Roles that are meant to serve marginalized communities often carry an invisible tension. On the surface, these positions are designed to open doors. Yet in practice, the people in these roles can end up acting as gatekeepers, holding the very power they are tasked with redistributing. Using Edward de Bono’
Build the Vessel: By holding open conversations through The Next Voyage Series to uncover what is not working in current funding practices and sketch the blueprints for something new. Test the Vessel: By guiding our clients to experiment with funder facilitation, we help uncover what truly holds steady in impact,
I say this with the utmost reverence: too many executive directors are chasing funding for programs that are not effective. Programs that need to evolve. Programs that do not show deep impact but are still being sold with flashy language and half truths to secure the next grant. That lack
I do not think I could ever prepare for the fact that one of our most highly screened funders was going to lead us through a yoga session in her living room. But that is exactly what happened. And that moment taught me something I will never forget. It taught
It is a problem to think that submitting a grant application and then getting a no means the end of the road. You invest your resources, align your team, and put your heart into the process, only to come up short. And when that happens, it is frustrating. We had
The rules for fundraising have not disappeared, but the game is changing. What worked for the greats of the past will not always work for us today, and holding on too tightly to their playbook could be the reason your organization falls behind. It is a problem if you are
In the grant writing industry, especially within nonprofits, we need to be honest about a truth that often goes unsaid. Not every program is engineered purely from the heart of the mission. And if you are being honest with yourself, you will admit that there is at least some truth
This moment in history, in our industry, is unique. Things are changing fast. It’s a problem when nonprofits and consultants treat grant writing as business as usual. I get it. There’s comfort in the processes and systems that have allowed us to do the work we want to
It’s a problem when nonprofits and consultants treat grant writing as business as usual. It’s a problem when you’re not persuading funders by speaking to the urgency of this moment in history. It’s a problem when you assume your organization won’t be affected by federal
One of the challenges in the nonprofit sector is that even well-intentioned funders sometimes operate from a distance. Foundations often put significant effort into screening which nonprofits align with their priorities, but once the check is written, organizations are largely left on their own. Foundations may have the resources to
It is a problem if you are not having genuine conversations with your most loyal funders. Now, we get it. Who has time to do that? And I am talking to both sides here, nonprofits and funders. When I worked in a nonprofit, every day felt maxed out. You could