You’re reading the second part of a five-part series. Be sure to read the others:

• Making the Change, Step 1: Identify
• Making the Change, Step 2: Plan

The first step in the gathering process is to determine (from your plan) what types of people you need, to determine which roles need to be filled and how quickly, and to compile a list of potential candidates for those roles. You’ll also want to know how much funding you need (preferably from a budget, which should also be in your plan).

Rosalie’s situation, for example, should be pretty straightforward to understand. It may be a good idea to find a workout partner for Saturday mornings, but that’s probably optional at this point. She’s already got one partner on board for the week, and that should be all the extra human resources she’ll need — assuming her infant’s babysitter won’t mind taking on a few extra hours each week.

Chuck’s situation may be a bit more difficult. Obviously, he will probably end up hiring Munnee Mann on the HR side, but what about budgeting? The Frictionless Whatchamacallit will cost money. Advertising will cost money. Plummeting stocks will cost money. That money has to come from somewhere. In the case of a business, it’s probably not so much a matter of “gathering” as “allocating,” but its importance shouldn’t be underrated.

Emma’s scenario will be particularly challenging simply because of the complexities involved. It would be simple for her to launch her program at just one shelter… but you didn’t think she was going to stop there, did you? Emma’s goal is to expand this program — or one similar to it — around the world. To increase literacy at, say, one thousand homeless shelters, Emma will likely need tens of thousands of volunteers… and millions of dollars in books. And there are probably more than one thousand homeless shelters in the world. And Emma wants to improve on a lot more than just literacy. (What? I didn’t tell you that? Oops.)

Sooner or later, you’re going to have to talk to people. People, first of all, need to be motivated. They need to have all of their questions answered, and they need to trust you. It also helps if they trust the initiative, but most people will choose an uncertain proposition with a person they trust over a well-known proposition with someone they barely know — guaranteed. You’re probably going to have to answer the five W’s and How (see why we’ve done all of this planning?), and be prepared for rejection — it’s going to happen sooner or later, no matter how great you think your pitch is. Some guy on the street once said that at least 50% of people will reject a change even if it is provably beneficial for all parties involved. I don’t know that the figure is as high as 50%, but there’s certainly a grain of truth there. Now, add in the fact that you may very well be asking people you’ve never met to contribute time and/or money to your cause. And people who have money tend to be less willing to give it up. Needless to say, you’ll have your work cut out for you!

In any case, you either want people, or you want their money — sometimes both. You, for one, need to be truly committed to the cause. Any lack of passion will be seen as a lack of faith in your own plan, which of course won’t go well. It would also be wise to establish some credibility with the person you’re talking to, especially if it’s someone you don’t already know. What do you know about this problem, and what makes you think you’re the right person to change it? Find a way to identify with and relate to the person from which you’re asking for assistance — in other words, customize your delivery from person to person. Throw in things you know they will respond to, particularly if you know them well.

Impersonal Donations

What will make a faceless person want to donate to your cause? Use the same principles relevant to a face-to-face encounter, but take out the face-to-face part. Let’s say that we’ve created a website to promote our plan to change the world. (Sound familiar? ) While the medium may be different, the concepts are the same. Keep it simple and compelling. Expressing your devotion to the cause through a written medium may be difficult, but I believe that it can be done. Spend some time (maybe even a full page) explaining why your change is important. A person reading your website will have the same questions as someone you’ve spoken to in person or on the telephone. Who are you to solve this problem? (And later on) How do you plan to accomplish this?

Repeat Step 2

When all is said and done, you’re going to realize that the gathering process didn’t go quite like you expected (for better or for worse), and you may need to modify your plan. This is just fine — because it was designed to be dynamic, right? As you add contributors, some of whom may not agree with every part of the plan, that plan may also need to be tweaked.

We’ve identified the change. We’ve planned for the change. We’ve gathered resources in preparation for bringing forth the change. If we’re really ambitious, we’ve even planned again. Who’da thunk that change could be so complicated? Lights, camera…

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