3 Ways Nonprofits make more profit than you

We all have purpose.  That is a universal truth.  The thing about it is that those purposes vary with a great degree.  It’s not a bad thing, just another universal. 

     With that being said, we all choose a purpose to generate “a living” (or that purpose often chooses us!).  When that happens you can almost measure how effective somebody is with that by how much of a force in their life it is.  If you’ve forgotten your reason or are going through a “slump” (I quote it because 9 out of 10 times it’s a self induced problem) watch a telethon or a charitable organization work.  You’ll see 3 clear reasons why they get people to give them money for free!

1. They believe with all of their being. The belief of a person newly involved with a “cause” is warming.  The belief of the person that began said cause is intoxicating.  You find yourself mesmerized by what they are saying and think to yourself “why don’t I do something like this” or “why am I not involved like he/she is?”  Do your customers/clients say that about you?  At the end of the day that is what we all want in business, but do we invest in ourselves enough for others to do so?
2. They are hopelessly optimistic.  Non-profit is an extremely noble thing to do.  At the same time, since it is not for profit, you have to have some thick skin or powerful optimism (I prefer the latter).  These charities and organizations go through a ton of ups and downs and you would never be able to tell when you’re talking to a president or PR person for one of these organizations.  That is because they know their “end game” and they know why the work they do is so important.  They start with $0 for something with hopes of reaching X by merely being passionate or fostering a lot of relationships.  Business is hard, undeniably, but if you know that there is an end in sight then the run isn’t so bad.
3. They have goals with deadlines.  Number 3 shoulda been number 1 to me (any Biggie fans?………………I digress) .  When you see celebrities just make up a bunch of charitable organizations for tax reasons you see them disappear quickly.  There is no goal.  There is no ETA.  Yet, if you watch a well put together telethon, you see goals at work in a rapid fire highly effective way.  Seeing that ticker go get closer and closer to the goal makes people push.  It makes people go beyond what they normally would do.  It’s like overtime in a great football game!  Do you have a ticker counting (up or down; your choice)?  Do you have a deadline and not just “I want to be successful?”

   
      I don’t mean to make this elementary, but the more I research for myself, build my business, and see others succeeding I thought it best to show the “easy” way.  I would have loved for my parents to have this “talk” with me when I was 9, but better late then never!

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Which Ticket Do You Have?

     I was sitting on the couch at my grandmother-in-law’s house watching TV while she and my wife spoke. She was telling my wife about how she has on a small scale been buying lottery tickets for the last few years (or maybe decades......). With her being 75 years of age and having the notion of “making it big” one day made me wonder. Why does the lottery drive people more than goals?
    
      Here we are, fully functioning, intelligent, able bodied people, yet we would rather rely on chance solely to make our fortunes. The odds are so astronomical that you know you are wasting your money. Yet people still do it in droves! People still put all of their faith in it. People come up with systems to pick numbers that they KNOW will be a winner. Yet and still, people would rather do that and work as a cashier than to roll up their sleeves and make something out of nothing.  We have become a "microwave" society in more ways than the kitchen............

     Truth be told, running a business of some sort does rely on a bit of faith and chance, but it is of the tangible type. One that you can see come to reality day by day. You can’t see a lottery ticket making you millions until they don’t call your number.

     I am not wearing my preacher hat today, but merely saying cheers to those that are working towards a goal. A person with a goal is a person on fire. There is nothing more meaningful or honorable. Coming from a past of working for somebody else’s goals I will tell you that I feel invigorated knowing that my efforts are for my future.

     Working for somebody else is pretty much like hoping you win the lottery (and that's ok for many people). I just wish I would've stopped paying for their tickets and made my own sooner!

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3 Reasons Why Wrestlers SMASH Marketing

Ooooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhh  yyyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!  (not the Kool-Aid one)….

Not everyone is a fan of wrestling, but everyone knows of it.  Everybody goes in knowing that it’s not real, but somehow they capture millions of viewers day in and day out. 
I just had to stop and think about how powerful that is for a business, because that’s all wrestling is.  How much would it impact your business if millions of people just saw you every day?! 
See although it is fake, every WWE superstar has mastered 3 powerful things when it comes to the business of them and this is something every entrepreneur needs:

1.  A Compelling Story -  Every wrestler is a character.  They are either a bad guy, good guy, or wild card.  They tell their story every week to the fans and draw them in to their world.  Are you drawing in your target audience?  What is your story and is it compelling? 

2.  Belief In Themselves – Every wrestler believes with all of their fiber that they are the best one there.  They often times can’t snap out of it!  The best example is The Miz.  He started out on MTV’s “The Real World” and parlayed that into a wrestling deal!  He told everyone he would do it and believed that with all of his heart.  How much do you believe in your success?  Have you affirmed your goals? 

3.  A Great Tagline / Catch Phrase -  Every memorable wrestler has some line they use every time you see them so you remember them.  Do you smell what ……………  What you gonna do when ……………..  And that’s the bottom line……………..  It might sound cheesy, but with all of the noise in the world you need to make a little so possible clients remember you.

Have A Plan, Not A Plea.

Shameless plug 

*The thoughts expressed here are not those of the WWE and are no way endorsed by Ric Flair, Wwwwwwwwwwwoooooooooooooo!

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