What the Fundraising

In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast, What if the reason you're avoiding fundraising outreach isn't because you're bad at fundraising, but because you have a readiness gap? In this solo episode of What the Fundraising, Mallory Erickson breaks down three common fundraising readiness gaps that can quietly stand between you and your next yes: confidence, clarity, and consistency. She shares the behavioral science behind why we avoid outreach, why vague to-do lists create procrastination, and how frantic bursts of fundraising can make relationship-building feel transactional. Most importantly, Mallory gives you one concrete move for each readiness gap that you can put into practice this week. From rewriting the story you tell yourself when a donor doesn't respond to turning vague fundraising tasks into tiny physical actions, these strategies are designed to make fundraising feel more doable—and help you build the muscle memory that creates sustainable momentum. In this episode, you will be able to:  Understand why fundraising avoidance isn't a character flaw, but a potential readiness gap. Recognize how anticipatory anxiety and negative assumptions can affect your fundraising outreach. Reframe donor silence and rejection without turning them into judgments about your worth or competence. Turn vague fundraising to-dos into specific, actionable next physical steps. Use tiny habits to lower the activation energy around fundraising. Build consistency by anchoring small donor touchpoints to routines you already have. Understand why relationship fundraising benefits from consistency rather than frantic bursts of activity. Create simple habits that help you become the fundraiser who never fully goes quiet. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

What if becoming a better leader starts with letting go of who you think you should be? Meet Rebecca Blume, the Vice Chancellor for Advancement at the University of Washington Bothell. She has 22 years of fundraising experience and has worked with organizations including Fair Start and the YWCA in downtown Seattle.  To start the conversation, Rebecca shares how her experiences helped her become more confident and comfortable with her leadership style. She discusses viewing life as seasons rather than chasing perfect balance, using a pendulum to shift attention toward what matters most.  Moreover, Rebecca shares a powerful exercise for challenging limiting beliefs and explains how letting go of the need for total control can strengthen trust within a team. The discussion also touches on people-pleasing, healthy boundaries, holding space for difficult emotions, and responding rather than reacting. Finally, Rebecca encourages leaders to intentionally shape workplace culture and make small, daily shifts toward authenticity, connection, and trust. In this episode, you will be able to:  Lead more authentically by being comfortable with who you are. Manage different life priorities by thinking in seasons. Identify limiting beliefs that may affect your leadership. Let go of unnecessary control and build trust within your team. Set healthy boundaries without feeling guilty. Handle difficult emotions without reacting defensively. Communicate clearly during challenging situations. Create a positive workplace culture that reflects your values. Reduce people-pleasing habits and focus on what truly matters. Make small daily changes to become a more confident and authentic leader. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point

After a week of executive coaching tools, reflections, and strategies, Mallory closes out this series with one of the most important foundations of sustainable growth: consciousness. In this episode of What The Fundraising, Mallory explores how increasing awareness of our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors can help fundraisers move from stress-based reactions into more intentional, empowered action. Many fundraisers spend their days in response mode—reacting to challenges, uncertainty, donor behavior, and endless priorities. Mallory shares how executive coaching helps create more space between what happens and how we respond, allowing us to make decisions from a place of clarity instead of fear, stress, or automatic patterns. Listeners will learn how to build daily and weekly consciousness practices, give themselves grace while changing old habits, and embrace growth without perfectionism. This episode is a reminder that transformation does not require a complete overhaul—it happens one degree at a time. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand the role consciousness plays in fundraising success. Recognize when you are operating from stress responses. Create habits that increase awareness and intentionality. Shift from reactive fundraising to proactive decision-making. Practice self-compassion while building new skills. Move away from perfectionism in your growth journey. Use curiosity instead of criticism when reflecting on your actions. Embrace small, consistent changes that create lasting transformation. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

