Cold outreach can feel like shouting into the void, especially when you’re under pressure to hit ambitious fundraising targets. That’s why this conversation with Michelle Benson lands so well: she’s been a fundraiser, she’s been a funder, and she’s built a thriving business by turning visibility into income.

Michelle shares what she learned after moving from charity roles into a trust fund environment. We unpack what happens when charities keep pushing one-to-one tactics while funders build pipelines through research, referrals, and signals of credibility. The result is a gap many fundraisers feel every day: you’re told to raise more money faster, yet the route to decision makers gets less straightforward.

We get practical about LinkedIn strategy as Michelle explains her “digital twin” approach, why a one-to-many platform changes the game, and how she uses data to refine what works. We also talk about building a LinkedIn-friendly case for support, improving your profile so you’re easier to trust, and staying consistent so your marketing doesn’t disappear when client work gets busy.

Please subscribe, share, and leave a review so more charity professionals can find their way to the other side.

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You can connect with Michelle via LinkedIn, or head to her website.

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Jane Curtis, founder of The Charity Freelancing Course, host of The Other Side Podcast and Co-founder of The Rich & Restored Movement.

Jane has spent 26 years in the charity sector, is a former events fundraiser, and now supports over 100 charity sector freelancers to build businesses that make more money with joy and integrity.

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Your job can give you purpose, structure, and a handy answer to “what do you do?” but what happens when that label no longer fits? I’m joined by Ceri Sunu, an accidental fundraiser turned entrepreneur and CEO of Brabble, an inclusion consultancy serving arts, culture, heritage, and creative organisations. Ceri shares the real story behind leaving the charity sector, building a portfolio career, and learning how to “master my own time” without letting work take over her identity.

She opens up about time poverty, unexpected outcomes, and why creating from rest matters more than forcing productivity. Ceri explains why one-off diversity and inclusion initiatives don't lead to embedded inclusion, why inclusive recruitment needs a repeatable strategy, and how better business modelling and more commercial practices can help charities survive.

Subscribe so you don't miss future conversations, and if this resonates please share and leave us a review. What's the one boundary you need to protect to make freelancing sustainable?

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You can find more details about The Recruitment Reboot on the Brabble website.

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Jane Curtis, founder of The Charity Freelancing Course, host of The Other Side Podcast and Co-founder of The Rich & Restored Movement.

Jane has spent 26 years in the charity sector, is a former events fundraiser, and now supports over 100 charity sector freelancers to build businesses that make more money with joy and integrity.

Connect here:

LinkedIn

Instagram

Facebook

Website

What if redundancy wasn’t a setback but your invitation to design work on your terms? We sit down with Bethany Helliwell-Smith, a former fundraiser who turned crisis into clarity, building a coaching practice that helps freelancers and fundraisers do good and be well.

We explore the habits that transfer from fundraising to freelancing, diving into the mindset work that frees many charity professionals: deprogramming nine-to-five thinking, moving from time-based pricing to output-based value, and holding boundaries so other people’s urgency doesn’t run your week. Expect practical tips on building community online and offline, protecting your energy from compassion fatigue, and planning your year around rhythms so you can thrive without burning out.

Enjoy the conversation, then subscribe, share with someone who needs it, and leave a quick review to help others find the show.

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Keep in touch with Bethany via LinkedIn, Instagram, or her website.

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Send us Fan Mail

Jane Curtis, founder of The Charity Freelancing Course, host of The Other Side Podcast and Co-founder of The Rich & Restored Movement.

Jane has spent 26 years in the charity sector, is a former events fundraiser, and now supports over 100 charity sector freelancers to build businesses that make more money with joy and integrity.

Connect here:

LinkedIn

Instagram

Facebook

Website