Back in the day, I was a recent grad with a degree in women’s studies, ready to change the world! I landed my first job at a local shelter for abused women and their children and I was their only fundraiser. It was a cause I cared deeply about. I had a blank slate and was full of energy and enthusiasm. Afterall, I could see the impact of my success on the women and children at the shelter. There was nothing more rewarding. 

But… I can’t tell you how many “false starts” I had in fundraising there. A board member would decide we should try selling holiday cards and I’d go all in... until a staff member then said we needed to sell cook books. Then, I would write a direct appeal letter that would be completely ripped apart by the fundraising chair. I even wrote a letter to Oprah.

Sound familiar? I was spinning my wheels and spending so much time on things that weren’t effective. I was becoming disillusioned and while we were raising more money, it felt like I was doing so with chronic pain - you know, that dull, achy feeling that makes everything THAT much harder to do.

Over time, I figured it out. I worked my way “up” the nonprofit ladder, from those first four years at the shelter, to eventually landing in a senior position at the country’s largest university. By all accounts, I had “made it”. I was learning all of these “best practices” in fundraising and had many more resources, but my heart wasn’t in it. I was helping a bunch of MBA students get scholarships so they could earn six figures. Really.

So, I started The Good Partnership to teach small nonprofits what I had learned over 15 years of working in large and small shops.

I learned that fundraising isn’t “one-size fits all” and that most of the time, people actually teach fundraising as “large-size fits all”, meaning they expect the small organizations to be able to just copy the big ones. I learned that how we work is just as important as what we do. I learned that systems are the backbone to success, yet we often totally ignore them. I learned that status quo and inertia are the biggest enemies when it comes to fundraising success. 

I learned that a strong guide with the right path can turn anyone into a successful fundraiser. 

We have helped small (yes, very small) organizations raise over $6.3 million in the 4 years since starting The Good Partnership. Organizations who had no fundraising in place. Organizations who were stuck with the status quo and didn’t know how to move forward. Organizations that are so niche and small that no one has heard of them. Most of all, we’ve helped non-fundraiser embrace fundraising and feel good about it. 

I’m also the host of The Small Nonprofit Podcast, Canada’s #1 podcast for nonprofits.