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We don’t need
money;
we need what money buys us.
And that stuff
is all around us.
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What do you really
need?
We’re
launching a new class this week – a self-paced course on sharing
resources via Collective Enoughness. Read
more…
In that class, we talk about the economic reality that money isn’t
really a thing on its own. Money is simply a tool that helps you
exchange what you have for what you need. Those things
you need are the real resources…
- food and shelter
- books
- meeting space
- cell phones
Sharing resources via Collective Enoughness allows you to look beyond
the money, to instead focus on those real resources, banding together
and sharing with other people who care about the things you care about.
Because together we have everything we need.
And so this week’s practice is about figuring out what you really need!
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Try this:
Identifying
the real resources needed for any project, program or product is not
about line item budgeting; it is about deconstructing that project,
exploring the question, “What must be in place for the project to run
smoothly?”
Those
things that must be in place are the real resources you need.
As
you deconstruct, the key is to AVOID thinking about money, and to
instead think about real resources – people, knowledge, skills, and
“stuff.”
- What
are all the moving parts of your project? What must happen first? And
after that, what must happen?
- For
the project to run smoothly, what must be in place? What will it take
for that thing to be in place?
- What
“stuff” will people need to have for this effort to be successful?
Equipment? Office space or a machine shop or a storefront?
- What
kinds of people need to be involved, in what ways? What knowledge and
skills will those people need? What will they need to know?
If
it is helpful, use post-its or a whiteboard to create a flow chart,
noting what has to happen in what order.
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The
most important mandate is this one: do not mention money. If you need
transportation to get 200 kids to the theater, note transportation to
get 200 kids to the theater. That is what you really need (vs. $300 to
rent a van).
When
you are done, you will have a full picture of the project from start to
finish. And as our instructors describe in detail in
our new class, these questions make it easy to identify who
else may have what you need.
So the next time you are launching a new initiative – OR if you want to
build Collective Enoughness into an existing project, program or
product – map out what it will really take to get the project done.
That ability to see reality without immediately thinking, “If only we
had money,” will help make things happen that you hadn’t dreamed were
possible. That is why sharing resources via Collective Enoughness is
such an important component of Catalytic
Thinking!
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Want
to learn alongside other people who are also trying out Catalytic
Thinking practices? Join
us at the Catalytic
Thinking in Action community on Facebook -
a welcoming place where you can ask questions and learn from people
like you who are experimenting with these practices. We look forward to
seeing you there!
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eJournal Archives:
If you’re new to our eJournal, or just want to remind yourself of past
practice exercises we’ve shared, check out our eJournal
archives here.
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Keeping Our
Programs Freely Available
Most of the
programs at Creating the Future are free or low cost, with liberal
tuition assistance when they aren’t.
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If you find our
programs of benefit, we hope you will consider
contributing, to help
keep these programs available to as many
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Creating
the
Future
is a
collection of
people around
the world,
supporting
each other in
a grand
experiment.
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The
experiment:
To
determine how
much better
the world
could be if
the questions
we ask in our
day to day
lives are
bringing out
the best in
each other.
If
everyone,
everywhere, is
bringing out
the best in
every person
they encounter
– and if the
systems that
guide our
behaviors are
built to bring
out the best
in all of us -
how much
closer will we
all be to a
healthy,
humane world
that works for
all of us?
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