Author: Jason McNeal

Let’s say we spend $250,000 to raise $1,000,000.  Our cost to raise $1 is 25 cents. Now, let’s say we spend $500,000, and because of the additional resources, we are able to raise $1,500,000.  Now, our cost to raise $1 has ballooned to 33 cents and it would appear that we have become less efficient….

If I lead from my ego, I care about getting the credit.  But, if I lead from our mission, I care about sharing the credit. If I lead from my ego, I worry that I’ll look bad if we miss a goal.  But, if I lead from our mission, I worry that someone we serve…

It’s easy to equate the word “generosity,” with financial giving, or gift giving of some kind, or volunteerism. Far less often do we include the notion of kind gestures, offering compliments, sharing an encouraging word, or simple smiling as forms of “generosity.”  Possibly, though, these micro-generosities may have the biggest impacts – on others and…

There is a straightforward, fundamental, and easy-to-understand distance concept when it comes to advancement: “We can’t be exceptional in this work if we aren’t close to our donors.” Most advancement practitioners will find this an easy concept to agree with. And yet, many gift officers complain that their calendars are so cluttered with institutional meetings…

Some advancement professionals chase wealth in their databases. The thinking is simple:  If we don’t work toward building relationships with those who have enhanced wealth profiles, we won’t raise as much money as we could.  These prospective donors have the money to give. But having money is not the same as being generous.  Some of…

If your fundraising year runs on the calendar year, yesterday you started over. If you are everyone else, yesterday still offers you the opportunity to start over personally. All around us we are told that a new year brings with it big, new possibilities, fresh growth potential, new learnings, and even, reinvention. We might even…

As an advancement professional, you might have planned a very compelling message to distribute by email and social media today – both to recapture past donors and invite gifts from first-time donors. Perhaps you have in mind a message that includes a student or participant story.  Perhaps you have information about impact you want to…

I once worked for a president who was not a fan of the phrase, “stand ready” – as in, “I stand ready to help you in any way I can.” He would say, “I don’t want someone who ‘stands ready.’ There is no motion there.  They are waiting for direction or for something else to…

Giving benefits the giver far more than the gift benefits the recipient. When we earnestly embrace the implications of this single sentence, the experience of tomorrow’s holiday (for those who celebrate) fundamentally changes for us. As does the purpose of our work. Merry Christmas.