Insights
Practical thinking for busy leaders
Short, useful articles on leadership, boards, funding, wellbeing and storytelling. Read one in five minutes, use it this week.
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Why volunteers leave small charities, and how to keep the good ones
Volunteers rarely leave because they stopped caring. Here is why they go, and a simple plan for volunteer retention in a small charity.
Read BoardsHow to recruit charity board members who actually show up
Stop filling seats with whoever says yes. A practical way to recruit charity board members in Australia: map the gaps, ask well, induct properly and keep them.
Read LeadershipRebranding a community organisation without losing your community
A nonprofit rebrand done well keeps your supporters close. Six practical steps for a charity or community group changing its name, and what it really costs.
Read StorytellingTurning supporters into advocates: the shift from transactional fundraising
Move from ask, thank, repeat to a culture of advocates. A simple donor advocacy program a small charity or church can start this quarter.
Read StorytellingTelling your impact story: a simple structure for annual reports and newsletters
A simple structure for telling one person's story in a newsletter, annual report, grant acquittal or short talk, with two worked examples.
Read WellbeingBurnout in ministry and charity leaders: the early signs nobody talks about
Pastor burnout signs show up long before collapse. Here are the early signs leaders in ministry and charities miss, and what to do about them this week.
Read BoardsRunning a board planning day that produces decisions
Most planning days end with a whiteboard photo and nothing else. Here is how to run one that ends in decisions, with sample half-day and full-day agendas.
Read FundingThe monthly funding pipeline: a one-page system that stops the sprint
Stop the cycle of panic and push. A nonprofit funding pipeline is one page, one monthly meeting and three numbers for the board. Here is how to build it.
Read LeadershipFrom founder to leader: handing over without letting go
Founder syndrome in a nonprofit is common and kind to name. Why it happens, what it costs, and five practical moves to hand over without losing the heart.
Read FundingApplying for DGR status: what it takes and how long it really takes
What Deductible Gift Recipient status is, the main routes, what the application needs and why it takes months. Plain advice for Australian charities.
Read LeadershipWhat a charity consultant actually does, and when you need one
An honest look at what a charity consultant does, what they can't, and how to tell if your organisation needs one. From a Perth consultant and board member.
Read BoardsBoard governance checklist for Australian charities, in plain English
A plain-English charity board governance checklist: the ACNC standards, the duties directors carry, and what a volunteer board can review each year.
Read FundingWhere small charities find money: five income sources and how to start each
Five income sources for small charities, from grants to regular givers, with a first step and a common trap for each. A plain guide for boards and managers.
Read FundingHow to write a charity strategic plan in five pages
A short, honest charity strategic plan that a small team can write in a month. Five pages, page by page, with a rhythm to keep it alive.
Read BoardsFive signs your board needs a reset
Long meetings, no decisions and a gap between the board and the work. Five signs your charity board needs a reset, and a first step for each.
Read FundingWhy funding sprints keep you tired, and what to do instead
Grant deadlines, galas and appeals leave charity teams exhausted. A steady funding pipeline works better. Here is how to start one.
Read WellbeingWhen the leader is running on empty
Leaders are often the last to notice they are burning out. Some honest early signs, and small things that help.
Read LeadershipThe leader is not the cause
Most charities measure what the cause needs. Very few measure what it costs the person leading it. Dave Bolt on protecting the leader.
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