315: Conscious Fundraising: How to Move From Reaction to Intentional Action - What the Fundraising

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Transcript11 lines

[00:04]
A
Before we dive in, I want to give a huge shout out to donorperfect for supporting this podcast and the fundraisers
[00:10]
B
who listen to it.
[00:10]
A
They're not just a CRM, they're a partner in helping fundraisers feel more confident, aligned and supported. Learn more@donorperfect.com Mallory.
[00:25]
C
A big part of growth and transformation is grace, is play, is trying new things, right? You're going to notice that you are more conscious at some points and then you go right back into your autoresponse. It is at others when you notice that I don't care if it's two hours later, a day later, a week later, where you're like oh, there was my auto response. I want you to be like oh, that makes sense. I'm learning how to bring more consciousness into that.
[00:54]
A
Hey, my name is Mallory and I'm obsessed with helping leaders in the nonprofit space raise money and run their organizations differently. What the fundraising is a space for real and raw conversations to both challenge and inspire you. Not too long ago I was in your shoes, uncomfortable with fundraising and unsure of my place in this sector. It wasn't until I started to listen to other experts outside of the fundraising space that I was able to shift my mindset and ultimately shift the way I show up as a leader. This podcast is my way of blending professional and personal development to so we as a collective inside the nonprofit sector can feel good about the work we are doing. Join me every week as I interview some of the brightest minds in the personal and professional development space to help you fundamentally change the way you lead and fundraise. I hope you enjoy this episode, so let's dive in.
[01:46]
C
Okey dokey. My fundraising friends, this has been a fun week of me and you. I hope you've liked these many episodes with little executive coaching tools and tips and and strategies and messages throughout the week. Somebody told me once that they would like to subscribe to a channel of me just saying affirmations every single day. So maybe the next one will just be that me reading off lots of fundraising affirmations. But today what I really want you to do is recognize that one of the through lines in all of these different episodes is consciousness. And one of the big components of what executive coaching is designed to do is help increase your consciousness so that you come out of a more autoresponse space which is really stress based and often fear based and responsive and reactive instead of proactive into a more conscious space where we really feel like the facilitators and in control of our day. To day lives and experiences. Not that we control all the behaviors of our donors, but that we feel in control over our experience, over our prioritization. We don't just constantly feel like we're in reaction mode, right? Because those are those auto responses, those stress responses, those that often aren't connected to where we're gonna see the most success or transformation in the work that we're doing. And we don't wanna feel at the effect of our life because that and feeling trapped and like we don't have a lot of choices, all of those things can have a really negative impact on our feelings of overwhelm and stress, et cetera. So one of the things that I really want to bring to light in this final episode this week is around consciousness and the role that consc needs to play in your daily experience. So I want you to think about what is a weekly and daily habit that could help you bring more consciousness into your life. That could be a morning activity, that could be a nightly reflection. There are a lot of different ways to increase your consciousness. Consciousness around your thought patterns. Consciousness around what's happening in your brain and body. Consciousness around why something happened the way that it did or how you could change an ultimate result. Consciousness around sitting in the discomfort and in the uncertainty instead of just fleeing into fight or flight or freeze. Ultimately, in that perfectionism, right? Consciousness around that perfectionism. Consciousness around what has been sitting on our to do list for a long time that we might be avoiding, etc. So I really want you to think about what is a daily and weekly consciousness habit that you could start to incorporate into your work. The other thing that is super important about all the different topics that we talked about this week is that in bringing in more consciousness, it is very, very important that you show yourself grace and support as you're learning to bring more consciousness and intentionality into your life. One of the big risks sometimes with executive coaching or with any of this type of work is that then you start to notice, oh wow, my auto response did kick in to gear then. And I absolutely shouldn't have started that coffee fundraiser, but I did because it was my auto response. And then you start to beat yourself up about the fact that you did that. Okay, this is not a way to build more consciousness because here's the secret. Nobody wants to do things that they are mean to themselves while they do them. Okay? Many, many years ago, I used to do CrossFit and after I had two babies, I was trying to get back into it and I couldn't And I couldn't figure it out because I used to love it used to feel so good and energizing and empowering and all of this. And I was like, why do I avoid this exercise that I used to love so much? And I realized it was because after having two babies, I was being so mean to myself. When I would do those exercises, I'd be like, oh my gosh, I can't believe