4 Principles from Learning in Community

My wife and I just bought our garden plants. The nursery was packed. The dreams of a bountiful harvest of flowers and vegetables were palpable. Each plant variety gave an estimated “harvest date” – when the plant would yield mature produce.  Wouldn’t that be helpful with donor cultivation? Imagine a tag that indicated when the major […]

Today, more than 1.9 million nonprofits exist in the United States (according to recently filed 990s). Most are dependent on charitable dollars to meet their annual expenses.   Make no mistake your organization IS competing to be heard and understood by the donor public. And you are competing for funding in a declining pool of charitable support. […]

The temptation to see major donors for what they can give is real. “We’ve got goals to hit, budgets to complete, after all.” It is a temptation we must resist. Henri Nouwen tells a compelling story in his classic A Spirituality of Fundraising of a rich banker who wants to help Nouwen with money. The […]

With Memorial Day behind us, summer has officially begun, and fundraising professionals know that giving goes down in the summer months. But it doesn’t have to. It’s true that donors may not be regularly seeing your communications, but summer can be a great time to prepare for an abundant harvest in the fall and end-of-year giving […]

When we first moved to Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak loomed before us calling out its challenge.  “See if you can make it to the top.” I, my wife, and then 13-year-old daughter took off with friends and with great expectations of summiting America’s Mountain. Filled with enthusiasm, we began the day-long hike through boulders, pines, […]

I talk to a lot of major donors.  Somehow, they feel comfortable telling me things they may not tell their ministry representatives. Summarizing their comments, I’ve come to conclude that most major gifts are motivated by 3 important factors. A STORY             The story you tell donors explains the grand journey you’re on to solve […]

Last week alone, I heard of 10 organizations seeking new or additional gift officer positions. Unfortunately, most were replacing people they felt were not productive.  OUCH! Why is this?  Why does our industry struggle so often with talented development professionals? We could expound on the reasons: Too few leads Not the right fit Lofty expectations, etc., […]

We’re all familiar with the Apostle Paul’s intent to travel to Asia. But God stopped him and sent him instead to Macedonia. Acts 16:6-10 tells the familiar story of the Macedonian Vision. Immediately when Paul received the vision of the man calling for his help to come to Macedonia, Paul responded and prepared to shift […]