Fundraising is filled with uncertainty, vulnerability, and moments of discomfort—but what happens when those feelings start driving our decisions? In this episode of What The Fundraising, Mallory Erickson dives into the hidden ways fundraisers respond to discomfort and how those stress responses can unintentionally derail fundraising success. Drawing from her executive coaching work and research on fundraiser behavior, Mallory explores how flight and freeze responses show up in everyday fundraising activities. From avoiding donor conversations to endlessly perfecting reports and strategies, these patterns can keep fundraisers stuck in cycles of busy work, scattered action, and missed opportunities. Listeners will learn how to recognize when stress is influencing their fundraising decisions and how to build the capacity to sit with uncertainty, have deeper donor conversations, and take the actions that truly move their organizations forward. In this episode, you will be able to: Recognize how discomfort impacts fundraising decisions. Understand the connection between stress responses and fundraising behaviors. Identify when busy work is replacing meaningful fundraising action. Learn why uncertainty can feel so dysregulating. Understand how perfectionism can prevent fundraising progress. Build awareness around avoidance patterns. Develop more conscious responses to fundraising challenges. Create stronger donor relationships through vulnerability and connection. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

Fundraising can be uncomfortable—but what if discomfort isn't actually the problem? In this solo coaching episode, Mallory Erickson introduces one of the foundational concepts of executive coaching: understanding the difference between discomfort and stress. While many fundraisers believe that feeling nervous before a donor meeting means they're doing something wrong, Mallory explains why discomfort is actually a natural sign of growth, uncertainty, and courage. Rather than trying to eliminate uncomfortable feelings, she shares a practical framework for noticing what's happening in your body, acknowledging your emotions without judgment, and preventing negative self-talk from turning temporary discomfort into chronic stress. Through simple practices you can implement immediately, this episode offers a powerful mindset shift that can help you become a more grounded, confident, and effective fundraiser. In a nutshell: Discomfort isn't something to avoid, it's something to understand. When we stop judging our emotions, we create space to show up with more courage, clarity, and confidence. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand the difference between discomfort and stress. Recognize how judgment amplifies difficult emotions. Notice physical signs of discomfort before they affect your actions. Interrupt negative self-talk before it escalates. Practice acknowledging and validating your emotions. Build a healthier relationship with discomfort. Develop greater nervous system regulation. Take fundraising action from courage instead of fear. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point

AI is no longer a future trend. It is reshaping how organizations lead, innovate, and create impact today, and nonprofits are no exception.  DeAnna Hoskins is the President and CEO of JustLeadershipUSA, an organization led by formerly incarcerated people. She also served as a senior policy advisor during the Obama administration. Her experience in government and nonprofit leadership gives her a unique view on how technology, policy, and community work can come together to create positive change. During the conversation, DeAnna explains why nonprofits should invest in AI training before adopting new tools. She mentions that AI should support people, not replace them, and that human oversight is always important. She also talks about the need to reduce bias in AI, to create clear guidelines for its use, and to continue learning as the technology evolves. Furthermore, DeAnna discusses the role of philanthropy in funding AI education and helping organizations build the skills they need.  In this episode, you will be able to:  Recognize the value of AI training. Use AI with human oversight. Build responsible AI guidelines. Identify AI bias and risks. Create long-term AI strategies. Use AI to support teams. Understand AI funding needs. Get all the resources from today’s episode here.  Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

Raising young people out of poverty takes far more than good intentions. It requires trust, healing, opportunity, and unwavering community support. Also, meaningful mentorship can become a powerful force for breaking generational barriers. Meet Renee Daniel Flagler, President of the National CARES Mentoring Movement. Today, she reflects on her personal journey into nonprofit leadership, inspired by a transformative volunteer experience that revealed the life-changing impact of supporting vulnerable youth. She discusses her organization's mission to empower young people through mentoring, trauma-informed healing, wellness, and workforce development. Moreover, the conversation explores the organization's holistic mentoring model, which combines mentor recruitment, emotional wellness, workforce readiness, and economic mobility to address the complex realities facing underserved communities. Renee explains why trauma-informed care is essential for long-term success, particularly in the aftermath of COVID-19, and discusses the challenges of securing funding for comprehensive programs. She also highlights the importance of mission-aligned philanthropic partnerships, organizational adaptability, and reimagining philanthropy by removing unnecessary barriers so nonprofits can focus on creating lasting, life-changing impact. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand how mentoring can help break the cycle of generational poverty. Recognize the importance of trauma-informed and healing-centered approaches in youth development. Explain why mental health and emotional well-being are essential for long-term success. Identify the value of combining mentoring, workforce development, and wellness into one holistic model. Understand why addressing root causes leads to more meaningful and lasting impact. Learn how strong, mission-aligned partnerships can strengthen nonprofit outcomes. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

