Books like Making Money with Donor Newsletters

Have you ever found yourself frozen at the thought of asking a donor for money? You're not alone. For over 25 years, I’ve been coaching nonprofit leaders and executive directors who feel like they are completely making it up as they go. I am deeply passionate about demystifying this process because leadership is hard enough without the added exhaustion of false confidence. Fundraising isn’t about begging or transactional tricks—it’s about inviting people into a shared story to change the world. I want to help leaders find their own wiring and ask without fear.

Here's to books helping nonprofits! 

Have you ever found yourself frozen at the thought of asking a donor for money? You're not alone. For over 25 years, I’ve been coaching nonprofit leaders and executive directors who feel like they are completely making it up as they go. I am deeply passionate about demystifying this process because leadership is hard enough without the added exhaustion of false confidence. Fundraising isn’t about begging or transactional tricks—it’s about inviting people into a shared story to change the world. I want to help leaders find their own wiring and ask without fear.

Here's to books helping nonprofits! 

Have you ever found yourself frozen at the thought of asking a donor for money? You're not alone. For over 25 years, I’ve been coaching nonprofit leaders and executive directors who feel like they are completely making it up as they go. I am deeply passionate about demystifying this process because leadership is hard enough without the added exhaustion of false confidence. Fundraising isn’t about begging or transactional tricks—it’s about inviting people into a shared story to change the world. I want to help leaders find their own wiring and ask without fear.

Here's to books helping nonprofits! 

Have you ever found yourself frozen at the thought of asking a donor for money? You're not alone. For over 25 years, I’ve been coaching nonprofit leaders and executive directors who feel like they are completely making it up as they go. I am deeply passionate about demystifying this process because leadership is hard enough without the added exhaustion of false confidence. Fundraising isn’t about begging or transactional tricks—it’s about inviting people into a shared story to change the world. I want to help leaders find their own wiring and ask without fear.

Here's to books helping nonprofits! 

I have been a professional fundraiser for more than thirty-five years and have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly in this profession. I began writing short stories at the age of ten and became a published author in 1994. Since then, I have authored, co-authored, or contributed to approximately forty published books (The Pastor's Guide being the most recent, all available on Amazon). I agree with Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who said fundraising is a noble profession, and I care deeply that fundraisers are respected for the wonderful work they do. Fundraisers are usually not born but made. Excellent fundraisers learn from the best, continually study their profession, and have a real passion for what they do!

I am a historian of education and twentieth-century U.S. history. Public schooling has been transformative for me, opening up a world of opportunities, but I know many others are not nearly so lucky. This has shaped my interest in the history of public schooling, including its promise of democracy and opportunity and the too-often reality of the way it replicates and deepens social and economic inequalities. I think history helps us understand our world, including to see the roots of inequality we live with today and to think about how we might build a more equitable system. 

In the early 2000s, I noticed that lots of good American jobs were being lost to China. I was taught in college economics that trade was always win-win and that the government should stay out of the economy. I started reading the literature and found a number of flaws with these free trade and extreme free-market doctrines. The flaws were there in plain sight, but US trade economists, with vanishingly few exceptions, were ignoring them. Not only were the costs to our economy and our workers enormous, but the frustration of American workers with 30 years of failed promises by both parties has made our politics angrier and more divisive. 

Re-inventing how people relate to good causes that change the world has been a lifetime obsession for me, and I’ve made it the focus of my career for nearly 50 years, writing at least eight books on the subject. Some time back, I wrote my book, below, a light, lively exploration of how simple storytelling skills help us to help others in all sorts of creative and enjoyable ways. Its objective was to enable aspiring innovative writers to focus on how best they can make positive differences in this troubled world by telling their stories with power, passion, and impact that will ensure they stick and endure. That’s my passion.

I’ve read countless books and articles on business, leadership, and sustainability—but the ones I return to are those that grapple with purpose. I’m drawn to anything that challenges the "business as usual" status quo and shows how business can be a force for good. Having worked across sectors and shaped my own thinking around the challenges facing business and society, I know how powerful purpose can be when done right. But more than that, I feel it—these books fuel my belief that meaningful change is possible. If you care about business’s potential to positively shape society and the planet, give them a go.

I have been writing for many years, and my main preference is writing political thrillers with criminal overtones inspired by everyday media headlines that expose worldwide government security leaks and corruption. I spent fifteen years in Washington State looking at a questionable political system. With a further eight years living in Cyprus, I studied the existing political divide of the population before meeting a successful whistle-blower, a banker, who went public about the fraudulent activity orchestrated by Russia to steal billions from a Latvian bank. My book mirrors his success wrapped up in fiction.