How Iron Man Helped Us Raise Money
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
Yes. That’s me in the picture. I promised our donors that I would dress up as Iron Man if we reached our goal, and I went all out: mask, gloves that glow, ...
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Mind-Reading and Other Mistakes I’ve Made in Fundraising
By
DickersonBakker
“I have tried raising money by asking for it, and by not asking for it. I always got more by asking for it.”
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Are You Brave Enough to Choose Hurt Over Harm for Your Nonprofit?
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
We knew that there was going to be fallout. The great Dr. Baxter (name changed) had descended from high to volunteer his services at the free clinic. Dr. ...
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Serving Ramen Noodles to Major Donors
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
Back in college, Ramen Noodles were great because it was a cheap, two-minute meal. Boil water, add noodles, spice pack, and BAM: instant dinner. Many ...
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It’s Time to Stop Being Nice
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
Our volunteer was late . . . again. The client she was supposed to meet with had been waiting 20 minutes and needed to catch the bus soon. At 21 minutes ...
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Is Your Campaign Trigger Happy? Avoid the Dreaded Capital Campaign Slump
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
The Capital Campaign Slump. Nearly every nonprofit goes through it at one point or another. The culprit? Being trigger happy and going public too soon. ...
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Why You Should Have a Lawyer on Your Board (It’s Not the Reason You Think)
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
When I worked as the executive director of a free clinic, we had a young Amish patient with a very complicated medical history. Her care was quite ...
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Don’t Hurt Major Donors With Aggressive Fundraising
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
In Greek, the word philanthropy means “love of humanity.” Given this definition, one could logically think that people from all over would be excited to ...
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5 Tips for Having Gladiator Board Meetings
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
My dad is due for a colonoscopy, and he jokingly said he was going to schedule it during one of his Wednesday work meetings. “At least they give you ...
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Fundraising Is a Team Sport
By
Guest Contributor Brent Hafele
It seems odd to me that steering committee chairs feel like they have to run the campaign alone. I’ve talked to chairs who get frustrated, apathetic, or ...
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