Fundraising is changing, and organizations need new ways to connect with younger people! In this conversation, Michael Wasserman explains how digital communities and online creators are shaping the future of fundraising. He shares why traditional methods are no longer enough and how organizations can build stronger relationships with younger supporters. Michael Wasserman, CEO and co-founder of Tiltify, talks about his journey and the inspiration behind creating the platform. While working as a consultant for charities, he repeatedly heard the same problem: organizations struggled to attract younger donors. He realized that younger generations were already active on platforms such as Twitch and TikTok, but charities were not reaching them. This led him to create Tiltify in 2014, a platform designed around the needs of fundraisers rather than charities. The conversation also explores the shift from one-time donations to community-based fundraising. Michael explains that people want to participate, interact, and feel connected, rather than simply make a donation and leave. He discusses the challenges organizations face in adopting new technology and shares practical ideas, such as simplifying fundraising processes, improving communication, and creating engaging digital spaces that encourage long-term donor support. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand the shift from traditional to digital fundraising. Recognize the importance of meeting donors on modern platforms. Learn why email is less effective for younger audiences. See the value of community-driven fundraising models. Understand the move from transactional to participatory giving. Learn how digital communities increase engagement. Recognize resistance to adopting new technology. See the benefit of simpler, easier donation processes. Understand the impact of influencers on donor behavior. Learn the need to adapt to changing donor expectations. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

The secret to a successful campaign is a culture shaped by trust, collaboration, emotional resilience, and a shared sense of purpose. A successful implementation of a fundraising team is more than just hitting financial goals; it demands leadership that understands and values institutional culture, supports people through high-pressure moments, and creates a system that will thrive without burning out. From donor relationships to preventing isolation, this conversation explores how transparency, accountability, empathy, and collective support can build a sustainable fundraising culture. Jill C. Anderson is the current Vice President of Development and Alumni Engagement at Moravian University, Pennsylvania. She is an expert in campaign strategy, major gifts, and donor engagement. With nearly 26 years of experience in advancement and an earlier career in finance, she brings a strategic, systems-oriented approach to philanthropy and organizational growth. She is also a doctoral student at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Having grown up as a daughter to a professional baseball coach, Jill believes deeply in team-centered leadership and cross-functional collaboration. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand the unique challenges of building and leading fundraising teams. Learn about the effect of organizational culture on donor relationships and campaign success. Understand the importance of accountability and transparency during periods of growth and crisis. Explore strategies for reducing isolation and strengthening team connection in fundraising environments. Discover how collaboration and cross-functional understanding strengthen fundraising teams. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast, Alumni relationships are shifting from tradition-bound loyalty to something more dynamic, personal, and value-driven. In this conversation, the focus turns toward what institutions are getting wrong and how listening more carefully could reshape the future of fundraising and engagement. Howard Heevner brings deep experience from a 30-year career in higher education fundraising, beginning at the University of Iowa and later serving as executive director of annual programs at UC Berkeley. He is also a co-founder of the National Alumni Survey. This large-scale initiative has grown significantly over time, expanding from tens of thousands of responses across dozens of institutions to well over 150,000 surveys. His work centers on understanding donor behavior patterns and challenging long-held assumptions about alumni generosity and awareness. The discussion highlights key shifts: declining donor participation, the emergence of distinct giving cultures across age groups, and the misconception that non-donors are simply uninformed. Instead, many already give elsewhere, signaling a need for institutions to move from assumed loyalty to earned trust. The conversation also emphasizes personalization, better use of technology for listening rather than broadcasting, and the importance of making alumni feel seen, relevant, and considered. Ultimately, it calls for a more responsive, value-aligned approach to engagement and fundraising systems. In this episode, you will be able to: - Understand shifting trends in alumni engagement and fundraising behavior. - Recognize the importance of moving from assumed trust to earned trust. - Identify how alumni giving patterns vary across age and value systems. - Learn why personalization improves relevance and alumni connection. - Understand the need to make alumni feel seen and considered. - Identify gaps between investment in student vs alumni experiences. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

