Channeling a Business Guru for Fundraising Ideas (part 3 of a series)

Channeling a Business Guru for Fundraising Ideas (part 3 of a series)

By Tom Wilson Major Gifts Guru

More from The New York Times article on Jim Collins. Good to Great and the Social Sectors took him the better part of two years to write and sold 400,000 copies. His new book, How the Mighty Have Fallen is just out.

Here’s a great tip on case development. As you know I’m a real maven on getting reactions from people on how to make the case better. Look what Jim Collins does:

“He gets feedback from a large circle of people. To make sure they don’t hold back, he refers to them as his ‘critical readers,’ and types in large letters atop the manuscript, ‘Bad First Draft.’ ‘That gives them the freedom to say. Jim already knows it’s bad, so let me tell him how bad.’”

Another case writing tip: “Collins has a deft touch with metaphors the enliven what might otherwise read like dry case studies – flywheels, hedgehogs, the bus.”

What has this to do with major gift fundraising? Nothing of course . . . or maybe everything. What have you read lately that holds implications for us? Let me know.

This article was the third of a series. For articles 2 and 3, see below:

• Channeling a Business Guru for Fundraising Ideas
• Channeling a Business Guru for Fundraising Ideas (part 2 of a series)

Permanent Link: Channeling a Business Guru for Fundraising Ideas (part 3 of a series)

http://majorgiftsguru.com/2009/06/channeling-business-guru-for_18.html