The thing that gets people over the line isn’t how persuasive your argument is. It’s certainly not because they see a big need in the world.
The thing that gets them over the line is passion. Ultimately their passion, but before that happens they need to see your passion. They need to glimpse something raw and unbridled and real. A deep belief in what is possible. Conviction.
In order for them to see that, they need to see you first, to understand who you are. They need to be able to relate to your passion and have it mean something to them. They need to appreciate that if you’re all fired up about something then it must be something worth getting fired up about.
The biggest mistake fundraisers typically make is to take themselves out of the story. It’s a natural to try to step aside since what seems to be on offer is the story, or, worse, the need, and not the person telling the story.
Need is overwhelming and paralyzing to most people. Need seems insurmountable. We all are looking for real, grounded, plausible passion, possibility, potential and hope. People begin to see that by seeing what you see, feeling what you feel.
If they don’t glimpse that in you, how are they ever going to feel it themselves?
