“The Art of Gathering” Approach to Fundraising

Confession: I’m in a long-standing love affair with Priya Parker’s book, The Art of Gathering. I first read it when my husband, Michael & I were in the early stages of planning our MiKel Maine Wedding.

The basic premise is:
"The art of gathering begins with purpose: When should we gather? And why?”

These questions now inspire so many other aspects of my life, including my approach to fundraising conversations.

1. Commit to a Gathering About Something

   "The more focused and particular a gathering is, the more narrowly it frames itself and the more passion it arouses." It’s not enough to fundraise just because it’s the “End of Year.”

   Why are YOU reaching out right now? The more DETAILS you share with your community, the more inspired they’ll be to engage.

2. Reverse Engineer an Outcome

   "Think of what you want to be different because you gathered, and work backward from that outcome." At the end of the day, we ultimately can’t control whether or not the community member agrees to donate.

   We CAN control how they perceive the organization/project we’re discussing. If you focus on building a strong relationship based on trust, enthusiasm, and mutually-beneficial objectives, the money will follow.
   

3. The Wonders of Generous Authority

   "A gathering run on generous authority is run with a strong, confident hand, but it is run selflessly, for the sake of others."
   
   Actively position yourself as the HOST of the fundraising conversation. You should have an ARC for your fundraising conversation to follow, while also having flexibility for the conversation to veer a bit.
   

4. The 90 Percent Rule

   "90 percent of what makes a gathering successful is put in place beforehand."
   
   BE PREPARED with the following details:

   
   • Why this org/project is important to you
   • What specifically you’re raising money for
   • How far you are from your goal right now
   • A specific, numerical amount for which you’re Asking

5. Why Realness Can Be Designed

   "...there are certain approaches the thoughtful gatherer can take to encourage people to jettison the phony and the polished for the true."
   
   The more you engage with the community member from a place that’s GENUINE & CANDID, the quicker & easier it will be to build a real relationship with this person.

6. Why Closings Matter

   "...great hosts, like great actors, understand that how you end things, like how you begin them, shapes people’s experience, sense of meaning, and memory."
   
   INTENTIONALLY CRAFT A CLOSING (that's not contingent on whether or notthe community member agrees to donate today)
   Include a GRACIOUS THANK YOU to them for hearing you out A HEADS-UP on when they’ll hear from you (or your org) next.

If you know this book, I’d love to hear your thoughts & if you’ve felt inspired to make any “gatherings” in your life more intentional.