Thursday, October 8, 2009

They Told Me So...

I sat in Professor Jim Honan's Financial Management class last spring. I listened to him as he talked to us about cash flow issues.  Part of me thought it was just an issue of planning.  If you didn't have cash on hand, then you hadn't planned very well.  Currently, I find myself happy with our fundraising progress.  We have a couple donors in place.  We have some pledges in the coming months.  We even have a couple of events planned.  I'm confident we'll get to our 2009 goal of $50,000.  But, currently, our bank account is empty.  I'm set for tomorrow, but I have nothing today. I've accepted that I won't get paid on October 23rd unless something magical happens. It turns out that cash flow problems are real.  Professor Honan, I apologize for my cynicism. 

In good news, we got some press.  We've also had some great meetings this week that will help us build a wider base of supporters. Sometimes it's important to look outside the education world to find people that care about education. It's an exciting process, and I'm thrilled with our continued progress, but the daily battles continue.  In many ways, this is like another year of graduate school. 

Honestly, it's all worth it.  I wake up stressed every morning. I experience tightness in my chest on a regular basis.  Sometimes, I need to remind myself to breath. But, in the end, I'm happy with what I'm doing.  What we're doing is necessary and important, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Thanks, as always, for reading.
Mark
Founder and President - Reach, Inc.

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