Understanding the emotional cost of fundraising—and why it’s not your fault.

📘 Episode Summary

Why do fundraisers leave their jobs every 16–24 months? In this episode, Erin reveals the hidden pattern driving burnout: the chronic under-resourcing of the fundraiser’s inner life.

Erin shares how rising goals, shifting funders, and donor pressure interact with deeper, often unconscious beliefs about money, worthiness, and belonging. You'll learn why fundraising can mirror old patterns from our past—and why understanding this brings relief, power, and choice.

If you’ve ever felt behind, not enough, or excluded from decisions that shape your goals, this episode will help you recognize: it’s not personal, and it’s not your fault.

💡 Key Takeaways

• Burnout is systemic, not a personal flaw.
• Fundraising has an outer story (goals, pressure) and an inner story (anxiety, inadequacy).
• Old money patterns can replay in donor work without us realizing it.
• Patterns are not identities—they can shift with awareness.
• Your first act of power is simply noticing the pattern.

📝 Journal Prompt

What might change if you believed your worth wasn’t tied to your numbers?

Send Erin a text

Book your 1:1 Brave and Balanced Breakthrough Coaching Session here: https://calendly.com/vitalistcoaching/brave-balanced-breakthrough

✨ Stay Connected & Continue Your Fundraising Growth

Listen to all episodes + subscribe:
https://thebraveandbalancedfundraiser.buzzsprout.com

Join the community:
The Brave & Balanced Fundraiser Facebook Group
👉 https://www.facebook.com/groups/braveandbalancedfundraiser

Book a Brave & Balanced Breakthrough Call:
A personalized 1:1 session to support your inner clarity and fundraising wellbeing.
👉 https://calendly.com/vitalistcoaching/brave-balanced-breakthrough

Learn more about Erin’s coaching & nervous-system based support:
VitalistCoaching.com

Connect on Instagram:
@erinmcquadewright