Each year, Labor Day marks a series of beginnings and ends. We start to say goodbye to summer weather, vacations and cookouts. And we start to say hello to another year of school, cooling temperatures, and for many of us, pumpkin spice season.
For fundraisers, Labor Day also marks the starting line of the rush toward end-of-year giving, the season in which most of us receive the most donations each year. And with the busy season, many of us will experience varying levels of work stress in the coming months.
Some psychologists differentiate this stress in two different ways.
First, there’s eustress—when work feels challenging but manageable, and it can lead to satisfaction and growth. When eustress is at a healthy level, we may feel tired at the end of the day, but a good night’s sleep can usually help us wake up energized and ready for a new day. Psychologists have found that popping in and out of a healthy amount of stress actually helps us perform at a more optimal level.
Then, there’s distress—which can often feel like you don’t have the time, skills, or patience to manage the tasks ahead. Over a period of time, it has the ability to lead to burnout, which can show itself through exhaustion, resentment, anxiety, and feelings of shame.
Stress certainly isn’t unique to fundraisers, but sometimes we can feel it very acutely, especially during year-end giving. The average tenure for a Director of Development is only 16 months, and turnover has increased in the last few years with burnout mentioned as a key factor.
With all of this in mind, GiveMN has compiled a few self-care tips for fundraisers as we set off for our shared busy season. We hope these will help you recognize and take advantage of eustress, limit and manage distress, and take care of yourself and your peers in the coming months!
- Let go of fundraising FOMO (fear of missing out)
It’s easy to see what other fundraisers are doing and think, “I should be doing that, too”—but do your best not to compare yourself or your work to others! You know your audience and your work best, so you know what tactics and messages are most meaningful for your supporters. Trust your judgment and stick to activities that match your team’s capacity. - Create shared responsibility and visibility
Fundraising isn’t a solo activity! It’s important to bring others from your team or board of directors into your fundraising plans. Everyone can have a role in fundraising, so make sure your colleagues know the who, what, when, where, and why of your organization’s campaigns. - Ask for help
Once you’ve brought others into your fundraising planning, it’s easier to ask for help when you need it! Maybe program staff can help write thank you notes to donors, or perhaps board members can spread the word about your campaigns on social media. Focus on what you do best and delegate tasks to others as needed! - Make space for PTO and plan times to rest
If you have PTO available, make a plan of when you’re going to use it. November and December require fundraisers to be all-in on gift entry, data management, stewardship, etc. Being intentional about your rest can help ensure you take a breath after the chaotic year-end dash. - Plan ahead – automate what you can
There are plenty of tools out there that can help you work smarter, not harder. If it’s in your budget, try looking at tools like Canva for graphics or Hootsuite to help you pre-schedule social media posts during GTMD and the year-end season. Leverage your email platform to schedule email asks and updates to your donors throughout the Early Giving period and on Give to the Max Day. - Don’t reinvent the wheel every time
Do you have a story you’re planning on sharing in your year-end ask? Consider using Give to the Max as a warm up to your year-end campaign. How can you frame the story differently to use it for both campaigns? Are there images you can use in both campaigns? Are there themes that you know resonated with your audience in previous campaigns that you can edit and use again? - Stretch, take a walk, and drink water!
Remember to take breaks when you can! Keep yourself hydrated, schedule time away from your screen, and find activities that fill your bucket. As fundraisers, we can only help power the missions we care about when we’re also taking care of ourselves! - Recognize your accomplishments and the wins of your colleagues
Fundraising is hard work. Celebrating your wins—both big and small—is important to recognizing that the work you’re doing is good and powers our communities. Did you learn a lesson from your GTMD22 campaign that led to changes for your GTMD23 plans? Celebrate! Did you get a nice comment from a donor about your organization’s work? Celebrate! Did you hit your goal? Celebrate even more!
The GiveMN team is here to support you all year long, not just on Give to the Max Day! If you have questions or need support with your fundraising planning, reach out to our team at help@givemn.org. Happy fundraising!