What I do when fundraising feels impossible
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Hi Reader, Some days, fundraising feels like shouting into the void. You send an appeal and hear nothing. You reach out to a prospect and get ghosted. A grant you worked on for weeks comes back declined. And somewhere in the back of your mind, a voice starts asking: is any of this actually working? I've been there. And I've talked to enough fundraisers to know this isn't a rare feeling - it's a regular one. The work is hard and the feedback loop is slow. Of course it gets heavy sometimes. Here's what I do when it does: I go back to a story. Not a report. Not a spreadsheet. A real story: a client served, a family helped, a moment that reminded me why this work matters. I keep a few of these saved somewhere easy to find, because when the numbers feel abstract, the story is what brings it back. I pick the smallest possible next step. When everything feels overwhelming, I stop trying to solve the whole problem and find one thing I can actually do right now. Send one email. Make one call. Finish one grant section. Momentum is built in small moves, not big ones. I talk to someone who gets it. Not to vent (well, maybe a little to vent), but to remember that I'm not alone in this. Fundraising is isolating by nature. You carry a lot of confidential information, you work on long timelines, and the wins aren't always visible. Find your people. The ones who understand what it actually takes. And then I remind myself of something I believe deeply: The fact that fundraising is hard doesn't mean you're doing it wrong. It means you're doing real work, in a real sector, under real pressure. That's worth something. If you have no one to talk to, reply to this email and tell me the 1 thing you want to vent about, and 1 small step you're going to take today. I'd love to reply and give you a virtual high-five for showing up today!! Cheers,
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