Nonprofit Mastermind Podcast cover art

All Episodes

Nonprofit Mastermind Podcast — 278 episodes

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Title
1

Why Your Board Has 11 Members and Drives Zero Revenue

2

The Meetings That Should Not Exist

3

Abundance Is Not a Vibe—It’s a Design Choice

4

The Calm You're Waiting For Isn’t Coming

5

The Real Reason Your Board Feels Like More Work (It’s Not What You Think)

6

Why Annual Plans Collapse By March: The Problem Behind Every 'Good Plan'

7

Micro-Series Pt3: How To Start Fixing Your Design Deficits

8

Micro-Series P2: Why Invisible Labor Is Not a Strategy

9

Micro-Series Pt1: Why Leading In February Always Feels Heavy

10

2026 Predictions: What Nonprofit Leaders Must Know to Thrive

11

How To Evolve Your Role as Executive Director As Your Nonprofit Grows

12

Why Revenue Still Feels Fragile After Year-End Fundraising

13

Stop Waiting for Stability. You Have To Design It.

14

The One Thing That Makes Your Team, Board & Donors Go All In

15

Is Your Balanced Budget A Red Herring?

16

How To Lead Without Controlling Everything

17

Why Your Annual Plan Must Help You Say No

18

Why You Need To Pick One Thing

19

The 4 Root Causes of Your Organization's Chaos

20

Before You Set 2026 Goals, Ask This One Question

21

How To Know When Planning To Pause Is The Right Strategic Move

22

Z is for Zone of Genius: It's Leverage Not a Luxury

23

Y is for Year End Planning Starts Now

24

X is for X-Ray Weak Spots: Stress Reveals Already Existing Cracks

25

W is for Waiting Too Long: Today's Urgency Started As Yesterday's Unaddressed Problem

26

V is for Vision Lock: North Star Sets Direction + Vision Locks It In

27

U is for Urgency: Urgency is not the same as Importance

28

T is for True-Cost Budget: Don't Underfund The Real Cost Of Your Impact

29

S is for Storytelling: If They Don’t Feel It, They Won't Fund It

30

R is for Right Roles, Right Seats: Quiet Chaos = Role Chaos

31

Q is for Quarterly Cadence: Chaos Thrives Without Rhythm

32

P is for Priorities: Release Yourself From The Tyranny of the Urgent

33

O is for Overfunctioning: Doing Everyone’s Job = Not Doing Yours

34

N is for North Star: Your Vision is a Decision Tool

35

M is for Margin: Without Margin, You're Firefighting, Not Leading

36

L is for Leadership Headspace: Your mindset is shaping more than you think

37

K is for KPI: What 2 numbers will define your success?

38

J is for Jury of One: If your board feels passive… listen to this

39

I is for Infrastructure: You can't scale without systems that support growth

40

H is for Habits: You don't need more hustle, you just need new defaults

41

G is for Governance Reset: Your board isn’t broken—they’re just lost.

42

F is for Fundraising Friction: Is your fundraising stuck? It’s not your donors.

43

E is for Evaluate: If everything matters, nothing moves

44

D is for Design Deficit: You’re not failing - you’re under-designed.

45

C is for Clarity: You don’t have the capacity issue you think you do

46

B is for Bottlenecks: When your org can't move without you

47

A is for Alignment: Teams don’t stall. Structures do.

48

Let’s Talk About AI (And How It Can Help Us Do More With Less)

49

How Summer Planning Can Save You From Year-End Chaos

50

Hit Pause: A Summer Playlist to Help You Reset, Refocus, and Lead Better

51

How To Outsmart Decision Fatigue: 3 Strategies for Clearer Thinking

52

Why Your Board Isn’t Aligned (And 3 Moves to Fix It Fast)

53

How Smart Nonprofit Leaders Build Systems That Outlast Them

54

Burnout Looks Like Control: How To Lead Without Controlling Everything

55

Mini-Series: How to Make Your Design Shift Stick

56

Mini-Series: How to Redesign Your Nonprofit One Shift at a Time

57

Mini-Series: How To Diagnose What's Broken In Your Nonprofit

58

Why Your Burnout is a Signal—Not a Flaw. And What To Do About It.

