The Magic of the Moonshot

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had several conversations with leaders of youth-focused nonprofits about their fundraising goals. They all recognize their organizations aren’t reaching as many young people as they need to, therefore revenue has to increase between 30% and 60% to deliver on their strategic plans and ensure every young person has what they need to thrive.

But that’s no easy feat when giving is down, and expenses are up.

So, for my clients and other nonprofit leaders who are looking to transform their fundraising to make a bigger impact, I’m republishing this blog post written by Breakthrough Performance Coach Pam Sterling, who knows exactly what BIG goals – i.e., moonshots – can do to inspire teams to achieve what seems impossible.

May her article inspire you.

All the best,

Lisa

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In early 1961, John F. Kennedy asked the German-born American aerospace engineer, Wernher von Braun, what it would take to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade? Von Braun famously replied...

"The will to do it."

On May 25, that year, President John F. Kennedy demonstrated that he did, in fact, have the will, when he announced before a special joint session of Congress the dramatic and ambitious goal of sending an American safely to the moon before the end of the decade.

And thus, the first "moonshot" was born.

The extraordinary thing is that we achieved that mission six months ahead of schedule, when Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the moon, July 20th, 1969.

It was one of our proudest achievements as a nation.

But as Kate Purmal observed in The Moonshot Effect…

"Kennedy's challenge to go where no human had gone before was not just about going to the moon; it was about harnessing human aspiration to accomplish something extraordinary, something that seemed nearly impossible to achieve."

When you think of your own life, and consider an achievement you're most proud of, most likely it was something that was hard. Something that may have even felt impossible at one point. Something that stretched you... but also brought out the best in you. 

The same is true for organizations. That's why moonshots are so powerful.

So let's take a look at:

What is a moonshot?

Why are moonshots so motivating?

Are you ready to go after your moonshot?

What is a Moonshot?

Quite simply, a moonshot is when you set out to do the impossible. That impossible could either be what Steven Kotler, in The Art of Impossible, calls the "big I" impossible – something that's never been done in the world before – like finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease in the next 10 years, or ending poverty in our lifetime. OR it could be a "little i" impossible – something that has never been done by your organization before – like increasing your revenue by 30% in one year or 3xing your impact over the next 5 years.

In either case, everyone wants to be a part of doing the impossible. Moonshots require organizational leaders and team members alike to think outside the box, to think bigger, to think better, and to act bolder than they ever have before.

The magic of moonshots is that they also inspire donors to give in a bigger bolder way than they ever have before.

Moonshots are where our greatest achievements have been won and our greatest legacies have been created.

Why are moonshots so motivating?

"If you want the largest increase in motivation and productivity, then 'BIG goals' are the secret."

This is the conclusion shared by Gary Latham and Edwin Locke, considered the "godfathers" of goal setting and motivation.

The truth is, as humans, we are at our best when we are challenged.

But why is this? Here are three reasons why BIG goals, i.e., moonshots, bring out the best in us.

1. We were built for innovation.

Evolution built our brains for survival. And the biggest threat to survival is scarcity of resources. When there is a scarcity of resources, there are only two possible responses – fight over the dwindling resources, or get creative, innovate, and make new resources. In the case of survival, innovation always wins. Moonshots require extreme innovation… It's exactly what humans were built for.

2. Big goals make us more resilient.

Attention and persistence are two of the most important factors in determining performance, according to Locke and Latham. Big goals – "high, hard goals" – help focus attention and they make us more persistent. The result is we're much more effective when we work, and even more resilient. By their very nature, moonshots inspire us to get up and try again when we fall down.

3. Challenge triggers flow.

Flow is defined as that state of being where you feel your best and perform your best. The reason we feel and perform so well is because when we're in flow, the brain releases a potent chemical cocktail of 5 "feel good" hormones in our brain. If you've ever experienced a runner's "high" or have lost track of time and space when you were absorbed in a creative project, you've experienced flow. One of the triggers of flow is the right "challenge to skill ratio." Moonshots require us to continually step outside our comfort zone, to push the boundaries of what we've done before. As a result, our brain rewards us with a chemical cocktail that enables us to feel our best and perform our best.

Are you ready to go after your moonshot?

To go after your moonshot calls on the people in your organization to BE different. You can't approach a moonshot like you would any other goal. A moonshot requires a different level of thinking, a different level of innovation and creativity, a different level of courage and commitment. A willingness to be uncomfortable and to stretch yourself beyond where you've been before… on EVERY level.

The Transformational Giving Playbook contains a six-tier, goal setting framework for those organizations who are ready to put their stake in the ground for THEIR fundraising moonshot. It's for those organizations who have "the will to do it."

Moonshots are not for the faint of heart.

It takes commitment.

It takes grit.

It takes leadership.

It takes hard work.

It takes innovation.

BUT, here are some of the results we've observed when organizations go after their moonshot.

• Teams get excited.
• Everyone, from staff to donors to volunteers, is more committed to working together to achieve the bold goals the organization has set forth.
• Donors give at capacity and recruit other philanthropists to get on board.

Perhaps the most important outcome is what Kate Purmal described in The Moonshot Effect…

"The real value of the moonshot isn't achieving the stated objective, but the remarkable transformations in the people that endeavor to make the moonshot happen." "Moonshots elevate contribution and challenge people to perform beyond what they think is possible."

Ask yourself…

• Are we aiming high enough as an organization?
• What's the moonshot that would really excite us?
• Are we ready to think differently, to think bigger, to think better, and to act bolder than we ever have before?
• Do we have the will to do it?

If you do, you may very well realize one of your proudest achievements.

Here's to your moonshot!

Pam