Every Valentine’s Day, nonprofit inboxes fill up with warm subject lines and messages that say, “We love our donors.” The intention is real, but the impact often falls flat.

In this episode, we unpack why broad gratitude is easy to send and easy to forget, and why donors don’t experience our effort or our process, they experience how they’re treated. The real question isn’t whether a message was handwritten or AI-assisted. It’s whether it reflects why the donor gave and makes them feel genuinely seen.

We separate care from craft, challenge the belief that authenticity requires doing everything by hand, and explore how AI can support donor gratitude without diluting trust or values. Used well, it doesn’t replace intention, it helps translate it into clear, timely, human communication.

You’ll also hear a practical, repeatable stewardship rhythm, from a fast, specific thank-you to meaningful follow-up that connects impact back to donor values. Plus, a preview of an upcoming AFP Icon session with Carissa Kineski on turning inspiration into action and building systems you’ll actually use.

The throughline is simple. Donors feel loved when they feel seen. Attention is what makes that reliable.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a quick review. What’s one small detail you could add to your next thank-you to make it unmistakably personal?

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

This Groundhog Day episode is a personal announcement and a fundraiser’s roadmap for change.

After fifteen years in nonprofit leadership, I’m stepping away from a role I loved—not because something was wrong, but because something bigger was calling. What began as one reluctant conference session turned into a growing invitation to speak, teach, and help nonprofits navigate the future of fundraising, AI, and trust.

In this episode, I share the full story behind my pivot, the fear and grief that came with leaving stability, and the practical framework that helped me choose expansion over comfort.

If you’ve ever felt stuck repeating the same fundraising year—holding tightly to events, grants, or strategies that no longer fit—this conversation is for you.

HERE ARE 3 KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1️⃣ Growth Requires Space – The hardest part of evolution isn’t starting something new. It’s letting go of something good so the next chapter can flourish.

2️⃣ Not Letting Go Has Hidden Costs – Every strategy has a price: staff hours, burnout, turnover, and the opportunity cost of what you could be building instead.

3️⃣ Letting Go Can Be Strategic, Not Reckless – I walk through a simple nonprofit capacity audit to help leaders release sustainably, protect relationships, and grow without exhausting their teams.

This year, you don’t have to repeat the same fundraising loop.

If this resonates, subscribe at letstalkfundraising.com/subscribe, share with a colleague, and tell me: what will you let go of first?

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

🎁 Enter the contest to get a signed copy of Scott Vedder's book, Signs of a Great Resume.

Seven seconds. That’s often all you get before a recruiter decides “no” or “maybe.” We brought in Scott Vedder—former Fortune 100 recruiter and bestselling author of Signs of a Great Resume—to show how to turn a duty-heavy document into a sharp story of value that earns interviews, especially for fundraisers navigating fuzzy titles and complex teams.

We start by reframing the resume as a leadership and career tool. Scott explains why writing like a job posting kills momentum, how to capture accomplishments while they’re fresh, and why a long master resume makes tailoring fast. You’ll learn what recruiters actually scan first, how to fix confusing titles with clear descriptors that pass the “moving sidewalk test,” and how to balance instant clarity with credible detail. We dig into his “signs” framework to surface exclamation-point moments, relevant experience, and numbers that quantify outcomes—without inflating credit or hiding behind group work.

For fundraisers and nonprofit pros, we cover showing influence without dollar signs, signaling leadership without a manager title, and formatting choices that create “duh” clarity even on non-linear paths. Scott shares when to use reverse chronological, when to lead with skill buckets, and how to make networking and referrals beat blind applying. We also tackle ATS and AI: how keywords really work, how to research what matters with open-source and human intel, and how to use AI as an assist to draft stronger bullets while preserving your authentic voice.

If you’re ready to move up, you’ll hear how to secure stretch assignments, document outcomes, and translate them into evidence a hiring manager will value. Plus: a signed book giveaway and free tip sheets you can use today. Listen, take notes, and share this with a colleague who needs a confidence boost. If this helped, follow the show, leave a quick review, and send us your biggest resume question—we might feature it next.

