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Sharing Life Updates

It’s been a while! 2019 has been a whirlwind year so far – and we’re just about halfway through. Professionally, I have really been enjoying continuing my consulting practice. I’ve had the opportunity to work with a new client that has allowed me to learn a lot and help support them during a period of transition. I’ve also stayed with a longer term client, and continued to support their fundraising work. I feel very lucky to be able to work with such wonderful organizations (and people)!

Personally, I am expecting a baby sometime in the next month! So I’ll be wrapping up the work I’m doing soon to welcome a new life into the world. I’m looking forward to spending time with family and seeing what the next chapter brings!

Thank you for continuing to follow along, and I am sending you so much love! Until next time –

-N.C.

My Tips on Staying Sane as a Nonprofit Fundraiser

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This post is a complement to a podcast episode of Social Entrepreneur with Nathan A. Webster, of which I am a monthly contributor. Listen to the episode below!

We’re all working our hearts out to help improve the world, through the organizations we work with and for. But we can only give to others as much as we have given to ourselves, so it’s important to talk about how to stay sane and thrive as a nonprofit fundraiser.

Not taking it all on

Fundraisers have a tough job. They have organizations relying on them, and therefore people who receive services relying on them. After all, this work can’t be done without the funds to support it.

As someone who works in fundraising, it can be easy to take on the pressure, especially if budgets are not being balanced and money is not coming in. But this is too much to take on as one individual person. Fundraising is too volatile of a practice to have any one person to blame. You could work for hours on a mail piece that raises a small amount of money or you could get an unsolicited donation that blows everything out of the water. The point is, it is not solely on your shoulders if the money does not come in. You cannot take on the pressure that if your work does not produce the money you were expecting, you failed. There are too many other factors to consider. So let that go, and hopefully, that helps you feel better and stop worrying.

Communicating

A lot of stress comes from not fully understanding expectations, from your boss or your board. When there are misunderstandings, it can be a huge point of stress. Communicate as much as you can with your boss or your board about what you think your priorities are, what you are working on, and what you aren’t working on. That way, they can let you know in advance if they have a different idea. And you’ll feel better that you guys are on the same page.

Staying Organized

Lists…. Ahhhh. OK, I know not everyone is like me and feels better about their projects after making a list. But I know many of us are! Figure out what planning mechanism works best for you and stick to it. Do you like spreadsheets? Post-it notes? Whatever it is, stay organized as much as possible. Having something to refer to every day about your tasks can help you stay sane.

Taking breaks

Did you eat lunch at your desk today? How about yesterday? As much as possible, take breaks. If you’re able to eat your lunch away from your desk, do it! Getting out of your work environment can relax your mind and get you in a better headspace. Sometimes, it can even help you solve a problem. There have been many times where I have not been able to figure something out, I’ve walked away from my desk, and came up with the idea as soon as I sat back down.

Lunch breaks are nice, but there is something else equally as important: vacations. Make sure to schedule and go on vacation. Do as much prep work in advance, over-communicate to others when you will be on vacation, and set an out of office email for when you will be away. Then, don’t check email!!! Even glancing through will just get you back in the mindset of work mode. When you’re on vacation, don’t dwell on what may or may not be happening at the office. It will all get sorted out. And if it makes you anxious, tell one person you trust that they can text you with anything urgent.

No email outside of work

Speaking of email outside of work… try not to check it so much. If you heavily rely on that tactic now, try to wean yourself off. Go in phases… try not checking email from Friday night to Sunday morning, then all weekend, then no weekday evenings… once you get into the habit of not responding to emails on off hours, your coworkers will adapt to you.

In conclusion

At the end of the day, although we’re doing important work, many of our tasks have arbitrary, internal deadlines. If you’re coming up on something stressful, see if you can shift any of the timeline. Breathe, and remember you are doing great work!

-N.C.

Me & My Sister’s Tips on Fundraising for Charity Walks

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This post is a complement to a podcast episode of Social Entrepreneur with Nathan A. Webster, of which I am a monthly contributor. Listen to the episode below!

It’s time to get personal. And introduce you to someone very important: my sister Tomasine.

I was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2010. I didn’t know anything about it or anyone who had it, so it was a confusing time for me. So I turned to a nonprofit organization for help: the National MS Society.

At the same time, my sister was living across California, and she and my mom wanted to help. They googled walks that benefit MS causes and found Walk MS Silicon Valley, a 1K or 5K walk designed for people with all sorts of abilities – and TEAM CHAPIN was born.

