Fundraiser Education

Fundraising urgency is really a way of life. It doesn’t mean panic. Panic happens often when you have not been moving with urgency, and you have to catch up. Think of the duck, calmly moving ahead on the surface with feet moving rapidly below. Set your goals and then make them happen...

What does it mean to be a cheerful giver? I am sitting in my hospital development office, and I am asked to come to the front desk. I see a woman that I have never met before, and she asked to come to my office...

While the federal government was dealing with the shutdown at the start of 2019, many nonprofits were trying to sort out new reporting guidelines concerning their fiscal conditions...

Our professional know-how drives organizational missions. Skillsets like creativity, resilience, adaptability and the power to create meaningful connections with donors are what truly distinguish effective fundraising professionals. The question is do we go to work, share our talents and go home each day?...

Nonprofits continue, with undiminished passion, to seek out ways to change the world for the better. The historic gains the markets have seen in recent years have encouraged nonprofits to take on greater challenges than ever before. These are exciting times to be a fundraiser, but aren’t they always?...

2017 was a milestone year in charitable giving in the U.S., surpassing the $400 billion mark for the first time. Over that year, we’d done much thinking about the state of philanthropy as it related to the divisive political times...

As one who strives for perfection and success regardless of age, I seek opportunities to renew and to look ahead. There is no better time to regroup and prepare yourself than a change in calendar year. So, with that said, it is now time to make New Year’s resolutions...

My mother was a get-it-done person. She didn’t like apathy or procrastination. (I wish I had followed her example more fully.) And Mom wasn’t alone. “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is […]

When I was growing up in West Virginia, both of my parents had to work to provide for me and my three siblings. We had a very loving family. No one loved Christmas more than my mother. She celebrated Christmas the entire year...

Years ago, when we were crafting our firm’s mission statement, there was a lot of discussion over one word: respect. Our mission statement says that we “partner with respected nonprofit organizations.” Unfortunately, organizations sometimes stray, and honesty and integrity are compromised...