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

Remember when donor newsletters read like dissertations and first-time givers needed a decoder ring? We take a clear-eyed look at how AI has quietly raised the baseline for clarity in fundraising and communications—and why that shift changes expectations, not the essence of our work. The conversation moves past hype and eye-rolls to focus on what’s actually changing: standards, roles, and the line between acceptable and excellent.

We unpack the two most common reactions to AI—quiet fear about speed and scale, and easy dismissal of flat outputs—and show how both point to the same underlying movement. With faster orientation, basic competence becomes more common across writing, program design, data conversations, and leadership. That makes sloppy or confusing work stand out more, not less. The payoff for teams is a new starting point; the differentiators become human judgment, editorial taste, and ethical responsibility. You’ll hear the cautionary intern story of a 500-piece appeal that yielded a single $45 gift, and how today’s tools could prevent that kind of collapse without replacing the growth that builds wisdom.

We also tackle risks head-on: hallucinated facts, claims that outrun evidence, and the temptation to accept clean prose as finished thinking. You’ll get a practical workflow for using AI to reach baseline faster—then slowing down for rigorous human review, verification, and audience-centered refinement. Speed should buy time to think, not replace it. If you care about donor trust, clear calls to action, and work you can stand behind, this is a guide to working well at a higher floor where competence is common and excellence still belongs to people.

If this conversation resonated, follow the show, share it with a colleague who writes appeals, and leave a quick review to help more fundraisers find it. Your feedback shapes what we explore next.

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

Download the Big Goals Worksheet

The problem with so much “polished” AI content isn’t grammar, it’s judgment. We unpack why clean sentences can still feel hollow, and how fundraisers can use AI without outsourcing the thinking that protects the quality of your work. Instead of arguing for or against tools, we reframe the choice: Which role do you assign to AI, and which role do you keep for yourself?

We walk through four distinct modes of AI use—retrieval and generation, editing and refinement, sense making and synthesis, and critical reflection and adversarial reasoning—and explain why most people get stuck in the shallow, fast lane. The real gains live in the slower modes that make you engage: connecting ideas, testing assumptions, inviting objections, and making the hard calls. You’ll learn the difference between scaffolding and replacement, how automation bias erodes confidence, and why fluent prose is not the same as understanding.

Then we shift to practice. Think like an editor: let AI draft if you want, but you decide if the argument holds, where tension is missing, and what isn’t ready. We share a concrete coaching example from a goal-setting session that raised the quality of decisions without surrendering authorship. You’ll get simple prompts that start with your own thinking and invite critique—questions that keep you present, clarify your voice, and safeguard relationships. If you wouldn’t outsource the relationship, don’t outsource the thinking.

Want support trying this approach? Grab the goal-setting worksheets and access to the AI coach at my Resources Page. If this conversation helped you sharpen your standards, follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a review so others who care about craft and trust can find us.

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

Free Gift 🎁 Big Goals Worksheet

If goal setting feels like a test you’re always failing, this conversation offers a calmer path. We pull apart the myths that keep fundraisers stuck—outcome-only targets, motivation as strategy, and the idea that discipline alone drives results—and replace them with a research-backed approach that actually holds the messiness of real work. You’ll hear how to separate what you want to change from what you can control, design if-then responses for predictable obstacles, and build early feedback so you can see momentum long before revenue lands.

We walk through the Big Goal worksheet, a thinking scaffold that slows the jump from ambition to action just enough to think clearly without losing steam. It starts with a single outcome for direction, then anchors purpose across mission, role, and identity so your goals compete with the urgent. From there, you’ll identify a few high-impact behaviors within your control, name realistic roadblocks based on your history, and pair each with specific if-then plans. You’ll design progress signals to catch movement early, set tripwires to trigger small course corrections, and add recognition practices that keep energy alive in long fundraising cycles.

