For the first time in my professional life, I can see that my response to the fear of scarcity doesn’t just harm me; it harms others. When I operate out of scarcity, I model the exact same oppressive leadership that I was taught and operated under. This model of individualism and perfectionism is seeped into all our bones but it was not until I entered a leadership role that I could see the nuance of its devastating effects.
The Hub
Yes, you too: calling collusions out
Secrecy, exclusion, and collusions have hindered and oppressed racialized individuals in our sector. By “collusions,” I mean closed-door, non-transparent decision-making between those with power. These conversations do not include all affected parties. They maintain the status quo and cater to those in power; the results presented to those most harmed as final.
“I know enough to be dangerous”
Raise your hand if you’ve heard these words spoken by folks who have been given the mantle of leadership by title: “I know enough to be dangerous.” Upon hearing this phrase, we politely chuckle or offer a waning smile. It’s just self-deprecating enough from the person using the phrase that we offer a pass and let it slide. Would we react the same if the speaker had said something more honest, like: I don’t know enough about this but I’m claiming I do.
The price of passion: how codependency flourishes in nonprofit careers
As I reflected on my own experiences and dug into the research, I discovered that the deep sense of betrayal and rejection was not only a reaction to being laid off, but it was a symptom of codependency, something that I had struggled with in my personal relationships but had never applied the framework to my professional life.
The Ethical Rainmaker: The Hidden Danger of Purity Culture, ft. Lorraine Nibut
Purity culture is a form of supremacy and oppression — controlling and dictating how people express themselves, causing anguish and keeping us from our best work. Michelle and Lorraine Nibut talk about the many ways purity culture holds us down — and what we can do to fight back against it!
To stay or not to stay; that is the question.
As the year is ending, and I enter my 3rd year fully integrated in the field of philanthropy and fundraising, the joke I have often been saying out loud is:
“I wish I was bad at my job.”
The Ethical Rainmaker: Why white people have a hard time being real, ft. Fleur Larsen
We could have sector wide transformation if white women could center and hold a clear commitment to racial equity. So what does that look like? Fleur breaks down some nonsense with ownership and responsibility in four calls to action.
Open call for MacKenzie Scott grants unleashes possibility
We collectively benefit when these historically excluded groups are resourced in their leadership, ideas, solutions, and joy. However, when we miss this lens, funders inadvertently perpetuate further marginalization and exclusion.
A Christmas Carol, updated for our times
Charles Dickens’s novella a Christmas Carol is a timeless classic. It was first published in 1843 and has never gone out of print. But 1843 is nearly 180 years ago. It’s time for us to update the story to be more relevant to our times.The Ethical Rainmaker: Patagonia did WHAT? ft. Andy King
What’s up with the controversies around Patagonia’s generosity? Michelle is discussing shock tactics, wealth hoarding, trust issues and more, with “The UK’s most influential fundraiser,” Andy King!
Leading with trust: Our (successful!) experiment with Transformational Capacity Building
By josh martinez and Sarah Benner-Kenagy
One of the biggest stressors in the world of social services is money. Who has it? Who needs it? What does the person who has it want in return for giving it to the person who doesn’t? On a person-to-person level, most people don’t attach strings to the dollar they give to someone on the street (and if you do, please stop!). But on a funder-to-organization level, we have strings a-plenty! Why is that? What if there was another way?
The Ethical Rainmaker: Are we even evaluating what matters? ft. Dr. Marcia Coné
In a world where tech money wants us to quantify our work, what is truly meaningful and how do we change? Michelle talks with Marcia about Equitable Evaluation Framework and how our practices are so wrong and how to do better.