Nonprofit CourageLab

You value relationships. You genuinely care about your donors. And then it’s time to ask for $100,000 and suddenly you’re saying: “Whatever you can give would be great!” Would it, though? Your mission requires serious...

You’re told to raise more you need to do more. I “did more”, raised $1.1M, and I lost sleep, and my hair fell out. I met the goal, but it cost me my health. 8 years later, I raised $2,500,000 and was vibrant and...

Ever go into a meeting with a major donor with a plan to ask for a gift, and something throws you off? You leave the meeting kicking yourself because you didn’t make the ask. You had a purpose for the meeting, but...

If you're constantly bending over backwards for difficult donors, accepting restricted gifts that create more work than they're worth, or letting wealthy people dictate your strategy, this episode is going to challenge...

Have a big 6 or 7-figure ask coming up? Book a Big Gift 1:1 Strategy Session today. Let's plan your approach before the meeting, the ask, any written proposal, and the follow-up. I've helped nonprofit CEOs raise $95...

Most nonprofits are sitting on more donor potential than they realize. In this second part of my live CourageLab coaching session, I walk through some of the fundraising principles that separate organizations stuck at...

Stop trying to earn donor trust with polished updates. In this episode, I’m giving you a behind-the-scenes look at a training I recently led inside Courage Lab. These are the kinds of conversations we have with...

This episode might ruffle some feathers. Good. Because we need to talk honestly about the real cost of galas, especially for small nonprofit teams that are already stretched thin. After hearing yet another executive...

Stop doing fundraising that nearly kills you. Seriously. In this episode, I’m walking through the profitable fundraising swaps I would make every single time after helping clients raise more than $70 million. These are...

A donor asked one of my clients, “How much do I have to give for you to stop asking?” Oof. That question hit me right in the chest. And honestly, I think a lot of fundraisers have either been asked something like this...

There are a handful of patterns I see over and over again when organizations get stuck around $300K in individual giving. Not because they don’t care. Not because their mission isn’t strong. But because of how they’re...

If your board keeps saying they’ll help fundraise but nothing actually happens, this is for you. This is one of the biggest frustrations I hear from EDs and development leaders. You ask. You remind. You bring it up in...

You don’t need more time. You need a better strategy. In this Ask Julie episode, I answer a question from a CEO who just lost their head of fundraising and now has to grow individual giving from $400K to $1M… solo. No...

Moves management is slowing you down. And it’s costing you real money. In this episode, I’m breaking down why the traditional donor life cycle is outdated at best and harmful at worst. We’ve been taught to move donors...

You’re not stuck. You’re just playing it way too cool. If you’ve been feeling discouraged, checked out, or like fundraising just isn’t working right now, this is your wake-up call. Because the problem isn’t your donors...