John
❤️
Beate
Good evening lobsters!
Simon
I’m here!
John
?
Jen
SIMON! Looking fantastic!!
Beate
Loooove the shirt! That’ll be a good pattern for when someone knits you a norwegian sweater
and it doesn’t have a hood!
John
a norweigan lobster sweater? imagine!
Simon
Yeh I’m 40 now so phasing out hoodies
Jen
So anyway
John
LOL
Jen
The wonderful Emma Jenkin suggested a topic of scarcity thinking…
John
great topic!
thank you EMMA! she’s lovely.
Jen
So lovely. And in fact John was immediately enraptured in this idea
So, let’s dive in.
Simon
Scarcity thinking…explain it to me like I’m an idiot
Beate
Explain it to me like I’m Norwegian
Jen
Here’s the Agents #nutshell of scarcity vs abundance thinking
Jen
Scarcity: Believing there will never be enough and the pie is shrinking, more for you means less for me. Abundance, believing there will always be more and there’s more pie. More for you doesn’t mean less for me.
Beate
Oh wow they come prepared with slides.
Simon, you and I are NOT ready for this conversation!
Jen
I’m not fucking around here. Take my hosting duties seriously!
John
lol
Jen
So, other than going straight to pie…what does this bring to mind for you lot?
Beate
pie
Jen
?
John
i always think of agencies
the idea that
they think they have all the worlds knowledge in their 4 walls – so protective of their “Thinking” and process
Simon
Interesting…thinking back to past bosses I feel like clearly they were one or the other
John
Every old white guy i know was raised on the idea of scarcity
and practiced it in their businesses
(sorry to all of my old white male bosses)
(not really)
Jen
YES! This always makes an appearance when you’re reflecting on leadership. You KNOW that kind of boss who is threatened by ideas, fears change and it totally changes the culture
Beate
Those annoying conference talks where they talk about some amazing concept or idea but refuse to share how or what. Like that’s going to make me hire you to find out? no.
Simon
I feel like w’re all going to be on the same page here as we’re all speak at conferences. And that’s abundance thinking right? Sharing your experience/knowledge is good for business. But others dont like sharing their successes and failures in case people steal
John
exactly
Jen
Agree that we are all abundance people (hence the love)
Beate
yeah. I think that’s such flawed thinking though.
If someone’s inspired by your idea, they won’t be able to just do it right away anyway.
Or, as someone said to me today “They might get our ideas, but they don’t have our heads”
Jen
haha this is funny in translation. I’m sure it sounds better in Norwegian.
Beate
Honestly, it sounds exactly the same in Norwegian
?
Jen
but i also think that there is a very interesting nuance here around times are tough/best is yet to come
“times are tough” is such an easy way to avoid hard conversations
John
i mean – isnt silo’ing a type of scarcity mindset?
Beate
What do you mean, Jen?
Jen
What I mean is that even me, as an abundance thinker, find myself changing the way I approach certain conversations because I know it will be hard to convince clients.
It drives John nuts, but I admit that I do it. I’m protecting myself.
Beate
I don’t get the connection to abundance/scarcity?
Jen
it’s one of the contrasts in the table — and it’s one that makes me realize that I move to scarcity thinking quickly
Simon
It’s like we’re raised in scarcity thinking and you really have to work to shake that off
Beate
can you give an example?
Jen
Example: sometimes we’ll have a risky-ish idea or approach and I’ll say to John, “but they’ll never go for it, they need a win because it’s almost year-end”
Beate
aaah I see
Jen
That’s “times are tough” thinking
I also want to point out something I shared at the Storytelling Conference. Some of our organizations are set up structurally for scarcity thinking. Time to do the annual report, and we approach it from “Update what you did last year, in under XX words and supply a photo”
That’s easy, not collaborative and not creative. But it’s the process and it works and we aren’t open to new ways to work because it takes longer and is unfamilar
Beate
Haha, I feel attacked I just did that
?
(though we are doing a whole separate donor one)
Simon
One of the sector’s biggest curses is the 12 month reporting I’d say
Jen
AGREE.
John
i think some of our charity friends use the scarcity mindset when it comes to donors in that – they are OUR donors (rather than – to quote mark phillips – we are actually one of THEIR charities)
Jen
“That would never work here” is also scarcity thinking…
John
or marketing dept arguing that the fundraisers can’t talk to their “people”
Jen
Both totally true. And we say “our donors won’t like that” or “it’s too emotional or sappy for our donors”
John
ugh
i hate this because almost 100% of the time they are wrong or have NO IDEA
i feels some swears coming on
arm waving
Beate
It’s fear though
Jen
Totally fear.
Fear of being judged is at the core of why we can’t be vulnerable…
John
that’s it jen
Beate
The reality is that many charities ARE facing scarcity, it’s not just a mindset, right? They do need to meet that year-end goal, or they’ll have to cut in services. So no wonder we end up in a scarcity mindset
John
as cave men and women – we were taught you better not stand out or be vulnerable…
you’d get stoned
not in a good way
yes but then it is a race to the bottom
isnt it?
