perspective the $300B given to charities and the $404B given to WalMart every year. According to mint.com, the charities collect less than a third of what they need to keep the lights on. Nothing like a little context to get your brain spinning about reality.

The data for the infographic comes from three sources:

1. Charity Navigator, one of the most significant, independent, national charity evaluators (Guidestar is another)
2. The National Center for Charitable Statistics, established in 1982, it's the national clearinghouse for nonprofit data
3. The Center for Philanthropy, the nationally renowned center of nonprofit studies at Indiana University

These sources are about as neutral and accurate as can be. However, there is always someone who wants to disagree. Based on the comments at the bottom of the chart, the report does step on a few toes.

Decide who and what you want to believe. While you're thinking about it, I hope you're doing all you can to nurture your individual donors. If you haven't noticed, they're kind of important.

One last note: to keep your brain spinning, take a minute - literally - to check out theYouTube explanation of just how much is a trillion. Some say trillion is the new billion. Think big.

The Santa Claus Myth

Today in history.

Don't read any further if you still believe in Santa Claus.

The Santa Claus myth has its origin in the historical reality of a guy named Nicholas, born in the third century in what is now Turkey. He grew up a devout Christian in a wealthy family, but was orphaned at an early age.

Taking Jesus' words seriously to "sell what you have and give the money to the poor," Nicholas used his entire inheritance to assist those who were needy, sick, and suffering. His life of radical discipleship led to him being consecrated Bishop of Myra while he was still a young man.

During the persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Diocletian, Nicholas suffered for his faith and was exiled and imprisoned. He survived prison and was part of the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. He died on this day about 1700 years ago.

He was well known throughout his life for his generosity and love for children. It really doesn't take a 501 c 3 to work for the common good.

Less is More?

The year end nears. For those of us in development, it's the final push to get those moving letters and compelling proposals to people and foundations still perceived to have deep pockets. While I'm asking for amounts from $5,000 to $20,000 and much more - there are fundraisers that are doing just fine at $25 a pop.

Mr. Obama did pretty well at that before he became President. There's an excellent report from PBP Executive Reports that looks at the lessons from the Obama campaign. Over time he grew his e-mail list from 90 thousand addresses to 13 million and attracted nearly 4 million donors. The average donation according to some reports was just over $100.

Amazing numbers! Yet there are three contradictory articles in the latest Chronicle of Philanthropy.

One report states that Social Networks Produce Dismal Results. Caroline Preston reports that out of 250 nonprofits surveyed, 74% said they had raised less than $100. Few of them could determine how many volunteers or how much money they had actually raised through their forays into social networking.

Another by Ben Gose Urges Charities and Donors to Focus on Small Gifts. Gose reports that Wendy Smith's new book, Give a Little, reminds us all how the little gifts can really add up. Individuals gave $229 billion dollars in 2007. For some context, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave just $2 billion the same year. Smith contends most of those donors are from households earning less than $100,000 per year.

Finally, Sean Stannard-Stockton writes an excellent article on tactical philanthropy using Twitter. He makes a great point that Twitter is THE new forum for discussing philanthropy. It far outstrips traditional media among young readers. All those young readers are the ones making small donations - for now. What will they give as they get older??

More significantly, Stannard-Stockton states: "...philanthropy is no longer a topic of discussion reserved for the ultrawealthy, nonprofit executives, or academic researchers. As with any topic that goes mainstream, many insiders will complain that the subject is too nuanced for the masses to understand.

But the people and organizations that can figure out how to speak authentically about philanthropy to a mainstream voice — without dumbing down the subject or talking over the heads of the newly formed crowds — will dominate the discussions about the nonprofit world in the coming months and years."

My $12.96 GoodSearch contribution this year isn't much. Some nonprofits turn up their noses at the pennies per search concept. Some don't. They are getting checks of over $1,000 this month. The pennies add up.

Heaven is in the details. Details are often very small. But they always make a difference.

Stones or Guts?

Back in the day, it was called having "guts." Today, it's called having "stones." Whatever you call it, it is a necessity for making big decisions.

Seems that the decisions are now bigger than ever. The President is trying to decide whether or not to send more troops to Afghanistan. The House and Senate are trying to decide how to improve health care. Nearly 25% of the children in Dallas live in poverty. About 16% of those have no idea where they'll sleep tonight.

Big issues. Bigger consequences. Huge costs.

Right now, the President is trying to decide how much more to commit to Central Asia. Lots of people have lots of ideas - and agendas - about what's right for now and for the future. The cost, short-term and long-term, will be huge. The decision will take some stones.

Today, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced that the new House Bill for health care will offer:

* Affordability to the middle class
* Security for seniors
* Responsibility to our children

She said that for less than $900B over ten years, we will be able to insure 36 million uninsured Americans. I cannot tell if it was gutsy for her to announce that or just not very bright.

