#34 | Is it time to put to rest some of fundraising’s tired clichés?

Jack Silverstein introduces himself as one of the few people who have been in fundraising their entire career. It’s apparent that Jack doesn’t struggle with a loyalty to another professional domain and that he has discovered fundraising to be very meaningful and rewarding work. Before we tackled our discussion outline, and seeing as I’m going to be presenting in Toronto later this month, I was especially grateful that Jack agreed to initially provide me with quick primer on Canadian fundraising. 

Those who have been around as fundraising professionals as long as Jack and I have know well the usual cliches that donors are not ATM’s, special events don’t work, fundraisers quit every eighteen months, and board members give of their time rather than their money. I asked Jack if we could be more introspective with these tired cliches and do some soul-searching about what’s really being said. 

Of all the cliches that tend towards externalizing and rationalizing our challenges in fundraising, Jack’s years of experience has taught him that more donors and more money will never effectively solve our problems. He has learned that the most effective fundraising efforts resist mass communication, ensure meaningful engagement and align expectations. 

How Fundraising Really Works is Coming to Toronto

We are very grateful to David Hutchinson and the team at Cause Leadership for partnering with us to bring How Fundraising Really Works to Toronto. On Thursday, February 28th, we will be at the National Club in downtown Toronto. Seating is always limited to 40 for these events so please register early. Looking further down the road, we have already confirmed dates in Philadelphia, Raleigh, Washington DC, and Worcester, MA. If you’d like to get more information about these upcoming roadshow dates, go to my website at lewisfundraising.com/events

As a reminder, if you’d like to be a guest on The Fundraising Talent Podcast, visit lewisfundraising.com/signup