Do you know what makes successful major gift fundraisers?

A question posted on a Linkedin discussion board recently asked what are the characteristics of successful major gift fundraisers. At last count over 20 people had offered their lists "successful" characteristics. The suggested characteristics offered have a predictable repetitiveness yet with a range of "outliers."

Passion for the mission is the characteristic most often dubbed the most important. I'll say it's overrated and among the least important characteristics for successfully garnering major gifts. More on this later. 

Many of the suggested characteristics are collectively called "soft skills." Soft skills are personal attributes characterizing relationships with people. The characteristics offered included:
     
     Integrity             Patience
     Good listener      Positive
     Sincerity            Good with people 

Some of the suggested characteristics fall in to the hard skill category. Hard skills are about a persons ability to accomplish a certain task - in this case closing major gifts. Suggested hard skills included:

     Self-motivation         Strategic
     Creative                   Good writer
     Organized                 Positive

Will finding all of the characteristics in one person equal a successful fundraiser?  Maybe. Maybe not. There are few, if any, that possess all of the soft/hard skills. Some combination, greater or lesser, is the reality.

The problem with lists is it provides convenient excuses for NOT raising money. If you lack a skill or two you can't raise money.

• I can't raise money because I'm not good with people.
• I don't have the patience to raise money.
• I'm not good at raising money because I'm not creative.
• I'm not organized enough to raise money.

It goes on and on and on. You've heard them. Heck, you may have even used them! 

There are literally thousands and thousands of people that will bleed for their mission and can't or won't raise a dime for the cause they profess such great passion for.  You've seen it. You know it is true. This is why "passion for the mission" is highly overrated.

Given that a person is not socially inept or against the cause, there are two essential characteristics that are absolutely necessary for successful major gift fundraising - along with one tool. The two characteristics are:

1. The desire to raise major gifts.
2. The ability/discipline to use the tool. 

I don't wish to minimize the soft/hard skill list. Certainly, adding more from the soft/hard list to the essential characteristics will enhance the major gift outcomes. The more the merrier! But, without the desire to raise major gifts - success is unlikely.

The tool that is essential to major gift fundraising is a proven major gift process. It's an equalizer. Those who rely only on "being good with people" etc. will close fewer gifts. Those that use a major gift process, yet lack some soft/hard skills will close more gifts. 

Widely known as moves management, a major gift process levels the playing field. It allows the majority of us, with fewer of the soft/hard skills, to be more successful than those who are blessed with the skills but don't use the tool. Using a set, sequence (process) to guide the qualifying, cultivating/ stewarding, soliciting, and closing of major gifts can mitigate the lack of soft/hard skills. 

If you haven't heard the phrase moves management or you're not sure what the phrase means you can access a free, easy to understand, ebook titled De-Mystifying Moves Management by following this link.

It's not rocket science. 

1. Find someone that wants to do it
2. Provide the tool and the guidance to use it.

It's an equalizer. More major gifts will be closed.