I bought a new computer at the end of December. Some people would have had a kid-with-new-toy-at-Christmas kind of experience. Mine was more a let-it-sit-in-the-box-and-hope-it-configures-itself kind of experience.

With a few exceptions, people hate to make big changes. That’s why New Year’s resolutions are both so popular and so often discarded by the first week of February.

Yet new processes almost always yield good results – if we stick with them. My new computer will make me more productive – if I ever learn how to use it. The new exercise program and diet (the usual New Year’s resolutions) will make us healthier and happier – if we actually go to the gym and eat our veggies.

The same is true, of course, of your communications strategies. The benefits of major (and painful) changes are usually obvious:

• Revamping your website makes it easy for users to find what they came for – and, not incidentally, to contribute to your cause.
• Fostering real relationships encourages donors and volunteers to stick with you so you don’t have to spend all your time and energy cultivating new ones.
• Launching a regular newsletter builds trust by keeping stakeholders informed even when you’re not asking them for anything.
• Segmenting your database enables you to tell donors from volunteers from clients and to communicate with each group appropriately.
• Developing a social media strategy transforms tweeting, posting, and blogging from time sucks into ways to make meaningful connections.

These changes would be really beneficial, right?

But what a pain, right?

It’s just like New Year’s resolutions: Every year we say we’re going to be more donor-centered, really figure out this social media thing, or even just stick to an editorial calendar. And every year inertia sets in. When we get too busy doing everything else we do, making worthwhile changes takes a back seat.

It’s all well and good to talk about setting SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, results-focused, and time-bound) goals, getting executive buy-in, and building the right team. All these things need to happen, but the real issue is making a change when change is the last thing we want.

Folks who keep their New Year’s resolutions by, for instance, staying on track with their exercise program have identified motivating strategies. Let’s try some of those.

• Start with whatever you can manage right now. If you need to revamp your entire communications program, start by writing a user survey. Have coffee with a web designer. Call three donors to ask them why they give.
• Work on several aspects together. A personal trainer will have you tackle stamina, strength, and flexibility in the same program (though not necessarily on the same day). Similarly, you’ll achieve good synergies by working on the website, the social media program, and the newsletter at the same time.
• Make it part of your daily routine. Block out 20 minutes a day for planning. Yes, even that much is hard, and implementing the plan will take a lot more time. Figuring out where that time will come from is part of your work right now.
• Work with a buddy. Find one or two allies who have a stake in the benefits of a better communications strategy. If these people can actually plan with you, great. If not, ask them to hold you accountable. Set up a 10-minute weekly check-in meeting so you can tell them how it’s going and where you’re stuck.

I’ll set you a goal: Using these steps, have a SMART plan developed by the first week in February. If you have trouble or can’t get started, let me help.

In the meantime, I resolve to master the new versions of Windows and Office, using the suggestions above. You’re my buddy, so hold me to it. Deal?