I’m hungry.

I have a piece of paper that says I have a budget of $150 for lunch.

I go to the deli for a sandwich. Maybe chips and a lemonade.

In a new promotion, they ask me to step behind the counter and make my own sandwich. There’s a charge for each ingredient, but I get to make whatever I want.

I make a quadruple-decker. It’s a masterpiece of breads, meats, cheeses, veggies, seasonings, and condiments. It would make Dagwood Bumstead envious.

Because of all the ingredients, it costs $150.

I’ve actually only got $12. I put the purchase on credit. After all, I have that piece of paper. And I deserve that sandwich.

Does your arts organization budget this way – put together budgets based on what a leader wants to buy rather than what’s in your institution’s wallet?