I can’t stomach the thought of failing. I must be perfect. I already work hard. It’s not obtainable for me. They might find out I’m an imposter. I don’t want to be accountable. It’s not fair to me. When we view a goal as a potential reflection of our core, fundamental selves (i.e., who we…
Author: Jason McNeal
I provide leadership, advancement and fundraising consulting services to educational, healthcare, and non-profit organizations.
One Half Hour Per Week
Everyone is busy. Life is hectic. What comes to us urgently consistently takes our focus from what is planned. But, when devote just one half hour per week to consistently working on our goals, we make substantive progress. One half hour per week to make phone calls to recent donors to thank them for their…
“What’s Going On?”
When I ask this question. . . . . . folks in some advancement shops will respond first by sharing the latest gossip or drama at their institution. . . . folks in some advancement shops will respond first by sharing information about a new system, or software, or plan they learned about from colleagues….
Building Nests And Raising Funds
American robins typically live for about 2 years. During their short lifespans they typically care for 4-6 broods. For each brood, they either construct a new nest or substantially renovate a previously-used nest. The process of nest building and caring for chicks usually occurs during the 5 months between March and July of each year….
What’s The Recipe?
Some version of this question is asked by every person new to advancement work. “What are the steps to close a major gift?” “What is the process for increasing annual gifts?” “What’s the recipe?” The advancement analogy of a food recipe is a good one. The personal meal preparer typically follows a recipe closely. The…
Increasing Empathy
The word, generosity, comes to us from the Latin language. . . In the middle ages, generosity was used in connection with royalty. It was viewed as a role royalty played to care for those who were subject to them. Royals owed being generous to their subjects (or so the thinking went). Today we talk…
Escaping The Special Events Horizon
The physicists who study black holes tell us that nothing, including light, can escape the black hole’s “event horizon,” or that place where the edge of the black hole meets the rest of space. The gravitational pull of the black hole is so strong that all matter crossing the event horizon falls inward. The “gravitational…
Our Role
It’s not to get people to show up, although that is part of it. It’s not to get people to engage, although that is part of it. It’s not even to get people to give, although that is part of it. Our real role is to create the conditions so that more people want to…
It Didn’t Work!
“Our calendar year end direct mail solicitation was not as successful as we had hoped.” Was it because the message was ineffective? Or, was it because too many reviewers delayed the production process and made the piece late arriving in mailboxes? “I didn’t have as many visits this year with my assigned donors as I…
Helpful Volunteers
If we start with the belief that volunteers can help advance our mission in important ways, then, we need to also realize that it is likely they won’t understand how to do that effectively without our guidance. It is unwise (and will be viewed as unprofessional, btw), to invite people to volunteer and, then, also…