59

Why More Money or Staff Might Actually Break Your Organization

60

3 Ways to Reclaim Your Voice in Funder Meetings

61

2 Mindset ShiftsThat Are Actually Powerful Growth Strategies

62

Why Your Team's Burnout Is a Signal—Not a Symptom

63

Why Your Leadership Team Member Is Struggling—and How to Fix It

64

Oldie But Goodie: Revolutionize Your Nonprofit Workflow with ChatGPT

65

5 Minute Strategy: 4 Part Persuasion -- How To Move Anyone To Action

66

5 Minute Strategy: 5 Minute Rule For Increasing Donor Engagement

67

The 5 Horsemen of Nonprofit Stagnation

68

The Secret To Talking About Your Mission In A Way That Inspires Giving

69

Why Your Board Feels Disengaged (And How to Fix It)

70

Deficit Budgets Aren’t Always Bad – Here’s When to Use Them

71

4 Questions To Help Your Organization Stay Stable In Crazy Times

72

What’s Next for Nonprofits: 2025 Predictions from Sector Experts

73

How To Achieve Bolder Goals By Recognizing & Pushing Through Your Growth Edge

74

How to be Resilience Ready in 2025

75

Your Annual Plan Won't Work If It's A List of Activities (And What To Do Instead)

76

Why Having a Strong Individual Giving Program Is Non-Negotiable

77

How To Talk About Growth Beyond Just Numbers

78

5 Questions You Should Ask During Your Annual Fundraising Planning

79

10 Annual Planning Questions To Ensure Organizational Resilience in 2025

80

BONUS AUDIO TRAINING: Reverse Engineering Successful 7-Figure Nonprofits

81

How To Take Control of Your Calendar & Feel Less Overwhelm

82

What To Do When The Team You Have Is No Longer The Team You Need

83

Has Your Growth Plateaued? Here’s How to Fix It

84

Navigating Uncertainty As A Nonprofit Leader: Words of Wisdom With Rhea Wong

85

How To Shift Your Board Out Of The Weeds & Into Higher Level Governance

86

Why Your Organization's Growth Is About More Than Just Funding

87

Unlocking Wholeness At Work

88

Harnessing The Power of Collaboration

89

Shaking Hierarchies & Building Powerful Communities

90

Conversations With A Funder: Building Sustainable Organizations: Essential Questions For Leaders

91

Bravery and Grace: In Case You Need To Hear This

92

Mini-Training: The Elements of An Effective Strategic Plan

93

Mini-Training: The 4 Part Structure For Facilitating Your Own POWERFUL Strategic Planning Process

94

The 1 Thing You Should Do This Summer: 4 Experts Share Their Top Advice for Summer Success

95

4 Summer Strategies To Help You Hit Your Year End Goals [Audio Training]

96

How To Use Your Next Conference Presentation To Cultivate Donors

97

Spotlight on Donor Cultivation Dimension 4: Trust

98

Spotlight on Donor Cultivation Dimension 3: Affinity

99

Spotlight on Donor Cultivation Dimension 2: Understanding

100

The Power of Cultivation & Spotlight on Donor Cultivation Dimension 1: Knowledge

101

6 Questions To Transform Your Calendar & Stave Off Overwhelm

102

How To Build Better Teams

103

How To Lead In A Way That Sustains You

104

How To Build True Partnerships With Funders

105

How To Overcome The Failures of Traditional Leadership

106

How To Hire The Right Person Every Time

107

How to Use Advisory Councils to Grow Capacity & Impact

108

Throwback: How To Transform Your Organization With ChatGPT

109

What Does Good Measurement Look Like in Practice? 4 Core Metrics for Your Dashboard

110

How to Use Brain Trusts To Grow & Deepen Your Community of Supporters

111

How to Communicate Your Work To Connect With Any Type of Potential Supporter

112

How To Assess Your Quarter: 5 Questions For You & Your Team

113

Episode RoundUp: How to find more time, money & capacity in your organization

114

How to Add More Organizational Capacity Without Spending Money

115

The 4 Parts of a Good Nonprofit Financial Dashboard

116

How to conduct a “Leverage Self-Audit” for your nonprofit?

