Generosity in quotes: Daniel Weeks
“For followers of Christ, present politics can never be as important as the cross. . . But just as followers of Christ recognize how much… Read More »Generosity in quotes: Daniel Weeks
10 indications your organization is healthy and doing well
Similar to Leo Tolstoy’s families, healthy organizations are all alike. Or so I’ve noticed. Mission, scope, size, or sector don’t much matter. Nonprofits that are performing well share characteristics the ailing crowd lacks.Read More »10 indications your organization is healthy and doing well
How to get what you expect (and more) from your fundraising program
Rule 1 for nonprofit CEOs with visions of big gifts dancing in their heads: “Beware shopping for a development director when you are hungry—that is, when your organization is in desperate financial condition.” Rule 2 is like unto the first: “The notion that even a great development director can single-handedly pull an organization out of financial ruin is rarely accurate.”Read More »How to get what you expect (and more) from your fundraising program
Generosity in quotes: Barbara Brown Taylor
“In the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, there is a command that runs through Torah like a hymn refrain. There are many variations… Read More »Generosity in quotes: Barbara Brown Taylor
Ask, and a helpful mission statement will be given you.
At the moment, I’m up to my eyeballs in policy work for the board that I chair. A trio of us are slogging away on ends policies – those few pithy statements that, in the words of John Carver (our governance guru), proclaim the differences the organization makes, for which beneficiaries, and at what cost. We’re several iterations in and still struggling to spin specificity from a mission statement broad enough to make the world the organization’s oyster. Read More »Ask, and a helpful mission statement will be given you.
4 strategies for turning year-end stress into fundraising success
Were T. S. Eliot a fundraiser and not a poet and assuming a June 30 fiscal year-end (the standard for North American charities), he’d likely name May and June, along with April, as the cruelest time of year. The last leg of the annual race for the gold is the most taxing, always. With the year-end deadline looming large, development staff are stretched to the limit — physically, emotionally, and spiritually — and soul care gets lost in the busyness.
Read More »4 strategies for turning year-end stress into fundraising success
Generosity in quotes: Meg Biallas
“If we are to be truly engaged in our church, our community, with our neighbors we must (a) be willing to commit the time to… Read More »Generosity in quotes: Meg Biallas
Monkeys see, monkeys do. But not in the boardroom, please.
My apology for casting dispersion on the good folks sitting on boards of nonprofit organizations. But hey, I’m one of you. And if I’m willing to confess my share of monkeying around in the boardroom, so can you. So put down that banana and listen up. Stop aping other people’s best practices and start thinking for yourself.Read More »Monkeys see, monkeys do. But not in the boardroom, please.
Reflections on two years as a blogger, two weeks late
Is my face red! I let the second anniversary of Generous Matters slip by unheralded. Okay, so two years is but a blip in the blogosphere. For me, however, it’s a big deal. When I first put fingers to keyboard on March 3, 2011, I didn’t know where this blogging thing would take me. Three hundred plus posts later, I’m still here. Even more amazing, so are you. Hooray for us!Read More »Reflections on two years as a blogger, two weeks late
Isn’t that just like a woman?
In honor of International Women’s Day, a few facts with a feminine flair. Women’s ways of giving: Bank of America Merrill Lynch recently asked the… Read More »Isn’t that just like a woman?