This is the second part of a 3-part series we will share that ties nonprofit work and fundraising to the Lord of the Rings Movies. Read the first part here.
SPOILER ALERT: We will discuss content from the Lord of the Rings books, movies, and the greater LOTR universe.
When you watch the Lord of the Rings movies, it’s easy to forget how long the story takes. While the 10+ hour runtime for the trilogy is daunting, it is nothing compared to the 6 months it takes the movies’ protagonists, Sam and Frodo, to make it to Mordor from the Shire (Frodo actually has the ring for 17+ years in the Shire between Bildo’s party and when Gandalf returns, but I digress).
They don’t know it’s going to take quite that long, but they do know it will be a really long time! Yet, they commit and take it one step at a time. Even when they experience setbacks and hardships, they persevere, eventually reaching the Crack of Doom and saving the world.
However, the other heroes, e.g. Aragorn and company, don’t simply stand around and wait for the hobbits to throw the ring into Mount Doom. Instead, they do what they must to keep the kingdom together, whether it is waging war against the white wizard or defending their cities against invading armies. Destroying the ring and overthrowing Sauran would be pretty useless if everything was burned to the ground. Even in the midst of these urgent battles, the heroes don’t forget about the long-term plan and do everything they can to support Sam and Frodo on their journey.
Just like Sam and Frodo’s trek, doing nonprofit fundraising right takes a really long time. It may be easy to spam your file with solicitations and send out dozens of random grant applications, but, just like if the hobbits tried sprinting to Mordor, it might make some progress towards your goals yet likely won’t result in lasting success.
You may get a grant or two and some donations, but you, your prospects, and your supporters will get tired, leading to you either stopping these efforts or folks no longer responding. However, if you take things at a sustainable pace and get the basics right, such as accurate recordkeeping and engaging stewardship, your fundraising will continue to grow until you have a thriving base of supporters. It will take months, if not years, to get the basics consistently right and develop trusting relationships with your supporters, but in the long run, it will lead to more significant gifts and more impactful asks.
Fundraising also has similarities to how Aragorn and company did what they had to do to keep everything together while Frodo and Sam invested in their long-term strategy. While making sure your fundraising is built on strong relationships and consistent systems may be the best long-term option, you still need to keep the lights on while you build a robust fundraising program, so you may have to fight your own metaphorical war.
The cultivation meetings you’re planning with the folks who attended your open house and networking you’re doing with community partners may be important to developing a great reputation and relationships, which will likely lead to increased giving down the line, you’ll still have to be nimble and submit that grant application to the highly aligned funder and send out that year-end appeal, even if it isn’t all 100% perfect or will solve all your fundraising problems.
After all, the trust you’re building with your stakeholders won’t do much good if your nonprofit goes out of business. The trick is to keep everything in perspective and always be working toward your long-term goal: Fulfilling your mission through impactful and well-resourced programs.
Just like how every step Sam takes past the scarecrow is one-step further away from the Shire and closer to Mount Doom than he’s ever been before, every step you take in your fundraising program towards developing consistent systems and trusting relationships is one step further away from shortsighted and frantic fundraising and one step closer to a finely-tuned machine that is creating impactful experiences for your beneficiaries and donors. Please just make sure you don’t lose sight of the here and now and let orcs, metaphorical or otherwise, overrun your nonprofit.
Comments