If there’s anything that gets my goat, it’s anyone thinking – or being made to think – they’re “too small” to do/get anything.
A few days ago, I realized that the PRWeb subscription I had through Vocus was up at the end of July. The package I had entitled me to issue X number of news releases… and I’d used maybe 30% of them for my work/clients.
So when I spoke to my PRWeb rep the other day I asked if, instead of letting these releases go to waste, I could offer them to my friends in the nonprofit community, as a way to pay it forward. They told me to go for it, so I posted a brief note to a couple of Facebook groups, asking people to get in touch with me via private message/email if they wanted to use what would essentially be a free news release distribution for their organizations/clients.
One note in particular really touched me. Without revealing who it was from (to respect that person’s privacy), it said,
“… It’s a small release with a small footprint, so if you have someone else with a bigger, more important announcement that can make use of your offer, then by all means pass on this one.”
What makes anyone – or any organization – “more important” than any other?
Is it because one makes more money than others?
Is it because one has more celebrity supporters than others?
Is it because one has more “influencers” behind it than others?
Yes, we all prioritize things, and some are more important than others for us. That depends on our personal preferences.
But when it comes to taking an opportunity to inform its audiences, I hate to think an organization – especially a nonprofit – might consider itself so small, essentially so unworthy, that it wouldn’t do so.
If it’s a release about news that really doesn’t offer any benefit to its stakeholders, ok, then don’t send it out (how many news releases have you seen announcing new staff, VPs, etc., and you just roll your eyes? Those are the unimportant ones; they’re basically ego boosts).
But if you’re launching a service that can make someone’s life better, even if it is targeted to a relatively small geographic community… that’s exactly the kind of thing that community needs to know about!
And in my opinion, it’s even more important for these “small” organizations to take advantage of gifts and offers such as the one I made. The “big” ones have the money to pay for things like wire services.
Frankly, if I’d received so many requests to avail this offer and had to prioritize them, I’d have prioritized the smaller organizations over the larger ones, for precisely that reason.
(By the way, I still have a few left, so if you work for a nonprofit or have a nonprofit client that could use such a distribution, please let me know via email. Remember, there is no catch, but you must be able to use this before July 31, because that’s when my package expires.)
If you work for a “small” organization or have “small” clients, please know: there is no such thing as too small. The only place you’re too “small” is in your perception of the work you do and/or yourself.
And you must change that perception before you can start to change your world.
Image: Shiny Things via Flickr, CC 2.0
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[…] I’m on a “no one’s less important or too small” kick. But seriously, if we’re going to let ourselves think ours is the only job that […]
@Shonali oh i’ve sensed it. and the couch is lonely.
@KDillabough That is so nice of you, Kaarina. It really is a measure of my “true” friends that they know when I’m late to reply that I’m not ignoring them.
Hugs back at you!
@KenMueller That’s not the kind of thing you “notice.” It’s the kind of thing you “sense.”
@Shonali Panthers for certain must be noted as well as snakes. It is a good reason to keep a Honey Badger around for protection.
@Shonali Life is indeed wonderful. I’m always perplexed by people who choose to see it otherwise.
And no worries, no hurries about responses. Friends know when friends are busy/otherwise occupied…I believe that true connections are true when time, distance and space are immaterial. When the time/timing is right, real friends reconnect, re-engage, respond…no apologies necessary.
You really helped me through a rough patch indeed. I didn’t share too openly, but you were the one who jumped to my emotional aid, and I’ll be forever grateful for that. LIFE. IS. WONDERFUL. Sending cyberhugs your way Shonali. Cheers! Kaarina
@Shonali i’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. i’ve noticed the couch hasn’t been used much lately…
@timepass Exactly!
@adamtoporek I too thought it was really good of PRWeb not to kick up a fuss about it. But they agreed when I pointed out that these releases would otherwise go to waste, and, in allowing me to share them, they might attract new customers as well.
Thank you for stopping by, Adam!
@TheJackB Exactly. You HAVE to take that action, else why should anyone else?
On another note… what about panthers?
@bdorman264 I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your approach, Bill. Even in my line of work, there are some clients I just can’t take on, because it impacts my bottom line too negatively.
For me, this was more about the person thinking the organization they were supporting “too small” to warrant taking advantage of an offer like this. Yes, there are “small” and “large” organizations, causes, etc. But especially for those that are smaller, how on earth will they convince others to support them if they themselves perceive it as “too small”? That’s the mindset I hope people realize they need to get out of.
Thank you so much for coming by. You’re awesome.
@KenMueller See, there are advantages to my having a couch in your brain. ;)
@KDillabough Kaarina, so sorry to reply late. I spent almost all day Saturday finishing up work in advance of a three-day trip, so am just now getting to comments.
I’m really touched that I was able to help you through a rough patch… and really glad that I was able to do so. Isn’t it funny, we never know where exactly the support we need is going to come from, but somehow it does?
Life is wonderful.
@punchakpr Thank you for sharing, belatedly!
Thanks for the perspective, it’s so easy to stop because we think we’re “too small”. We forget that everyone at one point was “too small’!
First of all, that was extraordinarily gracious of you to even think of that. Most people would have just eaten the difference or asked for some sort of refund; it was really great that you were thinking of how you could turn it into something charitable. Kudos also to PRWeb for letting you go outside the box to help others.
I agree with what you are saying — the smaller organizations are the ones that need the most help and could reap the most benefit. They should not feel they are too small, or undeserving.
<i>If there’s anything that gets my goat</i> Wolves and bears. Got to watch out for wolves and bears and tigers, can’t forget tigers- they’ll all get your goat too. Got to be careful and do what you can to protect them from the predators. Build fences and systems to keep them safe and life gets easier.
In other words it is all about action and even if you are smaller than others there are opportunities to grow…if you take action.
I see what you are saying and agree with what you were trying to do in your example. And your methodology for distributing to the smaller organizations first I agree as well.
In the profit world and mine in particular our organization is geared to the larger clients; this is the best utilization of our resources. If the customers are too small we struggle with handling them properly so it ends up making us look bad. We typically try to find a right fit for them somewhere else.
That’s just the reality of it and we certainly want to make sure we have the proper resources available for the customers paying us the most money. The good thing is, we seek out our customers and have an ideal client profile so we don’t have to deal with these situations too much.
I love this. Plain and simple. I’ve been sitting on a post about “small” for some time, and this may be the impetus for me to complete it…and link here…
Great message Shonali: “there is no such thing as too small”. I love your pay-it-forward attitude, and I believe that every day in every way feasible, we should contribute in some way (however small…pun intended) to making someone’s life better. You did that the other day for me, Shonali, when I was going through a bit of a rough patch, and I’m so grateful for that. Good post: great message. Cheers! Kaarina