If Money Was No Object...

CONGRATULATIONS!! You just won the lottery!!

Wooo hoooo!!!

Now that money is no object for you, what will your organization look like? What will your new wealth allow it to do? What new goals will you set for yourself, and your business?

Most of us are not lucky enough to win a multi-million dollar lottery, and I am sure that your budget and priorities are already set for the year. If not, you better get a move on, my friend!

However, with the New Year comes a wealth of possibilities to choose from; different roads to take to meet your goals. So, why not look at them all from the perspective of “money is no object”?

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not suggesting you SPEND money like you have more than you need. What I am suggesting, however, is that you LOOK at your priorities, plans and programs from a different perspective. 

Start at the end, rather than the beginning of the process, and work your way back to see how you can get there, and what you will need to do so.

For instance, what would the outreach program you are developing look like if money was no object? How does it function, how many staff are needed to ensure its success, what other resources are necessary, and what partnerships outside your organization have formed as a result? What else do you see that might be relevant?

Be sure to stay within the original parameters of the program. Don’t expand them just because you are looking at it as if you have significant available funding.

Now, take one step back from completion or launch of the program. What do you have right now – within current budget constraints – that will allow you to get there? What do you need to get there that is within your reach today? Do you have, or can you build, a relationship with another organization to provide what you need? Who does it touch? How can they contribute?

Now, take another step back from completion and run the exercise again; ask the same questions and any others that come to mind that will help you see the possibilities, even and especially when money is a huge factor. Based on the original competed or launched program, what new resources or items have been identified, and how can you get them?

Continue taking steps back, one at a time until you reach the initial planning stage. What didn’t you think of when you first began planning? How does that affect your planning now?

Getting back to the notion that money is no object, for most of us this is just not reality. We live and work in a world where every penny counts – literally. 

However, understanding our priorities, plans and programs from a fully-funded perspective helps ensure that we design them well, allows us to adequately plan for the future and find creative ways to meet our goals, regardless of whether or not funding is an issue.

On behalf of Dawn Gannon Consulting, Happy New Year! May this be the year that for you, money is no object.

Before founding her own consulting firm, Dawn Gannon served as a respected management professional in the military, higher education, and healthcare fields for 25 years. As a Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt, Dawn’s commitment and personal mission to improve the lives of others through service to the community focuses on providing administrative and volunteer management, consumer education, public outreach, event planning, relationship-building efforts, and strategic planning. She is also a published author on the topic of childfree living.