It takes many

How do you help a new strategy succeed?

It takes all types of people and skills to get new ideas to work. You need creatives, pioneers, implementors, and of course, donors. When you are initiating a new project it’s important to share the project's vision early, so your donor partners aren't caught by surprise with a last-minute funding request.

On one occasion, several of us were working hard on creating sports skills videos. The idea was excellent. However, the project didn’t make it to production. One reason was our failure to inform the donors of our funding needs ahead of time. This meant we didn’t have the necessary funds when they were required. The project died.

Another time I was part of a small team putting together two expensive sports projects. Fundraising was hard. We had to raise funds for the projects in the worst fund-raising months in my country. We had also waited for approval from the sport’s governing body. By then we had missed the best time to present these projects to donor churches and friends.

I made two mistakes. First, I didn't have anyone else working with me on the funding need. Second, I waited until approval was received before starting to raise funds. I could have approached potential donors early in the process and kept them aware of progress on the projects.

Scripture to ponder – Ecclesiastes 4:9

Two people are better than one, for they can help each other succeed.

Key Lesson: If you are a creative person and have excellent ideas but don't consider the funding need or don't like to raise donor support, you will likely not succeed. You need to have several people with different gifts working together.