@GenerosityProf

Professor, Charitable Financial Planning, Texas Tech University: I make and share words, pictures, and discoveries that help others encourage generosity.

 Lubbock, Texas
EncourageGenerosity.com
Joined August 2009
  • Tweets84
  • Following64
  • Followers492
8Media
New Finding: 41% of heirs have spent it all within a year. That should change how we plan. linkedin.com/pulse/new-findi… via @LinkedIn

New Finding: 42% of heirs have spent it all within a year. That should change how we plan.

A new national longitudinal study found something striking: 42% of heirs had their net worth fall back to, or below, their pre-inheritance level when measured about 12 months later. In plain English,...

linkedin.com
21
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: New Research: What Drives Big (Estate) Gifts? It’s Not What Drives Smaller Ones linkedin.com/pulse/new-resea… via @LinkedIn

New Research: What Drives Big (Estate) Gifts? It’s Not What Drives Smaller Ones

Most nonprofits treat legacy donors as if they are all the same. That is a mistake.

linkedin.com
1
14
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: 5 Fundraising Stats on Major Gifts of Assets: 2.3%, 60%, 77%, 6X, and 50X linkedin.com/pulse/5-fundrai… via @LinkedIn

5 Fundraising Stats on Major Gifts of Assets: 2.3%, 60%, 77%, 6X, and 50X

· 2.3% of household wealth is held in cash and checkable accounts; stop ignoring the other 97.

linkedin.com
1
13
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: 1 Fundraising Finding: Permanence and death reminders linkedin.com/pulse/1-fundrai… via @LinkedIn

1 Fundraising Finding: Permanence and death reminders

Today’s experiment highlights a key legacy-fundraising concept. Mortality reminders trigger two responses: avoidance and/or pursuit of symbolic immortality.

linkedin.com
1
13
Check out my latest article: Top 10 ways to give smarter with the 2025 tax law linkedin.com/pulse/top-10-wa… via @LinkedIn

Top 10 ways to give smarter with the 2025 tax law

1. Last chance! Move charitable deductions into 2025 before their value drops.

linkedin.com
31
Check out my latest article: How the 2025 Charitable Tax Law Changes Boost the Value of Bunching and DAFs linkedin.com/pulse/how-2025-… via @LinkedIn

How the 2025 Charitable Tax Law Changes Boost the Value of Bunching and DAFs

Now more than ever, tax smart giving means bunching. And bunching usually means using Donor Advised Funds (DAFs).

linkedin.com
1
3
52
Check out my latest article: Giving smarter at the end of 2023: Top 10 ideas linkedin.com/pulse/giving-sm… via @LinkedIn

Giving smarter at the end of 2023: Top 10 ideas

1. Get tax benefits even if you aren’t itemizing deductions Make a charitable gift, get a charitable tax deduction.

linkedin.com
6
105
The magic fundraising words to say when the donor says "no" linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn

Socratic fundraising after the ask: Congratulations! You got a “no.”

Disaster! We put in the work. We put in the planning.

linkedin.com
3
132
How do you make a compelling fundraising ask? It’s as easy as 1-2-3! linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn
1
Want to raise the biggest gift ever? It starts by uncovering the donor's ideal philanthropic "victory". linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn

Socratic fundraising foreshadowing: Questions that uncover a meaningful victory

A compelling fundraising challenge will connect with the donor’s identity. This begins with backstory.

linkedin.com
2
2
Can a QCD go to a DAF? No, but it can go to funds that are a little bit “DAF-FY” linkedin.com/pulse/can-qcd-g… via @LinkedIn

DAF alternatives for IRA QCD gifts

When we near the end of a year, donors age 72 and above start thinking about Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from their retirement accounts. RMDs are a big deal.

linkedin.com
1
Need to get a donor meeting? Here's how. Want to start real donor engagement? It starts with permission for "Socratic fundraising." Here's how to get that, too. linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn
3
5
Help donors build their own compelling donation story. Here’s how. Socratic fundraising overview: A step-by-step menu of questions linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn

Socratic fundraising overview: A step-by-step menu of questions

Socratic fundraising Socratic inquiry uses questions. But just asking questions isn’t enough.

linkedin.com
Top 10 Ways to Give Smarter at the End of 2022 linkedin.com/pulse/top-10-wa… via @LinkedIn

Top 10 Ways to Give Smarter at the End of 2022

1. Take advantage of inflation.

linkedin.com
What goes best with a good fundraising story? A good fundraising question! See this article on Socratic fundraising theory: How questions advance the donor’s story linkedin.com/pulse/socratic-… via @LinkedIn

Socratic fundraising theory: How questions advance the donor’s story

“It’s very important not to know all the answers. Often we don’t know, and if we did it would be no good, for it is of greater value to the patient when he discovers the answers himself.

linkedin.com
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: Confirming donor heroism with gratitude: The return of the hero linkedin.com/pulse/confirmin… via @LinkedIn

Confirming donor heroism with gratitude: The return of the hero

“In myths the hero is the one who conquers the dragon, not the one who is devoured by it.” – Carl Jung[1] Monomyth resolution In the universal hero story, the hero wins.

linkedin.com
1
1
Want to make the perfect fundraising ask? Get some advice from Obi-Wan, Morpheus, and Gandalf! linkedin.com/pulse/making-pe… via @LinkedIn

Making the perfect fundraising ask: Lessons from Obi-Wan, Gandalf, and Morpheus

Universal challenge Let’s go to the movies! And when we go, what will we see? If it’s a blockbuster, we’ll often see a similar underlying story. It’s called the hero’s journey.

linkedin.com
1
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: Organizational solutions to fundraising with rival hero stories linkedin.com/pulse/organizat… via @LinkedIn

Organizational solutions to fundraising with rival hero stories

Story conflict Advance the donor’s hero story. In major gifts fundraising, this works.

linkedin.com
1
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: The epic fundraiser as translator: Selling to the internal organization linkedin.com/pulse/epic-fund… via @LinkedIn
1
Check out the latest article in my newsletter: Fundraiser turnover solutions: Transforming the story character linkedin.com/pulse/fundraise… via @LinkedIn
Load more