Marginal Cost

by Russ on March 13, 2012

The challenge all causes have is making the organizational cost of going from 1 to 2 as low as possible.

A couple of summers ago I was away on a four-week assignment in the US. When Sunday rolled around I began googling for a local church to worship at with my wife.

However, a colleague, also on the assignment, had a different idea. We could download the vodcast and sermon notes from his church back in Canada and have a discussion together. He send out word to those on the assignment and a dozen or so joined the group in the common area of our accommodation. We enjoyed great teaching and discussion together.

My colleague’s church had cracked the marginal cost issue. It cost his church practically nothing to resource a small group of a dozen people gathering together at our satellite location, 1000s of kilometers from the church’s base. Hundreds of other ad-hoc groups could theoretically do the same and it would cost the church pennies.

Collecting donations, recruiting volunteers, training leaders, spreading ideas. The challenge is the same. As you grow, can you drive the marginal cost of adding more participants to zero? When you can confidently say yes to this, I think you’re onto something big!

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Deferral

by Russ on March 7, 2012

Deferral is actually making a decision. Usually the decision means “no”.

Deferral is often used as a passive aggressive way to say “no”. Not returning calls, emails or continually saying, “we need more information” are how deferral manifests itself in organizations and personal lives.

The courageous leader learns to say “no” without deferring. Clearly, concisely, respectfully and refusing to play the deferral game.

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Talking out loud

February 29, 2012

If you grew up in North America, you were probably taught in school that if you wanted to speak, you needed to raise your hand. In today’s connected economy, you need to learn to speak without raising your hand. No one needs to give you permission. Today you could: begin the journey of becoming a [...]

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Does it work?

February 24, 2012

Too often non-profits ask, “How much does it cost?” Cost is important, but secondary. The main question causes ought to be asking is, “Does it work?” Being able to identify effectiveness and progress is paramount. The reality is that making things work, costs. We shouldn’t be ashamed of that. However, too many causes don’t work [...]

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Results

February 22, 2012

I just finished writing a major proposal on how the organization I work for ought to think about approaching evaluating our effectiveness in light of some major goals we set. Ironically, three posts came out in my blogroll today that deeply resonated with me and related to this topic. They are all worthy of a [...]

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Friction

February 20, 2012

How many clicks does it take a donor to give your cause money? How easy can your volunteers invite a friend to participate in your cause? How many approvals are required to get staff their money for expense reports? How many hoops do you have to jump through to send a communication to your tribe? [...]

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Change

February 14, 2012

Samsung chairman Lee Kun-Hee once quipped that Samsung needed to, “change everything except [their] wife and kids.” Bold statement. Easy to say. Hard to live out. Even harder to lead others in. Three ways to evaluate change: 1. Comfort test – Does this just make me uncomfortable or do I have some data point, moral [...]

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Blood pressure

February 11, 2012

A few years back my father went to see the doctor for a routine checkup. The checkup revealed high blood pressure levels. Exercise and diet modifications were prescribed as essential treatments as to avoid future complications and problems. My dad set out immediately to get running and be more careful around his intake. He knew his [...]

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5 practical tips – If I was your geek…

February 9, 2012

If you hired me as your geek, some of what I might show you. 1. Gmail shortcuts. Learn how to check, send and file email without ever using your mouse. Every time you reach for your mouse, you burn valuable seconds. They keys, c, j, k and s should become your best friends. 2. The [...]

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Vision or quick wins?

February 7, 2012

Which is more necessary? I think some leaders make vision vs quick wins seem mutually exclusive. Both are important. Because vision leaks, we must always be motivating our tribes with reminders of what it will look like when our mission is accomplished. On the other hand, we must make sure we are making progress and [...]

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