If you’re anything like me this time of year, your brain is overflowing with information as you plan for is typically the busiest time of a fundraiser’s year, while also trying to carve out time to enjoy all the fun activities our fleeting Minnesota fall has to offer.
Whenever my mind is feeling frazzled, I turn to list-making as a way to find order in what sometimes feels like chaos. And, in honor of spooky season, I’m taking quite a leap to make the case that pumpkin carving and diligent list-making aren’t so different after all!
Hear me out!
Step 1. Prep your work station.
Set aside 20 minutes and gather your carving tools. Choose what surface you want to work on—in this case, where you’ll be placing all your to-do items. It could be a piece of paper, a Word/Google document, sticky notes, a voice memo…whatever feels best for getting a little bit messy for a short amount of time!
Step 2. Scoop out the guts.
Every pumpkin carving evening starts like this, and your to-do list should be no different! Empty all your thoughts onto whatever surface you chose. Don’t worry about making it pretty or being too organized to begin with—just try to empty your mind of all your to-dos into one place. It may feel overwhelming at first, but it helps to have a clear picture of what you are working to accomplish.
Step 3. Get to carving!
Now that you’ve done the dirty work, let’s start to make our final product! Start to organize your to-dos into groups. Then, one by one, reword every item on your list into an actionable to-do item.
Let’s say you have listed “annual report” on your initial list. Start breaking that down into actionable to-dos, like “draft annual report,” “compile sources for annual report,” etc. Drill down into the sub-tasks as much as is helpful without slowing progress on your overall goal of creating an overall plan.
Some pumpkin carving outcomes have tons of finesse and detail, but a tried-and-true jack-o-lantern with triangle eyes and a toothy grin is a classic and crowd-pleaser, too. Your final to-do list should be whatever brings you joy and comfort.
Step 4. Find the perfect spot and light it up!
As your design starts to take shape, put a few finishing touches on it and then step back and congratulate yourself on a job well done—it’s not easy to make order out of chaos!
Then, decide where your final place will be to admire your work. In pumpkin world, we’ll usually move our creation from the kitchen table to your front steps or a window. Similarly, you’ll want to make a final draft of your action plan and put it somewhere you can be reminded of it (and comforted by having a plan) on a daily basis.
Put in your light source and feel confident knowing that you have created an action plan to turn all of the errant thoughts and responsibilities running around your head into action!
Good luck this fall!
Cat Clements is a fundraising coach for RaiseMN, GiveMN’s initiative to work with nonprofits to level up their fundraising knowledge, confidence and results. Learn more about RaiseMN, or schedule a call to discuss how we may be able to partner with you or your organization.