Creating more strategic, financially savvy, and confident nonprofit leaders and organizations.
I was talking to a nonprofit leader earlier this week who was unknowingly torturing herself. One part of her had a big vision for growing her nonprofit to reach more people and create change to a broken system. But another part of her felt stuck because she lacked so many things to make that big […]
It feels like right now we are surrounded by can’ts. We can’t be near most other humans, we can’t travel as we used to, many can’t find work, we can’t really plan for the future because things seem to change by the minute. The can’ts seem to be everywhere. The sadder part is that in […]
I received a great comment from a reader of my recent post, “The System for Funding Nonprofits is Crumbling. That’s a Good Thing.” While blog reader Vanessa agreed with my assessment that how we fund social change is horribly broken, she very rightly wanted to know what an individual nonprofit leader can do to overcome […]
There is much discussion lately about the financial doom that this pandemic is unleashing on nonprofits. Cancelled galas, shrinking corporate donations, fearful foundation donors, disappearing government coffers. It seems that the entire way nonprofits and social change are funded might be crumbling before our eyes. It’s about time! That’s because how money flows to the […]
The other day I told a new coaching client something that I often say to the nonprofit leaders I work with: “Don’t worry, what you are experiencing is very normal in the nonprofit sector.” But suddenly it occurred to me, why are so many limits and restrictions “normal” in the nonprofit sector? Why do we […]
I have been a little absent from the blog in the past couple of months, but I have a good reason. I’ve been working on something I’m pretty excited about. I am in the process of writing a book about how we create more effective, sustainable social change. Rather than depressed by the chaos seemingly […]
Nonprofit leaders often start (many things, really) from a place of not feeling worthy. Where this is really obvious, especially this time of year when nonprofit fundraising is in full swing, is in the fundraising ask. When your nonprofit fundraising message — whether a grant proposal, a direct mail letter, an email campaign, or a […]
Let’s be honest (or obvious) for a second. A feeling of lack often pervades the nonprofit sector. And it can take many forms: “We lack enough money” “We lack access to decision-makers” “We lack permission to move forward” “We lack the right or enough staff” “We lack influential or effective board members” The list of […]
As a nonprofit leader you no doubt face an endless barrage of critical decisions. Should we grow this program? Do we add this new staff position? Should we invite this new board member to join? Should we pursue this new funder? The list goes on and on. And often the direction nonprofit leaders choose is […]
Nonprofit leaders are, as a rule, a pretty compassionate bunch. By definition, someone who has decided to start or lead a nonprofit probably has a greater ability than the average person to see pain and feel compelled to relieve it. Whether it’s a desire to ease the suffering of homeless populations, or help kids access […]
I’ve been spending a lot of time over the past couple of months doing interviews and podcasts related to my book, Reinventing Social Change, and I have so enjoyed the conversations, that I wanted to share some of them with you. I also have several more podcasts and interviews coming up, so I’ll continue to […]
So often in the nonprofit sector scarcity manifests as a lack of money — nonprofit leaders constantly bemoan the (perceived) fact that there just isn’t enough money to go around. But if we dig a little deeper, money is just a means to an end. Likely the first thing you would buy if an abundance […]
It’s almost here, the official launch of my new book, Reinventing Social Change: Embrace Abundance to Create a Healthier and More Equitable World. And to celebrate, I’m hosting a special virtual event on Thursday, February 11th, 12pm – 1pm Eastern. I hope you can join us for this free event because it’s going to be […]
I’m excited to announce that my new book, Reinventing Social Change: Embrace Abundance to Create a Healthier and More Equitable World is now available! Reinventing Social Change charts a path for you as a nonprofit or philanthropic leader to: Break free from limiting beliefs and restrictions Reclaim your power Kiss scarcity goodbye Attract financial abundance, […]
Last week I talked about how to make money your new best friend. That is a mindset shift, which is the critical first piece, but then you need to start to use money in a MUCH BIGGER WAY. I have said for years that traditional nonprofit fundraising is broken. So broken. Because if you think […]
This past week has been one of the most trying for our country. We obviously have a lot of work to do to heal our country and fix our broken systems. But I absolutely believe that 2021 is going to be a much better year. In fact, I believe it holds the opportunity — since […]
I’m excited to announce that this Thursday I’ll be participating in a Facebook Live conversation with BoardSource about how nonprofit leaders can lead us forward during these unprecedented times. As I’ve been writing on the blog over the last few months, this crisis offers a real opportunity for nonprofit leaders to step into their power […]
Despite the fact that we are in the midst of a global health and economic crisis, I still believe that abundance is possible. In fact, I believe that an abundance mindset is what is required to lead us beyond this very crisis. Let me explain this heresy. We are currently surrounded by — in fact […]
These are scary times, there is no doubt. But sometimes, surprisingly, the antidote to fear is looking it squarely in the eyes and moving forward anyway. Believe me, since mid-March I have woken up most mornings with a constant companion — worry — waving from the sidelines. But each of us has the power to […]
These are incredibly challenging times. I have often found myself — as I imagine you have as well — worn down, exhausted, overwhelmed, discouraged, depressed by the various blows this pandemic is dealing our world. While for the most part I have tried to stay positive (especially through the many kindnesses and amazing displays of […]
