If you want to be a successful major gift fundraiser, one of the most important traits you'll need is courage. Courage to overcome the fear of failure that so many of us face in asking donors to invest in our causes. Fear of not just hearing "no", but failing our organizations and letting down those we're committed to serving. Julie Ordoñez is the Founder of Courage Lab, a coaching and training program to help fundraisers and nonprofit leaders face their fears and build the skills and resilience necessary to raise significantly more money for mission impact. But Julie isn't just a coach or teacher of fundraising theory. She's a proven front-line fundraiser. She's done everything from running a one-person fundraising shop to achieving success as a top 1% major gift fundraiser for United Way of Los Angeles. We connected recently with Julie to learn more about the importance of courage in fundraising, and what holds people and organizations back from achieving success in their fundraising efforts. Some of the key takeaways you'll enjoy from our conversation are:Fundraising problems are actually organizational leadership and culture problems that manifest in revenue challenges.The risks of believing that only you and your employees care deeply about your cause (and that your donors don't care as much as you do).The importance of empathy for fundraisers and donors alike.Why the way we each view money in our personal lives impacts our ability to make significant asks. No, COVID-19 hasn't diminished the capacity of major donors (mostly), and why this line of thinking destroys your fundraising potential.The importance of asking great questions and listening to donors.Why you should stop looking outside your organization for major donors and instead invest in building relationships with your current supporters.The value of prioritizing important tasks like actually calling and speaking to your donors, and why that's so difficult for many fundraisers.

This episode of The Rainmaker Fundraising Podcast is brought to you by my friends at Virtuous. If you want to create meaningful connection with donors instead of putting distance between your supporters and your cause, you need to know Virtuous. The responsive fundraising platform created by Virtuous unifies fundraising, marketing, and donor development activities to deliver dynamic campaigns that engage supporters in more meaningful ways. Download a copy of their Responsive Fundraising Playbook