The number is $894B. That's about $248,000 per uninsured American over ten years - or about $25,000 per year. Make that $100,000 for a family of four. Sure seems like a lot to me. Last time I checked, I'm paying less than that. Apparently she's not running for reelection, but at least she's trying to do something about a problem that none of her predecessors were willing to tackle.

Earlier this week, Children's Medical Center released the latest data for "Beyond ABC: Growing Up in Dallas." Beyond ABC is a report on the quality of life for children in Dallas. The data was presented in a symposium hosted by Children's President and CEO, Christopher Durovich. Closing the symposium, Durovich explained that the costs to help children were staggering, but that for every $1 spent in prevention, we can avoid spending nearly $3 in treatment.

Quality care costs. It can be outrageously expensive. But at that kind of return on investment, it makes no sense to not invest in prevention. After the symposium, Durovich reminded me of what the old Fram oil filter commercials taught us - you can pay me now or pay me later.

How much will it cost to stay in Afghanistan? How much will health care really cost? What will it cost to improve the lives of children in Dallas? What are the paybacks over time? When will we see a difference?

Larry James, CEO of Central Dallas Ministries, is a man I greatly admire. He also spoke at the Beyond ABC symposium. He said that the costs to build a stronger, healthier community in Dallas are beyond our taxes (what government delivers) AND beyond our charitable contributions (what nonprofits deliver). He went on to say that "tax" is not a bad word. That took some guts to say that in Dallas, Texas.

I hate taxes. I really hate the idea of higher taxes. But I must grudgingly admit that Larry James may be right. Internationally, nationally, and locally, the problems we face today are bigger, more convoluted, and costlier than ever before.

Donations are down. Will higher taxes drive them down further? The thing known certainly: costs will continue to grow.

There are no easy answers here. You can bet there will be unintended consequences. Simply throwing more tax dollars at problems will not get the job done. But avoiding tough decisions while big problems deteriorate may be a worse sin.

From our national leaders to those of our smallest nonprofits, now is the time for some tough decisions. Call it what you want. Be "with it" and call it stones, or be a "throwback" and call it guts.

Back in the day, my church choir leader called it something else since he thought the word "guts" was a little disgusting. He called it "intestinal fortitude." Somehow that seems to more accurately describe what's needed to face the tough decisions ahead of us.

Here's to the Vols!

Amazing numbers: 61.8 million people - over a quarter of our population- volunteered at least once in 2008!

Most of them were women. Most of them were between 35 and 44 years of age. Most of them did this through faith-based organizations.*

Watch your television sets carefully in October. Hollywood is focusing on the week of October 19 to promote volunteer service. The vols will be involved in at least 60 programs across the spectrum.

Elie Wiesel wrote a short, horrific, must-read book titled Night. For that amazing piece of history and much more, Wiesel won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. In his acceptance speech, he stated:

"There is so much to be done, there is so much that can be done. One person - a Raoul Wallenberg, an Albert Schweitzer, a Martin Luther King Jr. - one person with integrity can make a difference, a difference of life and death."

Today, when you look across town, one or two states over, or across the oceans, you see so much to do - so many who need help. It is overwhelming, especially to people who are thinking of volunteering.

If your nonprofit is not making maximum use of volunteers, you are not making all the impact that is possible. Make it easy to volunteer. Make it fun. Make it compelling. The script writers in Hollywood are trying to help in 2009.

Wiesel is right. One person can make a difference. Your nonprofit is the vessel in which the next Wallenberg, Schweitzer, or King may sail. Be sure you have it ready for more volunteer sailors.

*Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Volunteering in the United States, 2008"

Decisions. Get 'em right!

Outliers. The wisdom of crowds. Committees. Intestinal fortitude. Group think. Leadership. Where do I start??

Suzy Welch has written a book with some excellent ideas about decision making. In 10-10-10 she describes a simple but effective system to avoid impulsive or merely expedient decisions and make smart choices instead. In a nutshell, to determine the right decision, ask what the results will be over three periods of time.

What will be the effects of your decision in 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years? If you are satisfied with the anticipated results at all three stages, you can be reasonably confident you are making the right decision. I like simple.

That's why I don't much like committees. There is something to be said for more eyes looking over a proposal and more brains seeking solutions. A 2005 book extolled The Wisdom of Crowds. Some say a former governor and rising star is now a falling rock because she neither sought nor accepted the wisdom of others.

But group decisions offer no assurance of wisdom and prudence. Rarely do they offer boldness. "Fortes fortuna adiuvat" is commonly translated to "fortune favors the bold." Bold committees are a rarity.

Jason Zweig, writing for investors, wrote an excellent article about "group think" in the Wall Street Journal. In "How Group Decisions End Up Wrong-Footed" he looks briefly at all the committees who have made VERY bad decisions over the last few years. According to Zweig, the "idiots, liars and thieves...torched billions of dollars." But the unwisdom of compensation committees on Wall Street, investment committees at leading universities, nonprofits, and in many states, and boards of directors across the nation all contributed to our current financial crisis.

