Princess Guide: If the Fundraiser Fits....

I have to tell ya'll. A few people have asked me for advice on how to "run" a large team. That's kind of a joke -- they run me!!! Seriously, though, a lot of it is trial and error. It's a trial to work with me because I make LOTS of errors!

More than anything else, I enjoy coming up with fun sayings that have to do with Boobies. My latest? Have a Snack! Save your Rack!

So now that I've shared all the humor I can muster up this morning, I do have some cool tips from that golf tournament seminar. And this stuff? This stuff applies whatever fundraiser you're doing. I think it's pure genius.

Warning: Do not do a tourney (insert: large fundraiser) by yourself! It's way too much work for 1-2 people, and you will not be as successful without a big committee. The bigger your committee, the better your fundraiser. More volunteers bring more contacts/ relationships, more ideas/ creativity, more fun.

This is so right. As a leader, I've had to adjust to having people who are ready and willing to share the workload -- but boy, has it made my life easier! We are doing a HUGE Gala in October, and I have pretty much handed it all off to three Team Tiara superstars.

The result? They are rocking and rolling. I have been maxed out with Yearbook and the Quilts for the Cure calendar. There is No Way I would have done much on the Gala to this point. But our committee? They're Da Bomb. They've already nailed down a fantastic location, and are securing auction items left and right.

One note: The wrong volunteers can be more trouble than they're worth.

It's a sad fact, but it's true.... The wrong volunteers can be a total drain on your fundraiser. So choose carefully....

When you're building that committee, you want to make sure you've got the right size. With 20-30 people in a room, nothing gets decided. There's even a name for that -- Death by Committee. It's Trouble with a capital "T."

Having 6-12 people on a committee is a perfect size for any large fundraiser, golf tournament or not. With that number of people, you're pretty well going to have enough creativity, talent and drive to get the job done.

It's important that your committee members realize everyone must do something. This is no opportunity for someone that just wants the glory of being on the committee. Oftentimes, 20% of the people do 80% of the work. You can do a few things to help your committee's productivity.

1. You can train them properly. Take the time to train them to do what you need them to do. Take a corporate attitude. (Remember, we're treating this like a business.) Have a training meeting where you teach them to sell sponsorships and get golfers to sign up. Put examples out there of fundraising letters they can write. Just because it's easy for you, doesn't mean it's second nature for your committee. (Note to D'Lyn: Practice what you preach!!!)

2. You can put their responsibilities in writing. Everyone knows that volunteers are all geeked up when they first start a project, but by the end of the planning period, you're lucky to get an hour a week of help. If you put their job description and responsibilites in writing, and have them sign and date it, that will give them an extra measure of accountability. They'll work harder when they sign an agreement at the very first committee meeting.

No matter what your fundraiser is, you want to make sure the people on your committee have key contacts -- valuable relationships. Ideally, you'd have people on your committee who had media contacts, others who knew local celebrities and others who could bring in sponsorship dollars in a particular industry.

I've got a lot more to share, but I've got some shopping to do. Before I go, I've gotta tell you... Hop on over to my Bucket Blog and leave a comment. We've got a great opportunity to raise $1000 easy bucks for breast cancer, and help KFC make the Largest Donation Ever to Komen, but we're about 930 comments short. Help spread the word!!!