How to make sure the economy really crushes you

I'm pretty sure at least half of the damage that's been done to nonprofits during the past couple of years of down economy has been self-inflicted.

Acting in fear, many fundraisers have pulled back so far they may not recover, even after the economy gets back on track.

Here are some of the self-destructive courses nonprofits have taken recently, according to the Michael Rosen Says blog, at 3 Ways for Nonprofits to Crash & Burn in Current Economy:

1. Stop Asking.
2. Do Not Have a Compelling Case for Support.
3. Ignore Current Supporters.

These, of course, are also great ways to make your program crash and burn in any economy.

There is no way to cut your way to growth. There's no way to get more results by being silent.

Comments

[Michael J. Rosen, CFRE]

Jeff, thank you for sharing my blog post with your readers. I appreciate it, and hope they do as well.

[Xan at Juno Consulting]

4. Ignore new donors.
5. Ignore the value of new media
6. Don't adapt your program to new needs and realities.

Your post is so important; I've watching so many mid-sized groups just hunker down and pretend its 1985. In 5 years, they'll be gone.