Tomasine and I want to share with you some of our experiences in fundraising for a charity walk – because we’ve learned a lot, raising more than $50,000 over eight years (shout out to our other TEAM CHAPIN members!!). And we know it’s a very common way to raise money for some very important causes out there.

Tomasine is our team captain, coordinating our members and handling team logistics. Our team is made up of family, friends, and others we’ve met who are impacted by the cause. While we are grateful for all levels of involvement, we look for a few key things in a member of our fundraising team.

Desired traits in a team member include:

  • Being comfortable asking for money from their networks
  • Being committed to raising at least the minimum amount required to get a t-shirt (for Walk MS Silicon Valley, that is $100) – it helps create community at the walk
  • Having excitement for the cause – you can walk, be a virtual walker, or just come to the event and spend time with us
  • Being willing to help out at and/or attend team fundraisers
  • Being creative in how they fundraise

At the end of the day, the job of a team member is to raise money. Here are some tips of how we have been successful in asking for money.

  • It sounds simple, but our most successful way to raise money is emailing family and friends, and announcing on Facebook. As we’ve talked about before, it’s very important to share a personal story with this.
  • Don’t forget to remind your donors about checking with their employer to see if they match donations.
  • Team fundraisers have been successful as well. One or two people will spearhead, and others will help with logistics & getting people there. We always share personal stories and information about MS at these events. Our successful events have included: Cupcakes & Gear for a Cure, U-Jam for a Cure, the MS Awareness Challenge, and garage sales.

And of course, we’d be nowhere in our fundraising over the years without saying thank you. A couple of tips for saying thank you that we’ve done:

  • Immediate thanks is always appreciated. I like to do a thank you on Facebook, so that our mutual friends also see and are reminded if they want to donate. If they request to be anonymous or aren’t on Facebook, I send an email.
  • Speaking of Facebook, we’ve also had a team member post fun thank you videos on Facebook, which was very effective.
  • Tomasine always coordinates a post-walk thank you card that is sent to all donors, and includes photos of the team on the walk and another personal message.

We hope that these personal anecdotes help you with your fundraising for any charity walks or runs you participate in. And if our story has inspired you, you can check out the TEAM CHAPIN fundraising page for Walk MS Silicon Valley 2018 (which is happening April 14) at bit.ly/teamchapin2018. Thank you!

-N.C.

My Tips on Planning and Prioritizing: Team of One Fundraising

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This post is a complement to a podcast episode of Social Entrepreneur with Nathan A. Webster, of which I am a monthly contributor. Listen to the episode below!

Now that you have your plan together… what do you do if you have no other development staff members to help you execute? Not to worry – here are some tips as to how to go about prioritizing your time. Remember: even Beyonce has only 24 hours in a day!

First: prioritize. Get very clear with your executive director what is absolutely necessary to accomplish, and then pick some extra things to do to complement the need-to-do’s.

  • Maybe there’s a big grant that your organization gets every year – it’s important to get the application and reporting deadlines on the calendar so that you don’t miss them. And build the relationship with the program officer!
  • Your next item to execute should be a year end appeal. This can be an easy way to communicate out to a big group of donors and bring in money without too much one-on-one contact. It’s an efficient way to fundraise if you don’t have much time.
  • Next would be relationship building, especially with major donors. They have the capacity to give large gifts that could make a big difference to your bottom line.
  • Lastly, if you have time, you can throw in a fundraising event. Events are nice-to-have’s, but take a lot of time and aren’t guaranteed to raise a lot of money.

Next: remember that while you’re a team of one, you’re not REALLY a team of one! You have other resources at your fingertips.

  • Are there other staff (outside of development)? They can help with demonstrating impact, like hosting a donor at an event with your clients.
  • Is there a board? They can help with sharing stories about the organization.
  • Is there a development committee? They can help with getting to know donors. You can assign them a portfolio of donors to work with.
    • If not, can you work to form one? Can you identify a chair?
  • Are there other volunteers? They can help with writing thank you notes or doing thank you calls.
  • Can you mobilize your donors? They can help with acquiring new donors, by asking their friends to give on your behalf.

All of these people can help tell your story. They all have their unique perspectives on what the organization is doing. They can forward your e-newsletters, share your social media posts, attend your events, and be advocates for you in the community – which is the majority of what you should be spending your time on as a fundraising effort.