117

How To Plan A Day for Visioning & Planning: A CEO Day

118

Business Frameworks That Increase Leverage

119

Encore: Build Your Development Team Without Breaking Your Budget, with Cindy Wagman

120

How To Build Systems That Scale, with Rachel Bearbower

121

How high-leverage leaders schedule their week

122

Quick Strategy Episode: 6-Questions To Make Your Growth More Strategic

123

How To Build A Branding Strategy That Helps Drive Your Organization’s Growth, Even With A Small Budget, with Farra Trompeter

124

Quick Strategy Episode: Using “Who Not How” To Get Out Of The Weeds

125

Mastering the Flywheel: How To Create Systems That Propel Themselves

126

Content Repurposing To Amplify Nonprofit Impact, with Becky Endicott and Jon McCoy

127

How To Not Lose Your New Donors

128

Build Teams That Are Greater Than The Sum Of Their Parts, A Replay Tribute To Darcy Richie

129

Launch An Organization That Will Last, with Jack Graham

130

A Simple Strategy For Keeping Your Board Focused & Engaged

131

Nonprofit Sector Leaders Share Their Predictions for 2024

132

Use Thought Leadership For Nonprofit Growth, with Tania Bhattacharyya

133

How You’ll Grow By Tuning Into the Nonprofit Mastermind Podcast

134

Turn Your Goals Into A Powerful Nonprofit Growth Plan

135

4 Nonprofit Leaders Share What Worked In 2023

136

How Do You Cultivate Hope?

137

Recognizing & Maximizing Your Moments of "Flow"

138

Fighting Overwhlem & Growing Impact: Behind the scenes of My Next Level Nonprofit Mastermind

139

Plan Your Year of Board Engagement in Less Than A Day

140

Nonprofit Start Ups Demystified: A Preview of A New Private Podcast

141

Confessions from the Car: Reflections on our Mastermind

142

Audit Your Strategic Plan To Prepare For Annual Planning

143

The Art & Science Of Delegation On Your Growing Nonprofit Team

144

The 3 Core Organizational Plans That Will Help You Fight Your Overwhelm

145

How To Say No (The Secret Is Saying Yes)

146

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: The Myth of Organizational Sustainability, with Vu Le

147

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Focus on Growth: Be Intentional About Your Structure, Systems & Culture

148

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Focus On Growth: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There

149

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: The Art & Science of Building & Leading Teams Fueled By Trust, with Darcy Richie

150

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: 6-Minute Strategy: SOPs

151

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: 6-Minute Strategy: Hiring Tactics

152

Sharpening Your Fundraising Ax: How To Get Your Finance House In Order, with Germeen Guillaume

153

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Focus on Growth: True Cost Growth Budgeting

154

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: 6-Minute Strategy Finance Metrics

155

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Understanding & Practicing Liberatory Governance, with Natalie Bamdad and Ananda Valenzuela

156

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: 6-Minute Strategy: Increasing Board Engagement

157

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Focus on Growth: Activating Your Board As Partners & Ambassadors

158

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: The Only Fundraising Strategy You’ll Ever Need, With Suzy Myers Jackson

159

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Rules of Donor Psychology

160

Sharpening Your Ax Summer Series: Going Beyond Giving Tuesday To Maximize Your Year End Giving

161

ChatGPT Beyond Fundraising: How To Use ChatGPT To Increase Your Organization's Strategic Clarity

