Transaction vs. Transformation

I like to play guitar. (Yes, we're in the middle of an email series here, but please allow me this small side-quest.)

When I buy a set of guitar strings, it's a very transactional exchange. Cash paid, strings acquired, done.

But when I pay for a private guitar lesson, something changes: It's not just a transaction; it's an opportunity for transformation.

Both my instructor and myself are hoping that the lesson will be part of a meaningful change in my development as a musician.

That's one spectrum of human interaction:

• When all we want is the exchange itself, it's transactional.

• When we're aiming at the meaningful result of that exchange, it's transformational.

And of course, if I start to feel that my instructor doesn't care about my growth as a musician -- that he's treating our sessions as mere transactions -- I'll strongly reconsider whether to continue with him at all.

So, how does this relate to your work?

You probably could, without trying very hard, point to interactions that are essentially transactional.

• A donation given

• A membership renewed

• An event registration paid

That's fair, and everyone gets what they expected.

But I'd also bet that there are interactions that are truly transformational:

• A noble desire to give, fulfilled in that simple gift; then meaningfully recognized.

• A commitment to cooperation and growth, renewed along with that membership; then validated by participation.

• A community discovered by attending that event, and encouragement both given and received.

Anything that awakens that motivational spark begins to be transformational.

And it matters not whether the person would typically be labeled a "giver" or a "receiver." In a transformational interaction, each person is always both giving and receiving.

Here's the thing:

In our cause-driven work of fundraising and need-serving, we tend to group our people into givers and receivers, funders and beneficiaries, those whom "we need" and those who "need us."

But I propose to you that they’re all people we need, and they're all people who need us.

By creating transformational interactions with each of them, we tie our mission's fulfillment to their fulfillment.

You want a system where every awesome action builds momentum for the next?

That's the foundation of it, right there.

All the best,
A.