As you’re busy running around mobilizing all of these people – remember to say thank you. Not just to them, but also to yourself. Hold yourself lightly, and don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Be thoughtful about your work, take breaks when you need to, and do your best. The organization’s story will hold up no matter what!

You can do it! And thank you!

-N.C.

A Reminder to Never Stop Learning

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You know I always like to stay up to date with the latest and greatest goings on in the nonprofit sector… and that includes listening to podcasts related to the sector. One of these days I’ll post a roundup of all of my favorites (including the one I was recently a guest on!), but recently something special happened for one of them.

Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio just celebrated its 350th episode! Tony has put out an hour-long podcast every Friday for the past seven years. Amazing! If you’ve never listened before, I encourage you to tune in (Fridays at 10:00am PST) or subscribe and get the episodes straight to your phone. He always has really interesting guests, along with the regulars that he consults with, and talks through important issues for the sector.

I couldn’t let this momentous occasion go by without a congratulatory tweet, so I did one, making sure to include the episode’s special hashtag, #NonprofitRadio350. That tweet entered me to win one of their excellent prizes, and guess what?

I won the grand prize!

To my delight, because of the generosity of one of the podcast’s sponsors Pursuant, I won entrance into Gail Perry’s fundraising webinar series Create an Epic Year-End Fundraising Campaign, including seven sessions with some of the world’s top fundraising experts. While I have (a few!) years of fundraising under my belt, I will never stop learning more about fundraising best practices and how I might be able to jazz up my portfolio, so I’m just thrilled for this opportunity.

I want to say thank you to Pursuant and congratulations to Tony on such an amazing milestone! And encourage you all to subscribe to his podcast – it’s one of my favorites!

I’ll just be over here learning… 🙂

-N.C.

I’m On a Podcast!

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I’m very excited to share that I was recently interviewed as a guest on a podcast about social entrepreneurship! I’ve included the episode below. I had a great time chatting with Nathan about fundraising, the nonprofit sector, and other career hacks on his show, Social Entrepreneur with Nathan A. Webster.

Being on the podcast was a wonderful experience because it allowed me to reflect on some of the key moments of my life that have led me to where I am today. I got to share about how my mom shaped my approach to helping others. I talked about my experience interning at San Diego Grantmakers when I was in college, which opened my eyes to the path of fundraising for nonprofits. And I got to share the importance of one on one networking for long term success – that’s been such a huge part of my journey!

In addition to chatting about my path, it was fun to share tips I’ve learned along the way (resources I tap into and how I achieve my goals), my tendency according to Gretchen Rubin (I’m an obliger!), and even my love of The Real Housewives.

Take a listen and please share with anyone you think might benefit from what we chat about!

-N.C.

Announcing My New Website

As I pivot into contract based work helping nonprofits do fundraising, it’s important that my message is clear: and so, I’ve launched a new website! It’s likely you’re reading this post on my new website, but if you’re reading this post from an email subscription or another way, check out www.nonprofitchapin.com and let me know what you think!

Last Thursday was my last day with my previous employer, a wonderful theater nonprofit in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. I have a few weeks off before I start my first contract, where I’ll be helping a nonprofit put together a three year fund development plan and evaluate their fundraising systems, including their donor database. It’s going to be a whole new type of relationship to my work, and I’m excited to try something new!

This transition has not been easy, and it has not been quick. It’s been something I’ve been thinking about for over a year now. But after a whole bunch of informational interviews and a lot of soul searching, I’m proud of this leap I’m in the middle of. And I implore you to think about a leap that you’ve been considering. Get out there and do some research! You never know where those thoughts might lead you…

-N.C.

Celebrating Six Years of Blogging & the Next Chapter for Nonprofit Chapin

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I’ve been waiting to write this blog post for months. I’ve been waiting to make these career decisions for even longer. And today, on the sixth anniversary of this blog, I am ready to share what I’ve been thinking about for so long – my plans for the future.

Over my eleven years of working in fundraising and marketing for nonprofits I have learned so much. I’ve learned about the joys and the challenges of working in nonprofits, that there is always work to be done, and that at the end of the day, the work changes lives.

I’ve also learned to key in on the elements of work that I enjoy and that I’m really good at.

