What the Fundraising

Are you listening to yourself? In this episode I talk to the fabulous American illustrator, body-confidence advocate, and author, Stephanie Chinn about limiting beliefs, learning to listen to ourselves, and giving ourselves permission to feel all of our feelings. Plus, we dive deep into taboos and why we need to break the silence around these topics now, especially as women!Episode highlights: (01:47) - Who is Stephanie Chinn? An illustrator and soon-to-be author for unapologetic women empowerment and liberation.  (06:18) - The stories we tell ourselves as excuses and building positivity from within.(14:13 - Toxic positivity vs. giving ourselves permission to feel: Why resistance and judgment towards ourselves is not the answer. (22:01) - Decatastrophizing and how to combat that wave of negativity in times of stress (even when we get negative feedback).(30:30) - Sharing safely and with bravery: Why it is important to take time to process things, and talk to the right people, before sharing with everyone. (35:31) - Time for disruption! Stephanie’s beliefs on taboo topics and how to approach them with more freedom. (45:17) - How we can find Stephanie + A shoutout to her favorite nonprofit, The Runaways Shelter.If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

Do you want to convert your YouTube views into donations? In this second part, I continue my conversation with YouTube coach Jamar Diggs to understand how to build an effective conversion strategy around an organization’s channel. Jamar teaches us how to turn those viewers into donors and the best practices to really connect with your audience. This conversation covers basic video production recommendations, common mistakes, and a deep dive into what holds us back from bringing in new funders from YouTube. Make sure you do not miss this amazing part two!Episode highlights: (01:23) - We are back with Jamar Diggs! How to convert people into an actual customer or donor.(05:56) - How to make quality freebies: Information, design, accuracy, and engagement. (11:25) - Simple, clean, and forward: Jamar’s video production recommendations for any organization. (15:32) - Common mistakes: The things you should NOT do in your videos if you want them to convert!(23:49) - Value, money, and getting out of the scarcity mindset: Why you should trust your value and ask.(32:49) - Invest in advancing!: It’s not about the price tag, it’s about missing an opportunity.(40:26) - Set a specific goal! How to design your strategy and make it easy for people to understand you. (47:17) - What is your strategy? Length, expectations and not giving away everything for free.(53:06) - Jamar’s golden takeaway, where to reach him plus a shoutout to Norfolk LGBT Life Center!If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

It’s true, doing content for social media is a difficult job for nonprofits, but how else will we get visibility for our causes, right? YouTube is a great option for letting potential donors know you. Listen to this week’s conversation with Jamar to learn that it is not necessary to spread thin across all social media platforms to get your message across. I promise, Jamar does more than teaching you tricks on technology, he helps you overcome the fears that are holding you back from creating amazing content to help your organization! If you want to do it but there’s something holding you back, this episode is for you.Episode highlights: (01:28) - How Jamar Diggs went from being bored in the world of corporate marketing to being in LOVE with YouTube marketing, helping businesses and personal brands make money and drive growth through video content!(05:44) - The perks of YouTube: Why it’s a platform to show your true self and connect with your audience authentically.(09:22) - How to get quality traffic to your nonprofit: Jamar’s top 3 types of content to get started on YouTube and be discoverable right away. (17:24) - Who should I be speaking to? How to segment your audience strategically to reach the right people (and donors!).(23:02) - Solve the actual problem!: The biggest barriers stopping people from getting on YouTube.(26:56) - Jamar’s HIT (hook, introduce & transform) formula for scripting KILLER intros to any video.(30:21) - How to keep people watching your content!: Tips on info links & end screens.(33:41) - Do you fear technology or do you fear visibility? The perfectionist phenomenon and how to get over it.(39:56) - “If you are for everyone, you are for no one”: The price (and rewards!) of picking a position and being fully authentic. (43:11) - Shout out to Jamar’s favorite nonprofit: LGBT Life Center in Norfolk, Virginia.  If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

What does it take to let go of pre-established narratives? Duke Stump is a marketing expert and founder of Bonfire With Soul. His approach to business is far from conventional and partly based on nature’s knowledge. In this episode, Duke and I talk about burning dogma, the potential for good in the for-profit and nonprofit world, and the power of cross-sector symbiosis. Tune in now!Episode highlights: (02:21) - Trust your own radar: What does it take to go a different path especially in business? (7:05) - Burning dogma for breakfast: Duke’s experience giving himself permission to be creative and the importance of human connection.(13:40) - Can for-profit businesses be a force of good? How making a nonprofit/for-profit distinction can minimize possibility and shrink your horizons. (36:48) - Duke’s principles and barriers of mutual benefit: Trust, honesty, and our obsession with perfection.(44:00) - Helper energy and martyrdom: Fundraiser’s most common leadership characteristics and what needs to change.  (48:13) - Groundbreaking nonprofits and why the sector needs to tackle debilitating stigma.If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

Our brains work on prediction. Even before events happen, our brains prepare a reaction based on our past experiences. But what if our brains fabricate an incorrect forecast? Just like a weird feeling in your body isn’t necessarily pain, uncertainty doesn’t have to translate into negative emotions. In this episode, I chat with Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett, an expert in affective neuroscience, psychology of emotion, and social and personality psychology. Lisa and I talk about how our brains work based on prediction and how we can train them away from pain and anxiety and into a brighter present. Plus, she gives life-changing tricks that can radically improve any fundraiser’s experience out there!Episode highlights: (02:01) - Who is Lisa Feldman? Her extensive career in science and understanding brain function. (04:38) - Let’s talk about emotion! How emotions really work and what are some misconceptions around them. (10:20) - ‘Is this really pain?’: Why your brain is constantly anticipating and what happens when it can’t predict correctly.(17:45) - Chronic pain and other ailments that may actually come from a brain disorder. (21:31) - Handling anxiety and uncertainty for fundraisers: Train yourself to make a different sense of the present. (35:04) - Tips and tricks for regulation: Why we have to recognize that we have socially dependent nervous systems. (41:16) - Where to find Lisa + Shout out to her favorite nonprofits! If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

Dulari Gandhi, a Program Officer at the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and CEO of D. Gandhi Communications, shares her insights on navigating the nonprofit funding landscape. She discusses common mistakes organizations make while seeking funding and the need for diverse voices in decision-making. Dulari emphasizes the importance of transparency and clear communication to foster better relationships between funders and grantees. She also critiques the scarcity mindset that hinders nonprofit effectiveness and encourages collaborative funding practices.