To make the process less lonely, we introduce the Big Goal AI coach. It won’t hand you answers or a checklist; it asks sharper questions, slows you when you’re vague, and nudges you to narrow focus when ambition sprawls. Used with the worksheet, it keeps your thinking tethered to real decisions and support systems—not wishful scoreboards. By the end, you’ll have a steadier relationship with goals that helps you aim higher without burning out, and a practical way to adjust without shame when reality shifts.

Grab the free Big Goal worksheets and get limited-time access to the AI coach at letstalkfundraising.com/resources. If this helped you rethink your year, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a colleague who could use lighter, stronger goals.

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

Year-end fundraising doesn’t have to feel like survival mode.

If you’ve ever spent December scrambling — rushing appeals, juggling Finance deadlines, and showing up exhausted for donors and family — you’re not alone. The truth is, survival mode isn’t a strategy. Steady rhythms are.

In this episode, I’ll share how to shift from frazzled to focused — and how AI can become the quiet assistant that keeps your year-end fundraising consistent, clear, and calm. You’ll hear practical steps you can start now to build a rhythm that carries you through December with confidence (without burning out).

✨ Ready to stop the chaos and bring steady rhythms into your year-end?
👉 The Fundraiser’s AI Starter Suite http://www.letstalkfundraising.com/startersuite

This course was built for fundraisers like you — not as a tech-heavy seminar, but as a supportive, simple path to using AI safely, humanly, and effectively. One short lesson is all it takes to feel the difference by Friday.

🔑 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
✔️ Why survival mode fails (and how to break free from it)
✔️ The small, repeatable rhythms that bring calm to year-end fundraising
✔️ How AI can support you as a steady co-creator — not a replacement
✔️ Practical ways to save time, protect consistency, and find peace of mind

📌 Next Steps
✔️ Subscribe for weekly strategies on fundraising clarity, confidence, and AI support
✔️ Leave a 5-star rating & thoughtful review — it helps other fundraisers find these conversations
✔️ Start your AI journey here: The Fundraiser’s AI Starter Suite http://www.letstalkfundraising.com/startersuite

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite

Every fundraiser knows the weight of unwritten thank you notes—that pile on your desk, the rushed emails sent just to clear your to-do list, the nagging guilt when your gratitude doesn't sound quite right. You're not alone in this struggle.

I share a personal story about working at an organization where the CEO expected impossible levels of personalization in donor thank yous. They wanted handwritten notes with intimate details for hundreds of weekly donors—references to tennis games, grocery store encounters, and family conversations I couldn't possibly know. This unsustainable expectation nearly broke me, and it highlights a crucial truth: when thank yous feel rushed, it's not because you don't care enough—it's because your system wasn't designed for your reality.

The solution isn't working harder; it's establishing rhythm. Donors don't need literary masterpieces crafted entirely from scratch. They need to feel seen, valued, and appreciated through timely acknowledgment that sounds like you. When we lack this rhythm, donors wait too long for generic notes, and we carry unnecessary guilt that drains our energy.

This is where thoughtfully implemented AI can transform your gratitude practice. Not by replacing your voice, but by providing strong first drafts that eliminate the blank page and give you a foundation to build upon. With this approach, you can generate hundreds of personalized drafts quickly, allowing you to add those special touches that matter most while ensuring every donor hears from you promptly.

The mindset shift is powerful: gratitude isn't less authentic when you use support—it's more authentic because it arrives on time, carries your voice, and reflects care without burnout. Using templates or AI isn't cheating; it's choosing presence over perfection. It's sustainability that lets you keep showing up consistently for your donors over the long haul.

Ready to transform your thank you process? Join me in the Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite to learn how one short lesson can help you build a rhythm that gives you back your breath while strengthening donor relationships.

Enter to win a signed copy of Signs of a Great Resume by Scott Vedder. No cost to enter.

💡 Want to take the next small step?

→ Free Download: 12 Fundraising Prompts You'll Actually Use

→ Course: The Fundraiser's AI Starter Suite