In my recent articles, I’ve been exploring what happens when nonprofits sound alike. When you’re strapped for time and working without a real communications budget, it’s tempting to borrow language from larger organizations in your sector. To reuse digital assets. To echo phrases that seem to be working elsewhere. But when you try to sound…
Most nonprofit communicators don’t intend to blend in. They care deeply about their mission. They know their work changes lives. They want supporters to understand what makes their organization meaningful. And yet, when you visit many nonprofit websites, scroll their social feeds, or read their fundraising appeals, you’re left with a weird feeling of deja…
I’m late to discovering Untamed by Glennon Doyle, and I’m very sorry about that. Not in a cultural how-did-I-miss-this way, but in a more personal one. This book spoke to me as if it had been waiting patiently for me to be ready to hear it. The Lie We Learn About Life Being Easy There…
This is one I’m especially proud of. I love working with clients in the senior living sector and my partnership with Kisco Senior Living is a strong example of what thoughtful senior living content development can look like when it’s done with care. Building a Learning Center Families Can Trust Over the past six months,…
Note: This is a repost of this week’s LinkedIn newsletter article. I’ve never been great at New Year’s resolutions. It’s my all-or-nothing tendency. I turn even the most reasonable resolution into a set of hard rules, and those rules quickly become too much pressure. I don’t need more of that in my life. What has…
Here’s to more powerful stories and mission-moving ideas in 2026. I’ll be celebrating the holidays on the beach — my happy place. See you in the New Year! Tweet
When I led the marketing department at Lutheran Social Services (LSS), one of the biggest challenges wasn’t designing campaigns, segmenting donor lists, or deciding which channel to use. It was collecting real, human stories from our programs. You would think it would be the easiest part. After all, the most powerful stories lived right where…
A recent Chronicle of Philanthropy article titled, ‘Food Insecurity’ and Other Words That Sanitize Poverty, put clear language around something I see often in nonprofit communication. It was a powerful reminder of why human-centered nonprofit messaging matters now more than ever. The article points out that we often describe very real hardship with abstract, academic…
Lately, I’ve been struggling to make an important decision about my business. It’s not for lack of information or ideas. It’s that frustrating kind of stuck where you can see both paths clearly and can’t seem to take a step in either direction. That’s what led me to The Science of Stuck by Britt Frank.…
In 2022, I wrote a post called Shoulds and Social Contracts about my growing awareness of one small but powerful word: should. Back then, I realized how often I used it; mostly when I was talking to myself. That reflection was the start of my journey toward letting go of “should.” Each time I said…
