Contagious Culture

In this episode of the Contagious Culture Podcast, Kyle King sits down with Patricia Bravo, leadership development consultant, speaker, author, and founder of Bravo For You.

Patricia shares how leaders can guide organizations through disruption and transformation without losing sight of the people doing the work. She explains why empathy is not a soft leadership skill, but a practical source of human data that can improve communication, decision-making, trust, and performance.

Kyle and Patricia also discuss accountability, professional intimacy, workplace grief, relationship shortcuts, and the hidden costs organizations experience when people feel unseen or left behind.

The conversation offers leaders a practical challenge: measure the return they are receiving from investing in their people with the same seriousness they use to evaluate every other business investment.

00:00 — Introduction and meeting Patricia Bravo

Patricia Bravo is a leadership development consultant, speaker, author, and founder of Bravo For You.

She helps leaders and organizations strengthen culture, accelerate growth, and produce measurable business results through empathetic leadership and human-centered strategy.

Patricia has designed and delivered leadership programs for Fortune 500 companies and taught leadership and team development through institutions including the University of Washington, UCLA, and UC Irvine.

Her work focuses on helping leaders uncover the unseen human dynamics that shape performance, including empathy, workplace loss, trust, communication, accountability, professional intimacy, and the return organizations receive when they intentionally invest in their people.

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Join hosts Kyle King and Daniel Freeman in this insightful episode of "Contagious Culture" as they dive into the essential steps for building and nurturing a robust network of donors for your nonprofit organization. You'll learn strategies for identifying potential donors, creating meaningful connections, and maintaining engagement. The hosts share best practices for effective communication, conveying your nonprofit's story and impact to inspire generosity. 

They also discuss how to cultivate a donor-centric culture that prioritizes relationships and leverage technology to enhance outreach efforts. Whether you're a seasoned nonprofit leader or just starting out, this episode is packed with actionable insights to help you expand your donor network and amplify your impact. Tune in and discover how to turn your passion into a movement that inspires lasting support!

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In this episode of the Contagious Culture Podcast, Kyle King and Dan Fisher sit down with Catalina Parker, co-founder and CEO of Relatable Nonprofit.

Catalina shares how she walked away from a successful foundation career after realizing that the version of success she had built was costing her health, peace, and time with her family. She explains how she transitioned into consulting, built a six-figure business, and eventually created a mentorship community for former nonprofit professionals building sustainable consulting careers.

Kyle, Dan, and Catalina also discuss pricing, positioning, niching, sales pipelines, boundaries, client selection, and why consultants must stop confusing capability with calling.

This conversation is a practical guide for anyone who wants to build meaningful work without recreating the burnout, pressure, and unhealthy patterns they were trying to leave behind.

00:00 — Introduction and meeting Catalina Parker

Catalina Parker is the co-founder and CEO of Relatable Nonprofit, a coaching and mentorship community that helps former nonprofit professionals build sustainable consulting businesses.

After years in nonprofit leadership and private grantmaking, Catalina realized that her professional success was costing her health, peace, and time with her family. She transitioned into consulting, built a six-figure business with her co-founder, Julia Devine, and developed expertise in positioning, pricing, sales, client delivery, boundaries, and business development.

Today, Catalina helps consultants build clear offers, generate predictable income, strengthen their pipelines, and create businesses that support the lives they actually want to live.

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Most fundraising doesn’t fail because the mission isn’t strong, it fails because leaders don’t know how to navigate the conversation. In this Power Session, Kyle and Dan break down how to lead donor conversations with clarity and confidence, how to handle hesitation without getting awkward, and how to move from relationship-building to a real close.

We cover simple language you can use, what to listen for, how to make the ask feel natural, and the follow-up rhythm that increases yeses. If closing gifts feels intimidating, this episode will shift the way you lead.

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Events can be a fundraising powerhouse or an expensive stress fest. In this Power Session, Kyle and Dan break down what it looks like to run events done well and how to scale them without losing the human-centered experience. We share key insights from a recent Charlotte Rescue Mission event that raised the bar in storytelling, execution, and attendee experience.

