Fundraiser Education

I recently served on a panel for Women in Development in New York City called, “How to Ask for What You Want.” There was an insightful discussion among our panel, as well as with the audience members. Here are my key takeaways from the panel discussion: 1. Focus on adding value. What do I mean…

There are so many educational and training resources available to nonprofit leaders and fundraisers these days, one might wonder why more organizations aren’t doing better financially. What’s easier than participating in an online webinar and taking notes? Not much. But many people miss the most important step...

I've been hearing a well-meaning but fundraising-killing myth while talking to many groups and training many boards over the last few months. It boils down to: We need to do more education. If people really knew what we did, they would give money and our funding crisis would be over. Or more generally: If they…

It’s your job as a staff member to help your board members connect with your mission in a manner that connects with their own values. To inspire them to connect with and lead from their personal passion. Doing your job is easy if you remember these three simple things...

Whoa! What happened last week? For many nonprofit professionals who work toward a country that is kind, respectful and inclusive, the U.S. presidential election was nothing short of devastating. But we need to get to work. Crisis represents opportunity. Here are four things we can do...

Superman is boring. Or, he was at first. Think about it. Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall building in a single bound. X-ray vision. Invulnerable. He should never lose any conflict with anyone. Yawn. Who could sustain interest in a hero who automatically wins every time? That's…

Sue Miller thought she had found her niche, selling homes for Lennar Corp., the development company her husband Leonard co-founded. This was 1982, and Miller answered the phone at her Star Island home in Miami Beach, Fla. On the other end, a representative from the charity United Way. Miller had already been a volunteer, but…

Many of you are immersed in your year-end appeals, but if you think you can rest easy once the letters have gone out, think again. Your work has just begun. In fact, what comes next is even more important, especially if you want to to keep your donors for a long time. I write a…

If you get to know me for more than five minutes, you will learn that I relate fundraising and development to sports. There are so many parallels to each entity. So, whenever I hear Wayne Gretzky's famous quote, "You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take,” I immediately think of fundraising solicitations...

Earlier this month, many of us experienced what felt like a miracle—the Chicago Cubs won the World Series. Even if you are not a baseball fan, or if you supported the Cleveland Indians (the Cubs’ very worthy opponent), there are some great takeaways for fundraisers from the season that ended a 108-year stretch of losing...