Fundraisers Are Resolute

One of the attributes I found in every one of my great fundraisers is that they are resolute. Determined. Dogged and undaunted.

I love the story about Roger Bannister. It was over 60 years ago that he broke the four-minute mile. It was an unthinkable feat.

But Bannister knew he could do it. “I knew that morning I would do it. I was resolute. I knew it was possible.”

Now here’s what makes this all the more astounding. In the next twelve months, four other runners also eclipsed the presumably impossible feat. Since then, hundreds have.

The explanation is that four minutes represented a mental barrier, not a physical constraint. When Bannister broke through the intellectual wall, the world’s runners realized such a time was not beyond their reach. All that was required was resolve.

The lesson is quite clear. Negative thinking limits performance.

The great fundraisers understand this. They are a determined and resolute group. Unyielding. They understand that the only failure is to not make the attempt. Even when things don’t go precisely the way they hoped, they never flag.

There’s the old Frank Sinatra refrain the great fundraisers live by, “Every time I find I fall flat on my face, I get myself up and get back in the race.”