It’s Not About Me; It’s About You, Really !! Relationships are at the heart of all fundraising activities, and grants are no exception. Just like dating, the nonprofit grantee needs to find a compatible match in a prospective grantor. But, unlike a good date, the grantee/grantor relationship is very one-sided. It REALLY is all about …

Over at the HRCapitalist blog, Kris Dunn asked the question, "Why Don't We Coach Employees More Than We Do?" This is a great question and to quote Dunn, "confrontation sucks."

Communicating on the Internet allows you to be part of a community and along with that stems network etiquette rules. Corresponding, writing, or having a conversation on the Internet is no different from having a face-to-face conversation with someone, except that your dialogue takes place over a network. Because a conversation takes place over a …

Good start, bad finish for TSA’s crisis management If you haven’t heard about the latest TSA debacle, the basics are that 24-year-old Olajide Oluwaseun was able to penetrate airport security at New York’s JFK International, including federal checkpoints, and board a Virgin America flight to LAX using an expired boarding pass belonging to somebody else. …

As a customer service manager, I am called upon to train others on the subject. In my search for continuous learning, I happen to run across an article by Pivot Point Solutions, based on President Obama’s Executive Order to improve customer service. What a lot of people don’t know is that, although the Executive Order …

Leading your company had better not be like herding cats. How do you get everyone moving in the same direction, like a finely tuned machine? 1 – Ensure your folks know the direction. Sounds simple, but often this isn’t the case. We give our employees the mushroom treatment.. 2. Ensure the message on the company …

An email asked: “What advice is there for new nonprofits without a funding history? So many groups with a lot of potential just don’t know where to begin.” ============= The biggest mistake most new NPOs make is the assumption/belief that, because they want to do wonderful things, everyone (read: gov’t, corporations, foundations and “rich people”) …

I spent July 4th with my brother – an oil man his whole career. Over the weekend I got a lesson in hydrocarbon geology that seems useful for leaders. Geology of Talent It turns out that gas and oil doesn’t sit underground in huge lakes waiting to be pumped out. Who knew? I thought: dead …

Facebook Fans are a different kind of customer. The have segmented THEMSELVES - because they self-proclaim their endorsement of your brand, your products, your service, and/or your company. Treat them differently.

Over the weekend I was able to participate in a Shamanic attunement for the earth to help balance the rain, fire, and earth energy. We included this ceremony into a longer program of Freedom and Declarations. I will write more about this ceremony in a post later this month. For this week, I want to …