how much muscle I lost during pregnancy. I can't believe I can't do this anymore. I'll never get back into that kind of shape again. And so of course I didn't want to do any of those exercises because who wants to do something that they just beat themselves up the whole time they're doing it? Nobody. Nobody wants to do that. Okay, so that's the same thing in your work, right? In your fundraising. You're not going to want to do any activities that you are just mean to yourself the whole time you're doing them. So a big part of growth and transformation is grace, is play, is trying new things, right? You're going to notice that you are more conscious at some points and then you go right back into your autoresponder at other others when you notice that I don't care if it's two hours later, a day later, a week later, where you're like, oh, there was my auto response. I want you to be like, oh, that makes sense. I'm learning how to bring more consciousness into that. I want you to give yourself so much grace, so many chances. Just move from that grace into curiosity. What might help me next time remember this better? Or is there something I could include in my, you know, everyday visuals that might help me remember that a little bit more. But it is so important that as you're trying to grow, grow as you're trying to develop, that you aren't beating yourselves up about not doing it fast enough, well enough, perfect enough, okay? Because this is really one of the places where people are like, oh, I am going to perfectly never be a perfectionist again. And I'm like, okay, so you all. We cannot type a self growth love yet. We cannot type a self growth. Self growth. Do you hear me? We are not going to type a our self growth. Also, do you notice that I leave all of my slip ups in these episodes? Why do I do that, do you think? Because I want you to see that something can be valid, valuable. There, there I go again. I told y', all, Emmy had a sleepover and I'm in sleepover brain mode. Okay? But I want you to see that things can be imperfect and still connected and meaningful. And that's the whole point. I think in this age of AI, folks want the most human real interactions, okay? They want you to be authentically you. So I want to make sure as you're moving through all the different things from this week that you are learning and embracing change with curiosity, self love and grace. And that you're trying to grow just 1% or one degree at a time. Because if every day we are moving by one degree, we're ultimately reorienting our entire direction. You do not need to do a 180, you do not need to do a 360. The idea behind growth is small, incremental growth every single day or every single week. And to know that it's not always going to be linear. Sometimes you take three steps forward and one step back, and then four steps forward and three steps back. Okay? All of that is okay. All of that is normal. We are dynamic, complex humans. So the most important thing throughout this entire journey is consciousness. Consciousness, acknowledging and validating how you feel, giving yourself grace and self love. All of these things are going to completely recalibrate how you feel and how you show up in your work and beyond. And I hope they're really helpful. As you think about the next week, month, end of your giving your career, I'm so grateful for you. Love y' all so much. Have a great weekend.
[09:43]
A
I hope today's episode inspired or challenged you to think differently. For additional takeaways, tips, show notes, and more about our amazing guest and sponsors, head on over to Mallory air Erickson.com podcast and if you didn't know, hosting this podcast isn't the only thing I do every day. I coach, guide and help fundraisers and leaders just like you. Inside of my program, the Power Partners Formula Collective. Inside the program, I share my methods, tools and experiences that have helped me fundraise millions of dollars and feel good about myself in the process. To learn more about how I can help you, Visit Mallory Eric Erickson.com Power Partners Last but not least, if you enjoyed this episode, I'd love to encourage you to share it with a friend you know would benefit or leave a review. I'm so grateful for all of you and the good hard work you're doing to make our world a better place. I can't wait to see you in the next episode.
[10:42]
B
Hey, I want to tell you about a podcast I genuinely love, the small nonprofit podcast. It's hosted by the incredible Maria Rio and it speaks directly to the realities so many of us are living inside every day. Maria, tell us about your show.
[10:58]
D
Hi, I'm your host, Maria Rio. I moved to Canada as a refugee, use charitable services myself, and have been fundraising for over a decade. I love exploring ways our sector can grow, change and make the world more equitable. The Small Nonprofit Podcast is where we do just that. I believe small nonprofits are where the most transformative work happens, but we've been set up to fail by systems that expect us to do more with less. Every week I sit down with leaders, fundraisers, and change makers who are doing things differently. They're building sustainable funding without compromising their values, creating power instead of dependence and pushing back on the broken systems we've all inherited. You'll walk away with actionable strategies you can use, not just inspiration. So if you're ready to stop scrambling and start building something that lasts, you're in the right place.
[11:48]
C
Let's get into it if you're leading
[11:51]
B
or fundraising at a small nonprofit and you're craving work that feels aligned, sustainable and human, go listen to the Small Nonprofit Podcast. Search the Small Nonprofit Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to listen.

