Date: May 16th, 2010
There were several valuable lessons that I learned today. Among them were the importance of knowing your own elevator pitch really well, giving yourself time to fill out paperwork and being ready to have some doors shut in your metaphorical face. In short, my thing of the day was not the usual lighthearted fare, but rather a day of disappointment, perseverance and hear-learned life lessons.
I had been working with my wonderful neighbors, the Nicholas family, to put together some items for auction at their charity party that was held this past weekend (the 22nd of May). I got some great donations from wonderful friends who jumped forward to help out. When I started talking to people at the beginning of May, I felt blessed to know the kind of people who wouldn't hesitate to give of themselves for charity. The donations I got were things people had made with their own hands and put their personal time and energy into.
In addition to those wonderful, homemade things, I wanted to offer some variety on the auction table. So, on that last Sunday, I went around to local businesses and asked for donations for the silent auction. I had a decent pitch, knew enough about the charity to explain what I was raising donations for, and had a new-found confidence in the way I introduced myself.
That confidence was quickly tested when, upon arriving at the first business, I was quickly rebuffed. It didn't phase me. Nor did the second business that told me they didn't do donations. Nor did the third, that wouldn't even listen to my pitch. It was about the time I hit the fourth business that I began to think that I wasn't just meeting curmudgeonly managers, but that maybe this wasn't the way to go about things.
While it didn't go as I'd hoped, it was a good learning experience. I realized that I may need to approach things from different channels if I want to be effective. It would've been nice to realize that at 10am instead of 5pm, but I figured it out nonetheless. More importantly, even though I felt somewhat disheartened at 5pm, I was surprised at how optimistic I still was. I knew I was doing a good thing for a good cause. So this day wasn't as productive as I'd hoped? So what? Tomorrow is new. So is the next day.
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