I heard someone say recently that they want to participate in a training, but they can’t afford it. Sigh. Get ready, I’m getting on my soap box!
I understand that some of you live and breathe by your budget. Most of the time that’s a great thing. But it can be very limiting. And it can hold you back. (A budget is a guideline by the way, and not chiseled in stone.)
Take this to heart: Whatever you believe becomes your reality.
If you believe you can’t afford something, it becomes real. Your limited negative thinking will actually repel money. You’ll become so focused on staying inside that budget that you will miss golden opportunities. You’ll start to believe that not only can’t you afford something, but you shouldn’t have it or don’t deserve it. Your world will actually start to shrink from your limited thinking.
If you leave your options open, things can change and money can show up from an unexpected source. It’s the power of positive thinking and the law of attraction. It amazes me still, but I see it work in my life regularly.
About two weeks ago, I was in agony. There was a 3-day business developing workshop that I really, really wanted to go to, but I kept putting registration off because of the money. It was more money than I had ever spent on training for myself and I believed I couldn’t afford it. Yet something kept telling me I really needed to be at this event! After several days of going back and forth, I decided to go. So, I took a step of faith and went. Had to borrow the money from my daughter (how funny is that??). I went to the event. Had a GREAT time. Met lots of wonderful people. And I got such big things out of this event, that I will easily earn 10 times what I spent on the event in the next 6 to 8 months! (translation: I have BIG IMPACT services and products planned for you! stay tuned!)
Now I realize that business and nonprofit are different. But are they really? If you think small about the money you can raise, what results can you expect? If you limit your thinking, what will you attract? Do donors want to be involved with organizations that think small?
There’s also a cost involved when you limit your thinking. It’s the opportunity that’s lost when you don’t take advantage of things. In the situation of training, it’s the cost of continuing to do things the same way you always have because you aren’t learning a new way. In my example above, the cost to me was clear: if I had chosen not to go, I would have missed the chance to learn some new thinking and missed the chance to offer bigger and better products and services next year, plus the chance to earn more money. That cost was simply too great.
When you pass on a training because you “can’t afford it”, you are hurting your organization, because you’re missing the chance to learn new ways of serving clients or raising money. Sometimes all it takes is one good nugget from a workshop to make a big impact on the way you do things. And you might have a Board member or a donor who would love to pay for you to attend. When you immediately decide you can’t afford it, you aren’t giving that Board member or donor the chance to support you.
So, please, please, please be careful with your thoughts!! Don’t limit yourself and your opportunities. Leave your options open and see what life brings you.
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