Summary4 min read

What the Fundraising, Episode 315: “Conscious Fundraising: How to Move From Reaction to Intentional Action”

Host: Mallory Erickson
Date: August 7, 2026
Duration: ~10 minutes (content runs ~00:25–09:42)

Episode Overview

This episode centers on how nonprofit leaders and fundraisers can move from automatic, reactive patterns to more intentional, conscious action in their work. Mallory Erickson draws on her coaching experience to provide mindset shifts, actionable habits, and the vital role of self-compassion in sustainable, transformative fundraising leadership.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Consciousness as the Cornerstone of Change

Importance of Self-Awareness:
Mallory stresses that developing greater consciousness allows leaders to step out of “auto-response mode,” which is typically driven by stress and fear. Practicing consciousness puts fundraisers in the driver’s seat of their own experiences, even if they can’t control external behavior (like donors’ choices).

“One of the big components of what executive coaching is designed to do is help increase your consciousness so that you come out of a more auto-response space...into a more conscious space where we really feel like the facilitators and in control of our day-to-day lives and experiences.”
— Mallory Erickson [02:10]
Habit Formation:
She encourages listeners to develop daily and weekly habits that foster self-awareness, such as morning reflections or reviewing responses to stress, to gradually build the muscle of intentionality.

“What is a weekly and daily habit that could help you bring more consciousness into your life? That could be a morning activity, that could be a nightly reflection.”
— Mallory Erickson [03:08]

2. The Trap of Self-Criticism and Perfectionism

Self-Compassion is Essential:
Mallory points out that increased consciousness can sometimes lead to self-criticism when people notice unwanted patterns, like launching a “coffee fundraiser” out of habit. She warns against beating oneself up, which only demotivates further effort.

“Nobody wants to do things that they are mean to themselves while they do them.”
— Mallory Erickson [04:58]
Personal Story on Exercise:
In a relatable anecdote, Mallory explains how her discouraging self-talk made her avoid workouts she once enjoyed, underlining that self-compassion is necessary to sustain positive change.

3. Learning Through Grace, Play, and Incremental Growth

Embracing Mistakes:
Mallory models transparency and vulnerability, purposefully leaving her verbal slip-ups in the podcast as a demonstration that valuable work can be imperfect but still meaningful.

“Why do I do that, do you think? Because I want you to see that something can be valid, valuable...things can be imperfect and still connected and meaningful.”
— Mallory Erickson [06:44]
Small Steps, Not Perfection:
Change is not linear nor absolute. Mallory argues for small, consistent shifts—just “1% or one degree at a time”—as the most sustainable path, rather than aiming for total overhaul.

“You do not need to do a 180, you do not need to do a 360. The idea behind growth is small, incremental growth every single day or every single week.”
— Mallory Erickson [07:18]
Rejection of "Type A" Self-Growth:
She humorously rejects the idea that we can “type A” our way to self-love or development.

“We are not going to type A our self growth.”
— Mallory Erickson [06:32]

4. Practical Applications and Reflection Prompts

Questions for Listeners:
- What daily/weekly habits will help you become more conscious?
- How can you extend yourself more grace during moments of auto-response?
- What visual reminders or systems could cue greater self-awareness in your workday?
Realigning for the Long Term:
Recalibrating through consciousness and compassion, Mallory says, completely transforms both fundraising effectiveness and personal well-being.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

“You're not going to want to do any activities that you are just mean to yourself the whole time you're doing them.” [05:23]
“As you’re trying to grow...that you aren't beating yourselves up about not doing it fast enough, well enough, perfect enough, okay? Because this is really one of the places where people are like, ‘Oh, I am going to perfectly never be a perfectionist again.’” [06:15]
“All of that is okay. All of that is normal. We are dynamic, complex humans.” [08:14]
“The most important thing throughout this entire journey is consciousness. Consciousness, acknowledging and validating how you feel, giving yourself grace and self love.” [08:35]

Timestamps for Important Segments

00:25 – 02:10: Introduction to consciousness as a fundraising superpower
03:08 – 04:40: Developing conscious habits; examples of awareness practices
04:41 – 05:55: The power of self-compassion and why criticism blocks growth
06:15 – 07:18: Combating perfectionism; embracing mistakes and “Type A” humor
07:18 – 08:14: Small, incremental growth as a realistic and sustainable approach
08:14 – 09:42: Reframing mistakes, acknowledging complexity, and closing encouragement

Overall Tone

Real, candid, and compassionate—with a blend of humor and gentle challenge. Mallory’s coaching is empathetic, validating struggles while urging thoughtful, doable change.