162

3 Trends In How Small Nonprofits Grew To (& Sustained) $2M

163

Get More Leverage Out of the Lazy Days of Summer

164

How To Use ChatGPT To Build Your Nonprofit’s Capacity

165

Strategy Quick Hit: How To Connect With The Right Donors

166

Systems That Scale: Nonprofit Growth Lessons with Rhea & Brooke

167

How To Build Your Nonprofit Capacity With Nontraditional Staff

168

Mindset Mastery: Nonprofit Growth Lessons with Rhea & Brooke

169

How To Build An Intentional Organizational & Team Culture

170

Nonprofit Growth Mini-Series | A Healthy “Mature” Nonprofit

171

Nonprofit Growth Mini-Series | Early & Late Growth

172

Nonprofit Growth Mini-Series | The Childhood Stage

173

Nonprofit Growth Mini-Series | The Start-Up Phase

174

Revolutionize Your Nonprofit Workflow with Chat GPT

175

Budget-friendly Nonprofit Fundraising Staffing, with Cindy Wagman

176

Mastermind Hot Seat: What Do I Do To Improve My Board

177

5 Questions To Guide Quarterly Reflection & Planning

178

How To "Get Out Of The Weeds" Of Your Organization

179

A Simple, Powerful Tool For Maintaining Board Engagement

180

Mastermind Hot Seat: How Do I Actually Start A Mastermind Group??

181

How to Attract New Funders & Donors To Fuel Your Growth

182

How To Figure Out Your Next Right Hire

183

Growth is a juggling act: fundraising, avoiding burnout, and growing impact -- Behind the scenes of my Accelerator

184

How To Create The Magic of A High-impact Nonprofit Board

185

How To Diagnose Root Causes of Problems In Your Nonprofit

186

Lessons From The Field: What’s Working in Small Shop Nonprofit Leadership & Growth in 2023- Purpose & Mindset

187

Lessons From The Field: What’s Working in Small Shop Nonprofit Leadership & Growth in 2023- Leverage

188

Lessons From The Field: What’s Working in Small Shop Nonprofit Leadership & Growth in 2023 - Relationships

189

Nonprofit Strategic Planning Mini-Series | Setting Goals

190

Nonprofit Strategic Planning Mini-Series | Creating Priorities

191

Nonprofit Strategic Planning Mini-Series | Creating a Clear Vision

192

The Power of The CEO Day

193

The Curse of Perfectionism Holding Your Nonprofit Back

194

What I Learned About Leadership and Mental Health From Hamilton

195

3 Infrastructure Shifts That Ensure Your Sustainable Impact

196

Strategy Quick Hit: How To Get Your Time Back

197

The Practice of Liberatory Governance, with Natalie Bamdad and Ananda Valenzuela

198

What Your Nonprofit Staffing Challenges Are *Really* About

199

The Powerful Myth That Could Be Stalling Your Nonprofit Growth

200

Spotlight on Charleston Legal Access, with Lana Kleinman

201

Spotlight on Drama Club, with Josie Whittlesey

202

How To Actually Implement Your Plan For Nonprofit Growth

203

Spotlight on True Star Foundation, with DeAnna McLeary-Sherman

204

Navigating Periods of Organizational Change & Transition

205

A Fun (& Powerful) Cultivation and Network Expansion Activity

206

How To Find Untapped Organizational Capacity Hidden In Plain Sight

207

Replay: The Architecture of Impact Framework

208

Spotlight on Global Health Council, with Elisha Dunn-Georgiou

209

A Powerful (& Underused!) Strategy For Reclaiming Your Time

210

Spotlight on The Kota Alliance, with Jaana Rehnström

211

Healing Leadership, Well-being, & Finding Joy In Work, with Nita Baum

212

Spotlight on MoreArt, with Micaela Martegani

213

What To Think About Thought Leadership, Elements Of A Plan

214

SPOTLIGHT: RaisedByUs, with Jessica Sloan

215

How To Think About Thought Leadership, And Why It's So Important

216

SPOTLIGHT: Flex Dance Program

217

How To Get Your Finance House In Order, with Germeen Guillaume

218

SPOTLIGHT: Willie Mae Rock Camp

219

Strategy Quick Hit: How To Hire To Fuel Growth

220

A Tribute: The Art & Science of Building Trust, with Darcy Richie

221

MASTERMIND SPOTLIGHT: South Asian SOAR

222

MASTERMIND SPOTLIGHT: The New Harmony Project

223

How To Use Your Digital Assets To Attract - Not Chase - New Supporters & Fans, with Christina Edwards