Can we learn from this disaster? If not, the "tuition" expense of this particular lesson in the "university of life" will be unbearable. What is the take-away lesson for nonprofits? Here is my mash of ideas from Zweig's five points and Welch's concept.

Welch believes that each organization must be very clear on its values, then begin a decision dialogue based on 10-10-10. Start with complete candor on values, performance, desired goals, etc. If you walk on eggs to avoid ruffled feathers, you are courting disaster. Overcome the fear factor by reflecting on how many lives you have to live and what's the worst that can happen. Fortune does favor the bold. Don't be reckless, but don't be fearful either.

Zweig offers five points of decision making for investment groups which I've adapted for nonprofits:

1. Measure what makes sense. When deciding on a new program or a new hire, determine the factors that most likely predict success. Programs - and people in a much more subjective sense - can be rated based on cost, impact, expected rate of return (objectively and subjectively), history of success in other organizations, and even "chemistry" or fit within the organization.
   
2. Neuter the numbers. Rank the factors in order of importance and assign numeric values to those factors for each program or person under consideration. Be prepared to update those numeric values after deeper investigation or interview.
   
3. Reframe the question. Determine the good and the bad. Make a list of the best things that can happen if the decision is correct and worst things that can happen if the decision is a disaster.
   
4. Use "the five whys." Go beyond questions that have simple "yes" or "no" answers. Instead ask "why" something is believed to be true. If you can drill down with five whys and still be satisfied with the object of interrogation, you can be comfortable in knowing you've explored for any areas of weakness.
   
5. Define the default position. Determine a common denominator of success. From that, gradually build to what you want the program or position to be.

That default position may not seem to have any boldness in its properties. But strong trees grow slowly. The bold choice to plant it and the patient wisdom to nurture it will bear fruit for years to come.

The New Normal

We lost Walter Cronkite last week . We started losing newspapers a couple of years ago. We're losing good old page-turning, paperback books to these newfangled things called "wireless reading devices."

Things are changing. Talk to most of my boomer buddies. They don't like it. They don't like text messages, Facebook pages, or tweets from Twitter. They want pages made of paper that they can turn and fold and use to scribble their notes. They want people they can trust like Uncle Walter. They want things back to normal. The way they used to be.

Get a grip fellow geezers. Pull up those relaxed-cut jeans. There's a new normal coming to town.

Over the last few years, I've spent some time at Camp Esperanza. That's a week long summer camp for 140 children battling cancer through Camp John Marc and Children's Medical Center in Dallas. Those kids can teach us a lot.

A common denominator for every one of them and their families, is that they had to adapt to a new normal. Cancer is an equal opportunity disease. It offers a complete change to a "normal" family life with chemo treatments, surgery, rehab, and more. If it affects your family, the only choice you have is whether or not you'll adapt to change.

Change is coming to the way we read. The new normal for readers will be the use of wireless reading devices. An easier name is "ereaders."

Amazon leads the way with its Kindle. Sony is running a strong second. This week, Barnes & Noble announced their intention to enter the market with an ereader. AT&T announced they will play in this game. Newspapers are scrambling to save themselves.

It's just a matter of time before a group of newspapers find their own hardware vendor to produce an inexpensive ereader tuned to their newspapers - and a few hundred thousand electronic books. The pitch? You can have our cheap ereader - maybe for free - if you subscribe to one of our newspapers for a few years.

It's worked before. Mr. Gillette got rich selling razor blades after he gave away the razor.

The ability to adapt to change - even embrace it - is invaluable. The publishing business will adapt. The public as a whole will gripe - then gradually change. Some faster than others. When you have money, it's easier to adapt to change.

What about the folks without money? What about those living in poverty? Yes, they still read. Maybe not as much, but they are more interested than we might imagine.

Earlier this month, Jenna Russell of the Boston Globe wrote about a book club for the homeless. Her article gives insight into a group of people many want to ignore. It's a heartwarming story about a man who buys books for one small group in Boston.

But what about the homeless and near homeless across the nation? If the move to digital print has the momentum that I expect, where will the poor get their news, sports, and current events? What will nonprofits who serve the poor do to help those poor adapt to change?

How will the nonprofits themselves adapt? This is the first question to answer. If the nonprofits don't adapt, the people they serve will fall further behind.

Yes. There will always be books and newspapers made of paper. Probably even an uptick in donated books. Classics endure. But current events are timely. If it starts costing more to read the news, the poor will be left out even more.

As the digital divide grows, how will nonprofits help the poor stay in touch with the world? How can nonprofits encourage self sufficiency if the poor cannot afford to read what's happening around them?

These questions don't have to be answered right now. But they do need to be considered now. It is early, but now is the time to start playing with the new tools of the 21st century. The more you understand, the easier it is to adapt. The more you are able to adapt, the more you can help others adapt.

The good news with these newfangled ereaders, you won't have to worry about where you left your bifocals. Just crank that font size up to 44 on your ebook or enewspaper, sit back, and enjoy your read.