10 Ways Board Members Can Fundraise Without Asking for Money

"Just ask Oprah!" the board member gleefully proclaimed—like it was that easy. Behind her smile, the development director was fuming. She wanted to say, "Sure! When can you set up the meeting?"

Almost every organization I train is frustrated with its board. In every webinar, classroom training or custom training I lead, I get an earful about lackluster board members. The No. 1 complaint always is, "They aren’t fundraising."

Board members are scared. They imagine asking personal friends or business associates who don’t want to give and either turn them down, or do it and now they "owe" them something.