Final Takeaway

To truly transform your fundraising approach and experience as a nonprofit leader, cultivate everyday consciousness and meet yourself with grace. Progress is gradual—embrace imperfection, stay curious, and aim for small, consistent steps rather than sudden overhauls. Your humanity, not your perfection, is the real key to long-term impact.

For more tools, resources, and transcripts, see: MalloryErickson.com/Podcast

Loading summary

Transcript11 lines

[00:04]
A
Before we dive in, I want to give a huge shout out to donorperfect for supporting this podcast and the fundraisers
[00:10]
B
who listen to it.
[00:10]
A
They're not just a CRM, they're a partner in helping fundraisers feel more confident, aligned and supported. Learn more@donorperfect.com Mallory.
[00:25]
C
A big part of growth and transformation is grace, is play, is trying new things, right? You're going to notice that you are more conscious at some points and then you go right back into your autoresponse. It is at others when you notice that I don't care if it's two hours later, a day later, a week later, where you're like oh, there was my auto response. I want you to be like oh, that makes sense. I'm learning how to bring more consciousness into that.
[00:54]
A
Hey, my name is Mallory and I'm obsessed with helping leaders in the nonprofit space raise money and run their organizations differently. What the fundraising is a space for real and raw conversations to both challenge and inspire you. Not too long ago I was in your shoes, uncomfortable with fundraising and unsure of my place in this sector. It wasn't until I started to listen to other experts outside of the fundraising space that I was able to shift my mindset and ultimately shift the way I show up as a leader. This podcast is my way of blending professional and personal development to so we as a collective inside the nonprofit sector can feel good about the work we are doing. Join me every week as I interview some of the brightest minds in the personal and professional development space to help you fundamentally change the way you lead and fundraise. I hope you enjoy this episode, so let's dive in.
[01:46]
C
Okey dokey. My fundraising friends, this has been a fun week of me and you. I hope you've liked these many episodes with little executive coaching tools and tips and and strategies and messages throughout the week. Somebody told me once that they would like to subscribe to a channel of me just saying affirmations every single day. So maybe the next one will just be that me reading off lots of fundraising affirmations. But today what I really want you to do is recognize that one of the through lines in all of these different episodes is consciousness. And one of the big components of what executive coaching is designed to do is help increase your consciousness so that you come out of a more autoresponse space which is really stress based and often fear based and responsive and reactive instead of proactive into a more conscious space where we really feel like the facilitators and in control of our day. To day lives and experiences. Not that we control all the behaviors of our donors, but that we feel in control over our experience, over our prioritization. We don't just constantly feel like we're in reaction mode, right? Because those are those auto responses, those stress responses, those that often aren't connected to where we're gonna see the most success or transformation in the work that we're doing. And we don't wanna feel at the effect of our life because that and feeling trapped and like we don't have a lot of choices, all of those things can have a really negative impact on our feelings of overwhelm and stress, et cetera. So one of the things that I really want to bring to light in this final episode this week is around consciousness and the role that consc needs to play in your daily experience. So I want you to think about what is a weekly and daily habit that could help you bring more consciousness into your life. That could be a morning activity, that could be a nightly reflection. There are a lot of different ways to increase your consciousness. Consciousness around your thought patterns. Consciousness around what's happening in your brain and body. Consciousness around why something happened the way that it did or how you could change an ultimate result. Consciousness around sitting in the discomfort and in the uncertainty instead of just fleeing into fight or flight or freeze. Ultimately, in that perfectionism, right? Consciousness around that perfectionism. Consciousness around what has been sitting on our to do list for a long time that we might be avoiding, etc. So I really want you to think about what is a daily and weekly consciousness habit that you could start to incorporate into your work. The other thing that is super important about all the different topics that we talked about this week is that in bringing in more consciousness, it is very, very important that you show yourself grace and support as you're learning to bring more consciousness and intentionality into your life. One of the big risks sometimes with executive coaching or with any of this type of work is that then you start to notice, oh wow, my auto response did kick in to gear then. And I absolutely shouldn't have started that coffee fundraiser, but I did because it was my auto response. And then you start to beat yourself up about the fact that you did that. Okay, this is not a way to build more consciousness because here's the secret. Nobody wants to do things that they are mean to themselves while they do them. Okay? Many, many years ago, I used to do CrossFit and after I had two babies, I was trying to get back into it and I couldn't And I couldn't figure it out because I used to love it used to feel so good and energizing and empowering and all of this. And I was like, why do I avoid this exercise that I used to love so much? And I