We enter nonprofit work - frequently - with no training. Employees, volunteers, board... often we have passion but no education or training. This episode explores that deficit, and how to address it. (The answer is: passion will drive your will to fill the holes!)

In this episode I explore the tricky question of donor tracking. I want to learn as much about a donor as I possibly can before I have a conversation with them, and in this episode I give some examples of things I like to know.

We also explore ways to get to know your donors, track them for the future of your organization, and why we do this. There's a lot to know, and it's just good relational juju to keep it all in one place.

One of the holy grails of nonprofit work is to establish an endowment. We frequently hear from boards and staff of small and medium sized nonprofit organizations that they would love to have an endowment. In this episode I explore some aspects of what this really means: how big does an endowment have to be to be useful? What does it take to establish one? How do you manage funds in an endowment so they don't diminish over time?

Check it out and contact me with any questions or ideas: www.firstcreekpartners.com

Most of us have been in the situation where we know a fundraising letter or other big communication has to go out. We've kind of known it for a long time, and then suddenly the day is tomorrow. It has to go out! And you have no idea what you're going to write in this important letter, so you just write something. 

Spending quality time at year end planning for all your organization's communication in the year to come will de-stress you and your volunteers and staff. Putting it all in the calendar before the year starts gives everyone clear expectations, and you know what you're going to do when the day comes. Plans may change, but you have a solid starting point to keep you on track through the year. 

Here's how to do it.

The granting process is interesting - funders have very specific goals for the grants they provide, so they're looking for the best organizations to achieve these goals. Is yours the right organization? The grant application is the only way you have in to this opaque opportunity.

You'll learn about what granters want, what they don't want, and how to improve your odds. For more information, check out my website firstcreekpartners.com.

Big events your organization put on take a lot of work. It's taxing on staff and volunteers, but it should have a great payoff. Planning for the results is the key. This episode has thoughts on why you do parties, and ways to make them work for your organization.

Boards take a lot of care and feeding. And it's worth it! Paying attention to how you build your board, how you manage the board you have, and preparing for the future with new board members waiting in the wings all takes time. It'll make your organization perform way above others. Check this out and learn some tricks to optimizing your board culture.

Making "the ask" in nonprofit work seems to freak a lot of people out. But you don't ask someone to marry you without going on some dates. That's how the ask works - you need to meet, date, court, charm, and assure *both* you and the potential donor that it's a match made in heaven. Check out this episode!

Why do some people hate committee work? Meetings. Time wasting meetings. At least that's the perception. If you've got board members or others from whom you need expert advice and targeted effort, consider enlisting them in a disappearing task force. Check it out.