224

MASTERMIND SPOTLIGHT: STEM From Dance

225

Building a Truly Engaged Board, with Christal Cherry

226

Build Your Personal Board of Directors, with Lakimja Mattocks

227

Using The Power of Video To Make Complex Legal Issues Simple, with Adam Stofsky

228

How To Design & Grow A Nonprofit That You're Proud Of

229

How To Inspire and Motivate People To Take Positive Action, with Abigail Ahoude and Adriana Dakin

230

The Practice of Liberatory Leadership, with Trish Tchume and Ericka Stallings

231

The "Why" and "How" of Creating Your Own Mastermind Group

232

Encore: How To Practice Whole-Self Leadership, with Ana Polanco

233

The Intersection of Purpose, Gratitude & Finding Your Leadership Flow, with LaFrae Sci

234

Using The Mechanics of Empathy To Build Culture, with Payal Beri

235

The Architecture of Impact

236

How Grassroots Organizing & Allyship Can Drive True Systems Change, with Jennifer Ching

237

The Transformative Power of A Truly Engaged Board, with George Suttles

238

How To Create A 2022 Vision Map For Your Organization

239

How Identities Shape Nonprofit Leadership, with Vanessa Luna

240

Leadership Lessons From A Serial Social Entrepreneur, with Jennifer Anastasoff

241

Improv For Impact: How To Actually Lead & Work Across Difference

242

How To Use Nonprofit Life Cycles For Reflection

243

Themes From The Next Normal: How To Build Teams Rooted In Trust

244

Themes From The Next Normal: How To Lead In A Way That Fuels & Sustains

245

Themes From The Next Normal: Building True & Equitable Partnerships With Funders

246

Themes From The Next Normal: Lessons From The Failures of Traditional Leadership

247

How To Lead Through Fear & Use Bravery As Fuel For Social Impact

248

Fundraising & Breaking The Curse of Founders’ Syndrome

249

Personal Growth, "Playing Big" & What It Really Takes To Scale

250

Founder Stories: The Why & How Of Launching & Building A Nonprofit Rooted In Equity

251

Creating Transformation: A Conversation About Storytelling, Social Justice & Spirituality, with Charlie Vazquez

252

What True Partnership With A Funder Actually Looks Like, with Terri Davis-Merchant

253

The Mindset & Strategy Behind Creating Content That Propels Your Mission, with Rachel Mills

254

Hard Won Leadership Lessons & The Secrets To Real Growth, A Conversation With Four Inspiring Leaders

255

Redefining Expertise Through Participatory Social Change Work, with Alexa Kasdan

256

The Only Fundraising Strategy You’ll Ever Need, With Suzy Myers-Jackson

257

The Tactics of Trust & A Reimagining of Performance Evaluation, with Toya Lillard

258

Why Relationships With Elected Officials Are Mission-Critical For Small Organizations, with Steve Choi

259

How Shifting From Gifts To Relationships Can Increase & Deepen In Your Kind Support, with George Suttles

260

How to Use Brand To Build A Community of Ambassadors for Your Org, with Sarah Durham

261

Building & Leading Teams Fueled By Trust, with Darcy Richie

262

Sustainability & The Fight For Systems Change, with Emma Jordan Simpson

263

The Nonprofit Founder's Journey: A Conversation About Identity, Institution-Building, & Letting Go, with Rhea Wong

264

How to Practice Whole-Self Leadership, with Ana Polanco

265

A Conversation About the Interdependence of Leaders, Organizations and Communities

266

Sustainable Leadership: Taking A Pause & Moving With Intentionality, with Kishshana Palmer

267

The Myth of Sustainability, with Vu Le

268

Sustainable Leadership: The Hidden Dimensions of Sustainability, with Chitra Aiyar

269

Sustainable Leadership: Leadership Development, Equity & Sustainability, with Phil Li

270

The Next Normal: An Interview with Jill Eisenhard

271

The Next Normal: An Interview with Tene Howard and Zareta Ricks

272

The Next Normal: An Interview with Dennis Williams

273

The Next Normal: An Interview with Wayne Ho

274

The Next Normal: An Interview with Katy Rubin

275

The Next Normal: An Interview with Tarik Ward

276

The Next Normal: An Interview with Kemi Ilesanmi

277

The Next Normal: An Interview with Robyne Walker Murphy

278

A Brief Welcome