The right wing's "waste, fraud, and abuse" propaganda is being used to justify massive and indiscriminate slashing of federal funding for anything and everything. That propaganda is hurting nearly every nonprofit in this cou…
There is so much more still to discuss about how we can defend against ongoing attacks on your federal funding. In this week’s episode, we're focusing on the second key piece of the strategy, which is shaping public opinion…
We have a lot to talk about with all of the threats that are aimed at federal funding for a critical array of safety net programs. We've had quite a rollercoaster ride in the last couple of weeks, but I believe that there ar…
It feels like we're having a crisis about every 20 seconds, and this week is no exception. Just at the beginning of the week we had another sudden, chaos-inducing announcement from the new administration that they were going…
If it wasn’t clear before this week, we now know that the entire suite of government-funded safety net programs is in the right wing’s cross hairs. The ambition to dismantle these programs isn't new. What is new is the level…
Confidence is one of those things that so many people struggle with, and others seem to have no problem with. And neither group understands the other one very well. So I want to get into where does confidence come from, and …
There's a really big problem out there that chances are you're experiencing: Too many money and policy decisionmakers just aren't getting your core message. What I want to help you do today is shift what you're doing just a …
What makes intention setting so powerful is that it is more about the being than about the doing. If we fail to attend to our intentions, we risk not only missing our goals, but missing out on the experience we want to have …
Between the waning light and the kind of tucking in that happens around the solstice, and the anticipation of closing one year and opening a new one. It's the perfect time to do some reflection on how the year has gone for u…
One of the most problematic tropes that gets emphasized over and over again for nonprofit leaders can wind up absolutely wrecking your ability to really connect with decision makers. That’s the belief that you must be ultra-…
As nonprofit leaders, one of the many roles we have is that we are marketers. And if that's not part of the way you think about your role, or if that creates a little resistance for you, hang in there for a minute. Because t…
It's Thanksgiving time and we're all reflecting on things that we're thankful for. I think that can be particularly challenging at this moment in time when we're dealing with a lot of challenges in terms of the political env…
Let me ask you this: When you’re in meetings with decisionmakers, what are you most focused on? If you’re like most advocates, you got a lot going on in your head. You’re thinking about your framing, and making sure it reso…
We have a lot to talk about in this time following the elections. I understand that everyone is still processing, myself included. And yet, it is time to begin turning our attention to: What do we do now? There is some clari…
This is a really tough time for all of us in the progressive nonprofit world. And I wanted to share a few early thoughts, even as we don't have complete answers on all of the election results. But we have some very important…
In this week’s episode we're taking a look at two of the most common decisionmaker behaviors that frequently throw advocates off their game. It definitely doesn't have to be that way, but I see it all the time. So I want to …
The 2024 elections are less than two weeks away. And if your world is anything like mine, you and just about everybody in it are stressing out right now. There's a lot of anxiety. There's a lot of worry. There's a lot of fea…
As an advocate, one of your main goals is to get to the money and policy decision makers that have the power to make decisions that are going to affect your organization and the people you serve. And one of the things I hear…
We're less than 30 days out from the 2024 elections. And I don't have to tell you there's a lot at stake up and down the ballot. From the presidential race to congressional and Senate races, to state legislatures. And on dow…
Today we're talking about something that I hear so often from nonprofit leaders just freaks them the heck out, and that's negotiating. The truth is, nonprofit leaders are negotiating all the time. But many leaders tell me it…
The frustration I hear most often from the nonprofit leaders I work with, is that the money and policy decision makers in their world don't seem to get the value of what they do. And that comes In a lot of forms and flavors.…
Has this ever happened to you? You go to engage a decision-maker. There's something specific you want from them. And you start laying out your case and you can tell you're losing them. They're not engaging. They're kind of g…
There is no question about the significance of the 2024 elections from the presidential race on down to every single local race. I'm pretty sure I don't have to convince you on that front. Nor do I have to convince you how m…
Opportunity is everywhere. But too often, we miss those opportunities because we didn't know about them at all, or we didn't find out about them in time to capitalize on them. The truth is most nonprofit CEOs are pretty good…
