By the time you read this, #GivingTuesday is over. Maybe you're flush with gifts and happy dancing down the hall. Maybe you're disappointed and discouraged because things didn't go the way you planned. Maybe you're a little embarrassed because you didn't even try. Whether you're in the first, second, or third situation, you need to know this: In fundraising, you won't get by today or tomorrow on what happened yesterday. Just like you can't eat healthy today yesterday. You can

This blog post assumes that you're a small nonprofit leader. This Thanksgiving, I'm giving thanks for you. What you do each day is familiar to me because I'm doing it right along with you. Knowing what I know about the work you choose to do, I know you're not doing it for fame or money or power. You could only be doing it for love that comes from your faith and hope. The work you do is hard. More than hard. It's impossible. You're trying to solve what we call "wicked problems

Amazon has a new feature that can help your small nonprofit raise more money from Amazon Smile this holiday season. Amazon's new Idea List feature allows your small nonprofit to create its own holiday gift-buying guide and share it with your supporters. For example, I set up an eco-friendly and Fair Trade gifts guide for my nonprofit, Voices for Earth Justice. As of now, it has about 70 items on it. I like the idea of making my own gift-buying guide for three reasons: I'm hel

#GivingTuesday is less than two weeks away. What are you planning? It's not too late to make it a great day for your small nonprofit and your community of support. How? Instead of asking, asking, asking all day, make it about thanking, thanking, thanking! One of the my favorite experiences over the years is bringing together board members, employees, and volunteer staff members to have a "Giving Thanks Party." At these simple events, we call and write notes to your best donor

What are the most common complaints of small nonprofit leaders? I bet they are: Not enough energy Not enough money Not enough time All three of those are bullshit. Now, for the bullshitter, the best kind of bullshit is the believable kind. Since most people you know likely have a problem with energy, money, or time, they are likely to sympathize with your own struggles. This sets up a perfect situation for making excuses. I speak from experience. In my 20 years leading commun