BJ Fogg, PhD is a Stanford behavior scientist, author of the book Tiny Habits, and one of my absolute teachers and heroes. In this conversation, BJ shares his Fogg Behavior Model plus many useful and simple hacks to defeat fear and create habits for anything we want to achieve. His approach to people is immensely human, compassionate, and positive. (Just like fundraising!) You really don’t want to miss this conversation.Episode highlights:(01:39) - Behaviour Design & the Tiny Habits Method: Who is BJ Fogg, PhD, and his work as a behavior scientist at Stanford.(03:36) - What is the Fogg Behavior Model? A 3-step easy-to-learn model to understand and influence all of your behaviors. (08:56) - Applying behavior science to fundraising and ow to calculate the ideal size of the ask?(12:50) - The key moments of celebration and giving people positive feelings of success (20:55) - Do you feel like you can’t do something? Check for these 5 factors of ability and take a tiny step towards action.(30:15) - Allow yourself to feel successful: Learn how to feel shine on demand for even the tiniest of successes! (34:56) - How to really beat fear with compassion and get to the action.If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast I talk to the funny, unapologetic, and super authentic Jennifer Pastiloff. Jen is a yoga teacher, coach, and writer of the book On Being Human. Jen and I talk about how to quiet your inner a-hole, #shameloss, and how to keep an abundance mentality both in fundraising and in life in general. Join in this fresh, honest conversation, I promise Jen’s transparency and sense of humor are unmatched!Episode highlights: (01:52) - Who is Jennifer Pastiloff? On being a writer and finding her way out of misery through words, yoga, and overall humanness. (05:12) - How to quiet your inner a-hole, offer compassion to yourself and find the ridiculousness in the mean voices in your head.(09:44) - The brilliant idea of shame loss and how fundraisers can put the shame down (at least for a day).(17:39) - Abundance mentality, transparency, and no sugar coating: How Jen shifted her life around after Covid.(25:45) - There’s a lot of money in the world! Giving people the chance to help and getting rid of the scarcity mindset.(26:49) - Fundraising is not an ask, it’s an offer!(32:43) - Is shame holding you back from becoming your true self? This is what Jennifer Pastiloff says you should do. (41:44) - Visibility, vulnerability, and doing an audit: Jennifer’s No Bullshit Motherhood and how to get away from unnecessary demons.(43:57) - Talking to ourselves and doing yoga to quiet your inner a-holes.If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

Tamika Felder is a woman with dreams plus an awesome speaker, author, cancer survivor, and advocate who has devoted her life to helping others do one simple thing: do what they really want during your one precious life. Listen to this week’s episode with Tamika and get ready for a boost towards taking action and control over your life. I promise Tamika is a cheerleader, not a fear leader, and her energy is sparklingly contagious. Remember, you don’t need to ask for permission or wait for the perfect moment to do what you want!Episode highlights: (03:03) - How Tamika Felder’s life suddenly changed when she was diagnosed with cervical cancer at 25, and how coming face to face with mortality gave her a new perspective on life. (08:15) - What is holding you back today? — Don’t wait to be skinnier, smarter, or more connected. Do the things that will make you happy! (16:17) - Limiting beliefs and how to break them by experimenting the world, traveling, and doing what YOU want to do. (22:29) - The importance of making conscious choices and having healthy boundaries.(26:19) - Giving yourself grace and achieving a balance between having pity parties and pushing yourself forward.(28:18) - Catabolic & anabolic energy: Going from tunnel vision to admiring a prism of possibility.(35:43) - Beware of fear-leaders and energy vampires! Why you need to escape people who suck out your energy and project their fears on you.(43:20) - What does balance even mean in today’s crazy hustle culture and why is it okay to stop and reflect?If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.

Donovan Taylor Hall is a youth advocate who believes in the power of positive self-talk, growth mindset, and gratitude. His mission is to help kids build positive relationships with themselves through curriculum and content creation. Listen to this week’s episode with Donovan and learn some of the ways he anchors his why and how it helps him overcome moments of doubt, frustration, and judgment. If you are tired of toxic positivity, tune in! This conversation is the real deal on how to do heart-centered work without losing yourself in the process.Episode highlights: (06:35) - The power of why and how to anchor yourself to the superpowers of commitment.(11:20) - Donovan’s absolute dream: “I want to have kids choose me as a teacher”.(13:51) - The 3 superpowers Donovan would give to every kid: Gratitude, positive self-talk & a growth mindset.(16:57) - How to use curiosity for healthy and compassionate self-growth (Be curious, not judgemental!).(22:17) - How to give people an opportunity to develop their personal worth beyond rejection.(29:51) - How to receive hard feedback, recover after messing up, and create your inner sanctuary of safety (39:48) - Burnout and martyrdom: Finding different ways to do things while taking care of yourself. (46:34) - Accepting rejection, building a callous for “NO”’s, and why self-help is such a growing industry. (52:07) - Two critical things to take away from this conversation: Energy transferring and looking for support to ground you back in. (56:29) - What is toxic positivity? The purpose of good and bad and how to recognize it with maturity.If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.