How to Give Back with Impact

Oh, thank you, Angela, I'm really happy to be here.
I'm super excited. Before we dive in and get into the goods and talk about your book, I would love for you to share with our audience because I was reading up on it last night. And I'm like, this is awesome. But I still would love to know more. And then obviously people watching or listening. Tell them your journey. How did you get involved? And what really drove you to write your book?
Yes. So you know, from an early age, I don't really know why. But I was very interested in really helping other people and what was going on around the world. And I ended up taking a job out of college, I moved from Indiana University where I was at school to San Francisco and took a job with an organization a nonprofit organization that was trying to support human rights in El Salvador. And this was in the middle of El Salvador Civil War. So it was a very dangerous time there, you know, 75,000 people had been killed and 1000s and 1000s more had disappeared or had been tortured. I mean, it was horrible. And so we were trying to raise money and support these organizations, organizations there. And, and this was back in the day when the big technology of the day was the fax machine. And oh, my God, way back in the day, right. And, and so we used faxes the way we people use social media today, which is to get the word out quickly about whatever you're working on. So we would send these fax alerts to folks to, to call their Congress person or to show up for a demonstration or whatever it might be. And, but as an organization, we didn't feel like we could afford to buy our own fax machine because we were trying to raise all the money, we could and send it to El Salvador, right? So instead, we borrowed somebody else's fax machine from another organization 10 blocks away. So every day, one of us would walk 10 blocks, send our faxes and walk back, which is about a mile round trip, right? About an hour. Wow. Right? The answer? Right? So then fast forward, and a couple years later, I went to El Salvador on a delegation, a bunch of us were bringing aid and supplies and support and it was my first time there. And I didn't quite know what to expect. We walked into the first door nonprofit that we were supporting there and I opened the door and what do you think I saw a ginormous fax machine. machine was like the biggest fax machine I'd ever seen it like stood on the ground, like not only fax, but it copied collated stapled, you know, that's awesome. And I was stunned because you know, here we were coming from the US bringing aid to support this organization that was relying upon international donations, right? And they couldn't afford a fax machine. And apparently we couldn't. So I asked the rector, I said, How does this happen? And they looked at me like I had six heads and he said, Well, we rely on faxes, we need to send them every day. Of course, we have a fax machine. No, my first understanding of what I now call delusional altruism, which really means you genuinely want to make a difference. You care and you want to help Others, but you're delusional and and how you get are getting in your own way and actually preventing yourself from making the difference that you want. And one of those ways that happens, is that what I call a scarcity mindset. And so really, if you look at that example, you know, think of how much time we were wasting, I guess, let's just say an hour a day, you know, all year long, sending faxes? What if we had spent the probably $900, a fax machine would have cost back then since it was new? And I don't know fundraised, you know, like, called donors during that hour, like, think of how much more money we could have made to send well, Salvador, which is our goal. But we had the scarcity mindset, we didn't believe we could have, we deserved to invest that money in ourselves. And so really, that was eye opening for me. From that job, I ended up getting a master's in social work, I worked at Stanford University, evaluating youth and gang violence prevention programs, that was funded by a single foundation. So that got me intrigued about the role of philanthropy and all of this. Because if you have not just a lot of money, but you're really smart, and how you think about, you know, investing those resources, you can create a lot of positive change. So then I went to work for the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, which is the Family Foundation of Dave Packard of HP, and was one of the largest in the country at the time. And so that really kind of put me on my journey in philanthropy, I began doing some consulting on the side. And from there, you know, as consulting for Charles Schwab's Family Foundation, and many others, and now it's been over 20 years that I've been advising and consulting and philanthropy.
That's, it's, it's amazing, that's such a good story. It just, it reminds me of just how you as business owners, we talk about that, like, let's work smarter, not harder. And thinking, I'm thinking in my head, like five hours a week times 52 weeks is how many hours worth someone's precious time. And nowadays, I still think people would be fine with it, because you know, has a Fitbit and they're like, Oh, just get my stepson, they'd probably be fine with it. But it's like is that really the best use of time where you can like, make an impact and make a difference? And, and I mean, I've learned so much just in the past few years about really understanding how just a small thing that either it's your time your giving or its money, because there's a lot of different ways you can give it doesn't always have to be monetary. But that is one way that you can make such a difference. And so did something happen or trigger you to say I have to write this book to, like really make people aware of their delusional was there a certain thing or you were just like, you know what, I've been doing this for two decades, I need to write a book, like what was the debt driving passion, because it's a big project. It's a book, it's a big project. So how, and a lot of our, our listeners and our and our viewers, we're all about productivity. So I'd love to know, what was that driving force? And how did you actually sit down and like accomplish it?