  • I have eleven years of experience of working in various roles in development teams, and have a real knack for thinking about efficient operations. I know how to effectively manage direct mail appeals, put together major gifts programs, write and report on grants, put on a gala, or maintain a donor database.
  • I love thinking about how teams work and supervising staff. Empowering nonprofit staff to do their best work – while taking care of themselves and their needs – is a real passion of mine.
  • I love working in periods of change and transition – I like thinking on my feet and introducing new solutions to problems. And I have a knack for being a calming force during a time of chaos.
  • I’d like to work with a greater variety of nonprofits. Ever since I got my Masters in Nonprofit Administration, I’ve been craving the ability to use the breadth of knowledge I received with a wide range of organizations.
  • I want more flexibility with my time. I’ve realized that when I work constantly, I get in a zone and more quickly burn out, not doing my best work. I want a better balance so that I can do better work.

I’ve taken a lot of time to think about all of this, and had a bunch of informational interviews with people who have worked in development for a long time, and have landed on my next career move:

I’m looking to move into interim development director work.

I’ll help manage your development team, ensure your daily operations are taken care of and that money is raised, and even evaluate your current development program and make some recommendations. I’ll help during your search, help make a smooth transition to your permanent development director and then leave you to succeed.

With the constant state of turnover that many nonprofits find themselves in with this key position, I hope to fill a real need. Just because you’re between development directors doesn’t mean you have to put additional pressure on your current team or redirect someone else’s time. I can come in and help make sure everything runs smoothly.

My last full time day with my current employer is April 7. After some time off, I’ll be looking for jobs like this. If you hear of anyone who might need something like this, please think of me! I’ll be relying on my community of support – and that certainly includes you – to get me plugged in where I need to me. Many thanks in advance!!

-N.C.

Make 2017 the Year of Self Care

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We’re one month into the new year – have your resolutions gone to the wayside? Are you back in the rut of crazy, stressful days working away, with no time to think or take a breath?

I thought that might be the case!

And so, I wanted to remind you all of this brilliant piece in the Chronicle of Philanthropy: 10 Ways to Work Smarter in 2017 by Rebecca Koenig. Note the apropos use of the word smarter as opposed to harder. This piece has strategy and self-care all over it: two of my favorite words.

You should take the time to read about all ten ways, but here are some of my favorites and why:

  • Reserve time to work without meetings. I use time blocking in my calendar and it is the only way I stay organized and productive! I put most of the projects I’m working on as “Free” time in Outlook, but if there’s something you need to work on with no interruptions, you can always say you’re busy. A meeting with yourself is just as important (if not more) than a meeting with others.
  • Stop overusing social media at work. Can I shout this one from the rooftops? I’m definitely one to pop on all my social media channels during my lunch break, but if it’s not break time, it’s not Snapchat time. It’s easy to spend hours on Facebook, so don’t tempt yourself and don’t do it!
  • Build strong relationships outside of your office. Spending time with other people who work in the nonprofit world but not at your organization can be incredibly rejuvenating. It can make you feel like you’re not alone in your struggles, or make you realize how wrong something is. Either way, it’s a success. And it is very validating!
  • Accept imperfection. Made a mistake? Don’t beat yourself up about it. The more you stress over it, the more it creeps into the quality of your work. Mistakes are what make the successes even that much sweeter.

Brava, Rebecca Koenig. And here’s to a 2017 full of self-love!

-N.C.

You’re in Control

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It’s super easy to get caught up in the day to day. You wake up at the same time, do your same morning ritual, get to the office, and move on with your work. After a few months, you start to get the hang of it and it’s almost as if you’re going on autopilot.

It’s easy in these moments to keep going with the status quo. Even if you’re not feeling fulfilled by your work, your boss is terrible, and your hours are long, the easiest path to take is staying put.

But – it’s not the best path to take.

Moments where you’re entrenched in the usual routines are the moments I challenge you most to consider your actions – or, inaction. Are you happy with where you are and what you’re doing? Is there anything you would change about your situation if you could?

Speaking of “if you could” – chances are, you can. You’re in control of more things than you may think. You’re in control of where you work, how much you make, and how many hours you work. Heck, you’re even in control of whether you’re employed. Sure, there are external factors (including the need to make money to buy food and pay rent), but even those can be manipulated to some extent. Can you cut down your grocery bill and save up enough to have a month’s rent cushion? Can you tell your boss that you need a more flexible schedule? Or, more drastic, can you move to a different country and work remotely? The possibilities are endless, and it’s only your excuses that are holding you back.

Jobs will come and go. Remember that, for the most part, you’re in control of your situation. And try to stay true to what will make you the most happy. Because at the end of the day, there’s only one person whose feelings matter: you.

-N.C.