Seeking Inspiration?

by Flickr user Dominic Alves

I read today’s SOFII blog post with interest, as I’m often asked by organisations how they can refresh their approach or revamp their fundraising.  In the current environment, organisations are trying to stand out from the crowd and get noticed among the increasing number of charities seeking funding.

It is important to think out of the box but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to completely reinvent yourself and your organisation, simply to view the way that you do things in a different way.  SOFII’s suggestion to look outside the charity sector is a good one and a method that I often advocate with clients.  Think about organisations that you would like to emulate – and be as ambitious at this stage, as possible.  You may not ultimately have the big budget to deliver an exact blueprint of a project you like but, by thinking creatively, you can adapt ideas that you like to fit your organisation, approach and budget.

I particularly like the quote: “Not every connection will work but failing quickly and learning is crucial to any successful innovation process. However, the wider you cast your net in your search for inspiration, the more you move away from your current, tired and tested patterns of thinking, the more previously unconnected connections you are likely to make and the more chance you have of coming up with something new.”   This can be applied to a number of different areas – project development, communication techniques, organisational approach, donor research – as well as many other aspects.

Read SOFII’s top seven suggestions to help you think out of the box – and put them into practice.

What do you think?   Would you add any others to the list?  Have you carried out a similar exercise for your organisation and what were the results?