This conversation explores why modern fundraising still struggles with outdated systems despite living in a technology-driven world. It raises important questions about how fundraisers are expected to manage hundreds of donor relationships while spending hours on administrative tasks rather than building meaningful connections. The discussion challenges traditional fundraising methods and reveals how technology, automation, and better workflows can completely transform donor engagement and fundraising success. Meet Meredith Johnston, who serves as the Vice President of Development at Family Health Centers of San Diego (FHCSD). Since 1970, FHCSD has been dedicated to delivering compassionate, affordable, and high-quality health care and supportive services to all individuals, with a strong focus on uninsured, low-income, and medically underserved communities. Today, FHCSD is recognized as one of the 10 largest federally qualified health centers in the United States, operating more than 90 locations throughout San Diego County. Each year, the organization serves over 227,000 patients, including 91% who are low-income and 29% who are uninsured. Throughout the conversation, Meredith shares practical insights from her career journey, explaining how fundraising has evolved and why organizations must adapt to changing expectations. Her experience gives credibility to the discussion around leadership, donor management, and operational efficiency. Meredith discusses the importance of using technology to support fundraisers rather than overwhelm them with manual tasks. She explains the value of tracking donor behavior, improving data quality, and focusing on active relationship-building. The conversation also addresses perfectionism, anxiety, and the fear of making mistakes, encouraging fundraisers to take action, embrace imperfection, and prioritize meaningful donor interactions over passive busywork. In this episode, you will be able to: Recognize the importance of technology in modern fundraising. Understand how outdated systems limit fundraiser effectiveness. Identify tasks that should be automated to save time. Learn how data quality improves donor engagement and workflows. Recognize the value of focusing on relationship-building activities. Understand the difference between active and passive fundraising actions. Recognize how perfectionism can prevent meaningful action. Learn why major gift officers should focus on tasks only they can do. Understand how leadership support improves fundraiser productivity. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.

What happens when philanthropy becomes more about control than community? Can generosity still be called generosity when tax benefits and personal recognition take center stage? Join us for today's episode to question the hidden dynamics behind modern fundraising and explore what true public stewardship really looks like! This conversation features Glen Galaich, a respected philanthropy leader with more than 25 years of experience in donor education and fundraising. As the founder of the Stupski Foundation, which works across San Francisco, Oakland, and Hawaii, Glen has spent years examining how wealth shapes giving. He is also the author of the book Control: Why Big Giving Falls Short, in which he challenges traditional philanthropic systems and calls for greater accountability, trust, and honesty in the sector. Throughout the conversation, Glen unpacks the idea of donor-centric fundraising and its historical roots, tracing it back to Andrew Carnegie's "Gospel of Wealth." He discusses how philanthropy often becomes tied to power, ego, and tax advantages rather than genuine generosity. Glen explains the psychological shifts that can happen when people gain significant wealth, often leading to insecurity and a stronger desire for control. He also explores trust-based philanthropy, participatory grantmaking, and the importance of unrestricted funding. Furthermore, Glen emphasizes that donors should act as public stewards, staying accountable to the communities they aim to serve, while fundraisers must create honest conversations and challenge unhealthy power dynamics within philanthropy. In this episode, you will be able to: - Recognize the difference between generosity and philanthropy. - Learn how donor control can affect community impact. - Understand the importance of trust-based philanthropy. - Identify why unrestricted funding supports stronger outcomes. - Learn how tax benefits influence philanthropic decisions. - Recognize the role of fundraisers in guiding donor accountability. - Understand how wealth can shape donor behavior and mindset. - Learn why public stewardship should guide charitable giving. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.