Assumptions are funny. Many times we don’t even know we have them and yet they provide us with fundamental models on how we view and respond to the world. Watch this quick video link of Derek Sivers from the TED Conference: What are the assumptions that your organization holds about its donors? Here are…
Author: Jason McNeal
I provide leadership, advancement and fundraising consulting services to educational, healthcare, and non-profit organizations.
Motivating in the 21st Century
Daniel Pink, in his new book, “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,” suggests that motivating people with the stick and carrot approach (i.e., you reach the goal and you’ll get a bonus, for instance), is an approach which actually squelches creativity and results in less productivity for many 21st Century work environments. Instead,…
Do-ers vs. Be-ers
I’m pretty sure there are more than, “two kinds of people in the world,” as the old saying goes. However, a lot of folk in development and leadership positions in non-profits can be divided up into two groups: the do-ers and the be-ers. “Do-ers” are those individual who achieve results. They want to do something….
On Becoming a Giving Consultant
I may not know your organization specifically, but I know something about your donors: The top donors to your organization give to other organizations as well. They have various philanthropic interests. And with well over 1.5 million non-profits registered in 2009 (an staggering increase of 33% in the last decade), there is more competition for…
The 3 Principles of Getting Donors to Yes
How would others describe you – as a busy person, or as a person who is able to get donors to respond generously? There are many busy people – in fact, most everyone these days is busy. But there are only a few people who encourage donors well. Getting donors to “yes” more often has…
The 7 Characteristics of Phileadthropists
phi-lead’thro-pist n. – an unusually effective leader in the field of philanthropy. In my last blog entry I wrote about the integration of leadership and philanthropy, accenting several studies which suggested characteristics of effective leaders. Based on those characteristics, I invite you to think with me about the traits that characterize phileadthropists – those effective…
Phileadthropy – The Integration of Leadership and Philanthropy
I have been thinking for a long while about the shared characteristics between effective leaders and effective development professionals. In fact, last summer I expressed a few early thoughts on the topic. Below are observations of effective leadership characteristics from 4 separate research teams. As you read each characteristic, think about how each applies to…
Increasing the Value Proposition for Your Donors
Here’s a simple little math formula: The higher the Gift Value Proposition, the more likely the donor is to make the gift. So, how do we make the Gift Value Proposition as high as possible? You could reduce the ask amount. If the top part of the equation holds constant, reducing the denominator (Ask Amount)…
Do Your Board Members Expect to Give?
Today, Doug Mason, a colleague at GGTS, and I led a webinar focused on enhancing the effectiveness of higher education foundation boards. A major theme during the 90 minute session was the need to establish clear giving expectations with prospective board members beginning during the board recruitment process. A participant asked a good question: what…
Welcome New Site!
At the turn of the New Year, one of my priorities was to make The Far Edge of Promise a bit more user friendly. My goal was to keep the site clean but add some ease with which people could sign up for the blog and navigate. Well, we have a new site!! Take a…