There is a lot of angst flying around these days. Uncertainty on the national stage and in our home communities seems to have everyone on edge. Those kinds of feelings tend to make one more inwardly focused and protective. While that’s only natural – a kind of a self-preservation response – it won’t do any […]
Remember to Say Thank You Read More »
In the face of a rapidly changing policy environment that appears to sometimes question the values most philanthropists espouse (you know, things like justice, compassion, and honesty), it’s understandable if funders feel panicked, deflated, enraged, or all three simultaneously. Those are the emotions that many of my clients, from a full spectrum of political leanings,
Keep Calm and Carry On (With Your Mission) Read More »
It’s the nature of philanthropy to want to help. It’s what foundations were created to do. Yet all too often, foundations, corporate grantmakers, and donors unintentionally cause problems instead of helping to solve them. Even with the best intentions, foundations take actions that are counter to the outcome they – and their grantees – hope
5 Ways Foundations Cause More Problems Than They Solve Read More »
By all accounts, this year will be one of uncertainty the likes of which we’ve not seen in a while. Everyone is poised to see what a new presidency will bring. Our nation is on edge and some are even on high alert. If anything is certain, it is that change of some sort will
This Year, Make a Point to Think About “The Others” Read More »
Producing the Confident Giving newsletter is one my favorite things to do – in no small part because of readers like you who open, peruse, consider, and sometimes comment and share your thoughts with me. Thank you! As a weekly publication, Confident Giving covers a lot of ground in a single year. In January it’s
Ten Ways Putnam Consulting Got It Right in 2016 Read More »
In my first attempt to hire my own financial advisor in my late 20s, I turned to Morgan Stanley in San Francisco. I interviewed two people. One had a slide show presentation and overflowing binders of charts and graphs showing me how they informed his decisions, his track record, how this and that outperformed that
Don’t Believe the “Complexifiers” Read More »