Jen
Absolutely true. So it’s really easy to play it safe, keep it 10% cheaper and 1% better in response
John
you’re dead in the water
Simon
Yes fair point Bea…fundraisers and charities are operating in a scarcity mindset. It’s pushed on us by funders and boards a lot of the time
But that’s not going to bring substantial change
Beate
true
John
is my chat on???
Jen
It’s pushed on us from every angle. “And we’re the ones who have to keep the lights on!”
John
i can SEE my messages
Jen
Yes, we can hear you weirdo
Simon
Where’s John gone?
Jen
John?
JOHN?!
John
ah.
Jen
Did you scarcify yourself out of the chat?
John
you guys arent validating me
?
Beate
wtf is going on
Jen
I dodged your cave man and cave woman comment
?
John
sigh
Beate
hahaha
Jen
Ok anyway
Beate
I’m sorry
that was scarce of us
lets abundantly let John know that he is in fact here
John
continue jen
Jen
I was also thinking
Remember at IFC a few years ago…
Made me realize these are very aligned in thinking…
Jeremy did the plenary
Beate
Okay but seriously though:
What do you do, if in fact you are in charge of keeping the lights on.
Simon
Is this why the charity sector is doomed?
Beate
You can’t really afford to take big risks, because yes big risks big rewards but also BIG RISK
What do you do?
Jen
Simon, I think you spelled “humanity” wrong
John
but we often arent talking about big risks
i know we arent
we’re talking about sounding human and shit
if thats a big risk then we really are fucked
Simon
Small tests, little risks
Jen
Yes to small tests, little risks
Beate
We may have wandered off topic into one of Johns usual rants about how people don’t listen to him
Jen
And also yes to staying true to the donors and volunteers who have been with you along the way…and not saying yes to new and shiny things that are mission drifty…
Beate
wait now i’m confused..
didn’t you say that charities don’t want to take big risk because of a scarcity mindset – but now we’re not asking them to take risk..?
John
i didnt say that… i said that they see appearing human as being risky…
Jen
Asking them to take calculated risks
Educated and thoughtful risks
John
lots of nuances
Jen
Any closing thoughts, or time for a lobster fact?
A cricket riding on a tumbleweed all of a sudden…
John
i love lobster facts
Beate
there is an abundance of lobster facts
John
like how unfair it is that they wont swim to norway?
Beate
?
hit us Jen
Jen
OK!
Did you know…
Simon
Drumlobsterroll
John
LOL
Jen
That lobsters use their claws for different things…?
Lobsters use their claws to catch food and battle predators and other lobsters. The larger of the two claws is called the crusher claw and the smaller claw is called the pincer or cutter claw.
Simon
Crusher!
Jen
So, if we were actually lobsters, john the lefty would be really like crusher!!
John
the crusher claw is tastier too
esp with drawn butter
Simon
Like Jen
John
LOL
Jen
HAHAHAHAHHAHA
now, this comes with a caveat
Beate
the crusher claw comes with a caveat?
Jen
This is from a Maine lobster, here in North America, so Norwegian lobsters and Scottish Lobsters could be wildly different…unless they are all related because they just walk along the ocean floor, as Bea thinks…
John
imagine
Simon
I need to get to Maine
Beate
I feel like you’re all misrepresenting my previous statments on lobsters migrating.
Jen
It’s too funny not to
John
maine is LOVELY
Jen
JOHN: “where is this lobster from, waitress” WAITRESS: “the sea”
Beate
hahah
Simon
lol
John
?
Beate
And it wasn’t even a norwegian waitress
Jen
A Norwegian waitress would have NONE of John’s nonsense
John
haha – THAT’s TRUE
Jen
remember that wine bar in Oslo? I thought she was going to cold deck you for asking too many questions
Jen
Ok lobster lovers, let’s wrap this up. Lots of love to you all… SIMON WE SEE YOU IN A FEW DAYS!
SImon
Fuck me John’s restaurant questions
Abundance thinking
John
haha
i can’t help it!
Beate
I’m sad you’re not seeing me 🙁
Simon
Tickets still available!
(Insert link here)
Beate
Ooh, are we official enough that we start plugging stuff now?
John
hell YES
Jen
Yes, when we keep it classy!
Beate
ok everyone come to norway with Jen and me for our cheese-and-legacies-getaway
bye?
Jen
YES! Simon, it’s right around St Patrick’s Day. GTFO of Dublin!
Beate
I was plugging it for other paying people, Jen
?
Jen
Them too!
OK, later guys!
XOXO
John
THANKS LOBSTERS!
Bea
byyyeeee
Simon
Byeeeee x
Jen
Good Morning Lobsters! Delighted to be the host this week…