You’ll learn what makes an event unforgettable, how to design moments that move people to action, and what to put in place so your team can execute with excellence year after year.

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In this episode of the Contagious Culture Podcast, Kyle King and Dan Freeman sit down with Mark Dobosz, a nonprofit and philanthropic leader with more than four decades of experience across education, healthcare, senior living, small business development, and nonprofit governance.

Mark shares how his mother introduced him to service, generosity, and volunteerism before he ever considered fundraising as a career. He reflects on the unexpected opportunity that launched him into development work and the leadership decisions that shaped his understanding of sacrifice, mission, and responsibility.

Kyle, Dan, and Mark also discuss donor-centered fundraising, planned giving, board development, capital campaigns, succession planning, and the importance of building trust before making an ask.

Throughout the conversation, Mark challenges fundraisers to move beyond transactions and become conduits between a donor’s deepest values and an organization’s mission.

00:00 — Introduction and meeting Mark Dobosz

Mark Dobosz is a nonprofit executive, philanthropic leader, author, and fundraising professional with more than forty years of experience helping organizations grow, navigate change, and build long-term impact.

His career spans education, healthcare, senior living, small business development, Western sports, nonprofit associations, major gifts, planned giving, organizational leadership, and board governance.

Mark currently serves as a vice president of philanthropy focused on major gifts and planned giving. Throughout his career, he has led multimillion-dollar fundraising efforts, built a national foundation from the ground up, managed complex budgets, guided capital campaigns, and partnered with boards and donors to align personal values with organizational missions.

He is also the author of Beyond the Ask and Beyond the Culture, which explore the shift from transactional fundraising toward transformational philanthropy and healthier organizational cultures.

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This one is a necessary reality check. Kyle and Dan share a hot take that might save you years of frustration: don’t start a nonprofit, at least not until you understand what you’re signing up for. We unpack the conversations we keep having with executive directors and founders who feel underwater because they didn’t know what they didn’t know.

We talk infrastructure, leadership readiness, fundraising expectations, and the hidden weight of running an organization. If you have started one already, don’t panic, this episode will help you get clear on what to fix next so you can move forward with confidence.

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DEI doesn’t fail because people don’t care, it fails when it becomes performative, vague, or disconnected from real systems and outcomes. In this episode, Kyle and Dan sit down with Cierra Belher Johnson to go beyond the buzzwords and talk about what DEI looks like when it’s actually working.

We explore practical approaches to equity-centered leadership, how to avoid “checkbox” culture, and what it takes to build inclusive environments that are measurable, sustainable, and human.

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In this Power Session, Kyle and Dan unpack why systems are the difference between a nonprofit that scales and one that stays stuck. If your team is overwhelmed, donors are ghosting, or programs feel chaotic, it’s not always a “people problem”, it’s often a systems problem. We break down the core systems every nonprofit should have, how systems shape supporter experience, and why consistency is what builds trust. You’ll walk away with practical examples you can implement immediately to strengthen execution, retention, and engagement.

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Episode 156 is a Power Session built for nonprofit leaders heading into a volatile 2026. Kyle S. King and Dan sit down to unpack BDO’s 2026 nonprofit outlook and translate the predictions into real-world strategy you can actually use, especially if you’re feeling pressure around revenue uncertainty, tighter donor budgets, rising scrutiny, and the growing gap between organizations with strong infrastructure and those operating week to week.

We talk through what’s shifting in the sector and what leaders should prioritize right now, including scenario planning and rolling forecasts, building real operating reserves, focusing on efficiency instead of chasing expansion, and strengthening impact reporting with board-ready KPIs that protect trust and funding. If you’re a CEO, executive director, board member, or fundraiser who wants clarity, discipline, and momentum going into 2026, this episode will help you reset your plan and move with confidence.

Listen now and send this to one leader who needs a sharper strategy for the year ahead.

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