“…Admitting uncertainties or limitations, for example, saying, 'We can’t help everyone, but here’s how we are trying,' can actually boost credibility…” 

I am reading from Neurogiving. The Science of Donor Decision-Making by Cherian Koshy, published in 2025.

Reflection question:

• As you're preparing your case for support or talking with donors, consider where can you be more honest about limitations instead of glossing over them or exaggerating the impact your campaign will have.

Reflection on quote:

Last week, we discussed how leading a capital campaign is like standing at the base of a mountain where the trail is obscured from view by the undergrowth of the forest and one key principles is to be curious when facing scrutiny. This week, we will be looking how honesty fits into leading with integrity when sharing the impact the capital campaign will have on the community. 

When we're leading a capital campaign in a small town, we know our neighbors and we want to appear competent and confident to them. There's a temptation, when we're asking for significant donations for something as big as a capital campaign, to want to present a version of our organization that looks like it has everything figured out. As if, we’re solving the whole mountainside of problems. But that's not the story that builds trust. Think about the difference between a leader who says “This project will absolutely solve every challenge our mission, our community faces” and one who says “This project won't solve everything, but it's a meaningful step, and here's exactly how we expect it will help.” The second leader is building trust and leading with integrity.  The second leader is marking the actual trail that leads up the mountainside. When we lead with honesty — including honesty about our limitations — we're not weakening our case with donors. We're strengthening it.

Here's how to purchase Neurogiving from Wiley or Amazon.

Quote used by permission.

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