Mastering CiviCRM #2: Investment vs expense
"Investment or expense?" This would be a typical question for an accountant: whether to count an expenditure as an operating expense or a capital investment.
But the investment/expense distinction I'm focused on here is not about accounting.
It's simply this:
A good investment helps you build momentum. A good expense just helps you survive.
(Notice that I said “good investment” and “good expense.” We're not even discussing the difference between wise expenditures and unwise ones. It's a mere truism to say that you should avoid unwise expenditures.)
So what's the difference here? Maybe an example will help.
Gas prices
These days it costs me around 50 bucks to fill the gas tank in my little Ford Ranger. So what do you think: Is that an investment or an expense?
Think about it for a second. I'll wait.
...
The answer is:
It's a trick question. You don't have enough information to know.
Because what you don't know is, why do I drive the truck at all?
If I'm just driving as part of my everyday lifestyle — picking up groceries, shuttling kids to activities, showing off my great taste in small pickup trucks — it's an expense.
But what if I'm driving across all of Texas to meet a potential client who could double the profitability of my business? That's an investment.
Then again, maybe I'm driving across all of Texas just for fun. Expense?
Just for a week of fun with my wife and kids, making memories that will shape their lives. Investment?
Expenses and investments can look an awful lot alike. The only difference is what you're hoping to get out of it.
Why this matters
Community-driven organizations often have a severely limiting set of underlying beliefs based on their limited access to resources.
When resources are very limited, everything tends to look like an expense. After all, how can I possibly think about investing in my future when I'm just trying to survive today?
This line of thinking comes with a focus on expense as a zero-sum calculation, instead of on value as the result of investment.
This notion is habitual and deeply held, but learning to get out of it is both liberating and empowering.
Even the most cash-strapped of us can look for ways to invest in the future.
The alternative
Instead of focusing only on the expense, why not focus first on the outcome?
Naturally, there’s a cost to every effort you might make.
But instead of starting with, "How much would this solution cost?", ask "What measurable goal am I trying to achieve? What measurable outcome do I expect that to get me? What steps could I take to move in that direction? Are there easy things I could do to get most of the way there?"
Here’s the thing:
Resources will always be limited. Even if money grew on trees, somebody would have to pick it. And even if you had a million dollars, you'd soon find some very good way to spend 2 million.
Don't be hampered by limited resources.
Find the way to turn expenses into investments, and insist on getting a return on your investment that will build momentum for your mission.
When it comes to mastering your CRM system, try to think of your time, money, and effort as investments, not merely expenses.
You’re not just trying to survive here. You’re gaining mastery of your systems so that you’ll be better able to achieve your goals tomorrow than you are today, and better still the day after that.
All the best,
Allen