Most people who want to change the world start with a cause, not with Chris Lambert, ‘coz he started with a crisis…

Chris Lambert, Founder & CEO of Next Level Nonprofit, grew up in a small town in northern Indiana, gave his faith the finger at 16, then spent six years chasing whatever he thought would make him happy, but no, it didn't, then there became a chance encounter at a church service in Australia, and when he came home, he wasn't the same person who'd left.

We covered:
→ How Chris's faith journey, from a small-town kid to a mud hut in Liberia, shaped everything he built after
→ What Life Remodeled actually did in Detroit and why the Gallup results shocked even him
→ The $300,000 check that completely rewired how he thinks about fundraising and donor relationships
→ How Indiana University's 16-0 season explains the one principle that separates great organizations from struggling ones

There's a line Chris said that I keep thinking about, that is "Sometimes you just have to take the step forward even if you don't really know where it's going." He's done that more times than most people would be comfortable with, and it's produced something remarkable every single time!

Chris, thank you for being so open about the whole journey, not just the wins. The stories you brought into this room were the kind that stay with you.

Chapters
0:00 - Introduction & How Chris and Dillon Connected
2:16 - Who Is Chris Lambert? Defining Himself
3:01 - Faith Journey: Growing Up in Small-Town Indiana
4:06 - Walking Away from Faith at 16
4:34 - The Encounter in Australia That Changed Everything
9:21 - Returning to Indiana, Seminary, and the Call to Detroit
11:39 - Living in a Mud Hut in Liberia
13:25 - Moving to Detroit and Starting a Church
14:02 - The Birth of Life Remodeled (2010)
18:43 - What Life Remodeled Actually Does
21:35 - $56 Million, 87,000 Volunteers, and the Gallup Study
26:59 - Writing Next Level Nonprofit and Leaving Life Remodeled
33:07 - Why He Finally Wrote the Book (And Did It in 45 Days)
36:43 - Right People, Right Seats: The IU Football Story
44:00 - The $300,000 Check That Changed His Fundraising Mindset
47:50 - How to Actually Raise Money: Donations vs. Investment
55:06 - Building Capital for a For-Profit Studio: Dillon's Story
57:34 - Final Thoughts and Where to Find Chris

Connect with Chris
Web: https://www.nextlevelnonprofit.org/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nextlevellambert

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Authentic conversations with interesting people across personal growth, entrepreneurship, and lifestyle — direct, faith-forward, Detroit grit.

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