realized it was because after having two babies, I was being so mean to myself. When I would do those exercises, I'd be like, oh my gosh, I can't believe how much muscle I lost during pregnancy. I can't believe I can't do this anymore. I'll never get back into that kind of shape again. And so of course I didn't want to do any of those exercises because who wants to do something that they just beat themselves up the whole time they're doing it? Nobody. Nobody wants to do that. Okay, so that's the same thing in your work, right? In your fundraising. You're not going to want to do any activities that you are just mean to yourself the whole time you're doing them. So a big part of growth and transformation is grace, is play, is trying new things, right? You're going to notice that you are more conscious at some points and then you go right back into your autoresponder at other others when you notice that I don't care if it's two hours later, a day later, a week later, where you're like, oh, there was my auto response. I want you to be like, oh, that makes sense. I'm learning how to bring more consciousness into that. I want you to give yourself so much grace, so many chances. Just move from that grace into curiosity. What might help me next time remember this better? Or is there something I could include in my, you know, everyday visuals that might help me remember that a little bit more. But it is so important that as you're trying to grow, grow as you're trying to develop, that you aren't beating yourselves up about not doing it fast enough, well enough, perfect enough, okay? Because this is really one of the places where people are like, oh, I am going to perfectly never be a perfectionist again. And I'm like, okay, so you all. We cannot type a self growth love yet. We cannot type a self growth. Self growth. Do you hear me? We are not going to type a our self growth. Also, do you notice that I leave all of my slip ups in these episodes? Why do I do that, do you think? Because I want you to see that something can be valid, valuable. There, there I go again. I told y', all, Emmy had a sleepover and I'm in sleepover brain mode. Okay? But I want you to see that things can be imperfect and still connected and meaningful. And that's the whole point. I think in this age of AI, folks want the most human real interactions, okay? They want you to be authentically you. So I want to make sure as you're moving through all the different things from this week that you are learning and embracing change with curiosity, self love and grace. And that you're trying to grow just 1% or one degree at a time. Because if every day we are moving by one degree, we're ultimately reorienting our entire direction. You do not need to do a 180, you do not need to do a 360. The idea behind growth is small, incremental growth every single day or every single week. And to know that it's not always going to be linear. Sometimes you take three steps forward and one step back, and then four steps forward and three steps back. Okay? All of that is okay. All of that is normal. We are dynamic, complex humans. So the most important thing throughout this entire journey is consciousness. Consciousness, acknowledging and validating how you feel, giving yourself grace and self love. All of these things are going to completely recalibrate how you feel and how you show up in your work and beyond. And I hope they're really helpful. As you think about the next week, month, end of your giving your career, I'm so grateful for you. Love y' all so much. Have a great weekend.
[09:43]
A
I hope today's episode inspired or challenged you to think differently. For additional takeaways, tips, show notes, and more about our amazing guest and sponsors, head on over to Mallory air Erickson.com podcast and if you didn't know, hosting this podcast isn't the only thing I do every day. I coach, guide and help fundraisers and leaders just like you. Inside of my program, the Power Partners Formula Collective. Inside the program, I share my methods, tools and experiences that have helped me fundraise millions of dollars and feel good about myself in the process. To learn more about how I can help you, Visit Mallory Eric Erickson.com Power Partners Last but not least, if you enjoyed this episode, I'd love to encourage you to share it with a friend you know would benefit or leave a review. I'm so grateful for all of you and the good hard work you're doing to make our world a better place. I can't wait to see you in the next episode.
[10:42]
B
Hey, I want to tell you about a podcast I genuinely love, the small nonprofit podcast. It's hosted by the incredible Maria Rio and it speaks directly to the realities so many of us are living inside every day. Maria, tell us about your show.
[10:58]
D
Hi, I'm your host, Maria Rio. I moved to Canada as a refugee, use charitable services myself, and have been fundraising for over a decade. I love exploring ways our sector can grow, change and make the world more equitable. The Small Nonprofit Podcast is where we do just that. I believe small nonprofits are where the most transformative work happens, but we've been set up to fail by systems that expect us to do more with less. Every week I sit down with leaders, fundraisers, and change makers who are doing things differently. They're building sustainable funding without compromising their values, creating power instead of dependence and pushing back on the broken systems we've all inherited. You'll walk away with actionable strategies you can use, not just inspiration. So if you're ready to stop scrambling and start building something that lasts, you're in the right place.
[11:48]
C
Let's get into it if you're leading
[11:51]
B
or fundraising at a small nonprofit and you're craving work that feels aligned, sustainable and human, go listen to the Small Nonprofit Podcast. Search the Small Nonprofit Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to listen.