We Are For Good Podcast – Five Years of We Are For Good: Lessons from the Journey
Episode 654 | October 27, 2025
Host(s): Jon McCoy, CFRE; Becky Endicott, CFRE; Julie (Producer)
Theme: Reflecting on the 5-year journey of "We Are For Good,” the lessons learned, and the power of community-driven change in the nonprofit sector.
Overview
This special anniversary episode celebrates five years of the "We Are For Good" podcast. Jon, Becky, and Julie candidly share the podcast’s origin story, highlight formative career experiences, delve into challenges faced building a values-driven media company, and outline the evolving mission to democratize nonprofit education and inspire collective action. The episode teases a major forthcoming announcement and closes with inspiring thoughts on generosity, belief, and the transformative role of community.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. A Unique Team & Non-Traditional Pathways
(00:34 – 04:43)
- Jon, Becky, and Julie reunite in person to reflect on both personal and professional journeys.
- Their 20-year friendship and unlikely beginnings at the OSU Foundation set the foundation for their shared vision.
- Early professional experiences highlighted the power of authentic storytelling and values-driven marketing.
- They recognized "marketing disguised as fundraising" and the importance of making generosity personal and story-centered.
- Becky: “We were a marketing team of largely 20 year olds... What if we got into the heart of people? What if we got into the heart of story?” (03:38)
2. Learning the Power of Community and Storytelling
(04:43 – 10:27)
- Shifting from large campaigns to rebuilding trust in small, everyday moments, especially through employee giving and culture-building campaigns.
- Turning a hospital in crisis (even used as a negative example at conferences) into a place where staff were seen, heard, and inspired to participate.
- Importance of building generosity from the ground up, “flipping the pyramid,” and focusing on the everyday donor rather than strictly major gifts.
- Jon: “Trust building happens one at a time. It can’t just happen at scale without getting to know people.” (04:43)
- Becky: “The power of small gifts powered by belief can change everything.” (09:47)
3. Origin Story: Launching We Are For Good
(10:33 – 13:00)
- Jon and Becky’s desire to democratize knowledge and their transition from consulting to podcasting.
- The problem: No platform for “real-time” conversations in nonprofit podcasting existed.
- Jon’s ambitious vision (initially wanting five episodes a week!), ultimately settling at three, and recognizing the medium’s potential for deep and wide impact.
4. The Catalyst: Taking the Leap
(11:48 – 18:42)
- Becky set a definitive quitting date (June 30, 2020); Jon agonized over the leap, facing uncertainty at pandemic’s onset.
- The role of support systems—Jon’s wife Candace’s pivotal pep talk:
- “Jon, when are you going to quit giving up on your dream?... We gotta do this.” (13:08)
- Julie’s recruitment: A chance encounter at a gala years prior, her volunteerism, and her innate ability to transform raw assets into compelling stories led her to become the missing puzzle piece as producer.
- Julie: “While y’all were doing all of this at OSU Foundation, I was like—was I in third grade?” (17:50)
- Julie’s immediate “yes” and learning to produce the show through online resources and hustle.
5. Early Growth and Community Activation
(19:50 – 24:35)
- Launching the podcast with no platform but leveraging belief: hundreds of personalized emails to friends, colleagues, and supporters.
- Emphasizing "belief" and personalized asks—seeding the concept that any meaningful movement begins with engaged, authentic community.
- The drive to make sector learning accessible and democratized.
- Jon: “You don’t have to have permission to be in this room… we can actually make the table bigger.” (23:01)
6. Defining (and Living) Core Values
(24:35 – 26:41)
- Core values discovered organically—centered on simplifying, humanizing, long-term thinking, and above all, community.
- Community feedback led to evolving the platform: not just a podcast, but an ecosystem, media company, and ultimately a movement.
7. Hardships, Transparency, and the Power of Belief
(26:41 – 29:55)
- Financial stress and burnout have been constant companions.
- Building educational resources (e.g., "We Are For Good Pro") and convening sector experts—pulling off big ideas with minimal means.
- Genuine moments of “the well drying up” (financially and energetically), but each time, community support provided enough momentum to keep going.
- Becky: “We have rarely had two nickels to rub together this entire time… but the community just kept lifting and lifting….” (26:47)
8. Impact Up: The Community’s Big Leap
(29:55 – 33:08)
- Spurred by burnout and the desire for deeper engagement, “Impact Up” was launched: a decentralized, virtual and local event series powered by community hosts worldwide.
- They expected 10 cities to sign on; 25 did, spanning 10+ countries and 150+ gatherings in total.
- Notable stories from the field—Uganda, Mexico—illustrate Impact Up’s ripple effect and how community leads the way.
- Julie: “Once we launched Impact Up… it feels like we have a team of 35 because friends just wanted to help spread the word.” (31:42)
9. Flipping the Pyramid & the True Theory of Change
(33:08 – 36:10)
- The heart of the matter: shifting power back to the base (everyday supporters), not just major donors.
- Becky: “Belief is so much more powerful than the gift… when you can unlock that, We Are For Good is literally living proof.” (33:44)
- Affirmation that supporting “everyday change makers” and democratized, value-centered organizing is the new theory of change.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- “If you can start with those believers and remind them why they’re there… when we launched, we didn’t launch with just Becky, Jon, and Julie. We launched with hundreds of people behind us.”
—Becky (21:40) - “The campaign is not just a campaign… then the podcast became not just a podcast. It was rippling out.”
—Becky (24:35) - “It’s never the big things… it’s always something small… a moment when you feel seen.”
—Jon (36:29) - “Everyone’s kind of waiting for someone else to be the generous one. It starts with you.”
—Julie (37:19) - “You are enough…. Show up as you are. Everyone matters.”
—Becky (42:39) - “What starts here ripples.”
—Julie (35:12) - “Hold on to your butts, because this is going to be a big announcement and… it is for you.”
—Becky, quoting Samuel L. Jackson in Jurassic Park, teasing the next episode (43:44)
Important Timestamps
- 00:34 – Reunion and introduction of the special retrospective episode
- 03:38 – Early professional journey and the genesis of values-based disruption
- 07:00 – Major shift in approach: focus on lived experience and small gifts
- 13:08 – The pivotal moment: Jon’s wife urges him to go for his dream
- 17:50 – Julie's background and joining the team
- 21:40 – Grassroots podcast launch strategy and community activation
- 26:47 – Candid discussion of struggles and the sustaining power of community
- 29:55 – The launch and impact of Impact Up
- 33:08 – Reinventing sector power structures (“flipping the pyramid”)
- 36:29 – Reflection on generosity and the importance of small acts
- 41:10 – “One Good Thing” round: parting personal wisdom from each host
- 43:44 – Teaser for the next episode and seismic upcoming announcement
Tone & Language
The conversation is warm, candid, humorous, empathetic, and deeply personal. The hosts openly discuss vulnerability and struggle, often using playful self-deprecation, while consistently returning to messages of hope, community, and belief. The atmosphere is that of a close-knit, passionate team inviting listeners into both the messiness and magic of their journey.
Closing
Highlights:
- Five years in, “We Are For Good” is less a podcast than a movement—built on humble beginnings, radical transparency, everyday generosity, and the unstoppable force of collective belief.
- Listeners are left with a compelling call to action: just start, show up authentically, and believe in the ripple effects of small acts in community.
- A seismic announcement is promised for the next episode, signaling the start of “We Are For Good 2.0.”
Final Thought:
“You are enough. Show up as you are. Everyone matters.”
—Becky (42:39)
Next: Tune in Wednesday for a landmark update, We Are For Good 2.0!