You May Be Special, But What’s Your Specialty?

The adjective “special” is applied in a myriad of ways, not all of them positive.  But for non-profits, it’s not whether you’re special or not that’s important, but what your specialty is.  If you’re an animal shelter, that’s special.  But if you’re an animal shelter that always fosters out your pets rather than putting them down, that’s your specialty. 

Or let’s say you’re a non-profit dedicated to military veterans.  Now that’s special, but if your mission is focused on helping veterans transition from the service to civilian life that’s a specialty.  Or to return to my favorite Habitat for Humanity example, they’re special because they focus on housing the unhoused.  But their specialty is involving the recipients of that housing in the actual building of it.

Settling on your specialty will help you focus your organization and your efforts.  You can’t be everything to everyone, but if you can drill down on your specialty you have a better shot at being everything to someone.  And that’s something you can sell.

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