Yeah, it's a great question. So there's three things that converge to help me want to write the book. And the first was just 20 years of experience, advising, funders, philanthropists, and by that I mean you know, ultra high net worth donors, leaders of foundations, you know, family foundations, community foundations, corporate giving programs. And after 20 years, you know, to seeing them saint make some of the same mistakes over and over again. And so that was part of it. Another part of it really was being in part of a community of consultants. So you know, I really believe in part from my experience with the facts story, in investing in my own professional development and my own growth and coaching and mentoring. And so I'm part of a consultant community through consultant His name is Alan Weiss. And he, he has written Gosh, I don't know over 60 books, six zero books and a lot of accountants that are involved in working with him exactly, have written a lot of books and so I began to talking to other consultants not in my field, but other fields about why they wrote a book and how they wrote a book and how it wasn't like as hard as you think it is, and the resources they used. And so that became very helpful. I got practical advice and and learning from them. And and then the third thing was You know, one of the questions I asked all my clients is, if you could only accomplish one thing this year, but it was going to be your legacy at your organization, what would it be? And it's a great question because it really drives home. We all have lots of priorities. But what is that one? You know, that real deep, important one. And I asked myself that question and write the book was like, immediately pops into my head within, you know, nanoseconds. And so I just realized to me, you know, if I did nothing else, I can at least share this knowledge and help funders as well as you know, nonprofits. And quite frankly, it's a practical book for business leaders as well, to help them you know, create the impact that they want to have by getting out of their own way.
That's, it's so awesome. So one really, really important thing that I heard out of that was that you surrounded yourself with the right people, you knew that they had done something that you had in your head that you wanted to do. And so surrounding yourself with the right people, and submerging yourself around people that already did something that you want to do is so key to like, hitting the goal and meeting the goal. And then the other thing, I was listening to a podcast the other day, and someone was saying that they recently went there a workshop and they wrote, I guess, like their eulogy is is what would people stand up and say, at their funeral. And he was like, I don't want people to stand up and say, Oh, my gosh, she worked 180 hours a week, like there's not even that many hours in the week. And like, he just worked worked worked. Like that's not what you want people to stand up and say about you. And so he was like what you just said like the one thing that repetitively people would stand up and say, how did you make a difference? How did you make an impact in people's lives? and start working towards that? What do you want your kids to think about you? If if you if something were to happen to you when they were young? Like how would you want your kids to remember? Did you show up? You know, he obviously he's a dad. So he's like, did you show up as a dad? And it just gets you to think differently. And I'm glad we live in more of a transparent world these days. Because these are conversations that when I was younger, and we just didn't have these conversations. And so before we started recording, you told me something really neat that your book launched a week after lockdown. Yes. And however, you really your mindset is just amazing. You said, you know, I've been over on over 40 podcast, it really, it just could do a book tour. So we're gonna do a virtual tour. And you said you probably been able to meet more people and reach more people than you would have if you were traveling around doing a book tour. And so just the impact, it's like, there's a reason for everything. Don't we don't always know what it is. But I just think it's incredible how you pivoted. And so, but I would love for you to start off and share because you mentioned something, mistakes that that people are making a lot of mistakes when they're they want to give and they want to give back. So what are some things you guys you're going to have to read the book, we'll put the link in the show notes, but a few like little teasers. What are some some big mistakes that you see people because clearly, you got frustrated? And you're like people need to know, we don't know what we don't know. So if you'll share?
Yes, absolutely. So again, the book is delusional hours to give and you know, I think anyone who gives up themselves, their resources, their time, time, treasure talent, ties, which includes like the connections you have, and ways you can help people by opening doors for them. It's all really valuable. So a couple of mistakes. One is I referenced a little bit earlier is the scarcity mindset. And so you know, part and I think all of us that can experience this as business owners, as funders, as nonprofit leaders, not investing in ourselves, and our own development. And as a funder, it's really important to invest in yourself that could be investing in your learning your understanding of the community of the needs, and whatever issue you care about. It could also be investing time and taking the time to build a trusting relationship with a nonprofit that you're supporting, and really understanding what's going on with them and showing up for them. It can also be you know, investing in technology, investing and getting a coach or advisor or someone to guide you and help you on this philanthropic journey. But also I think one of the ways this shows up in supporting nonprofits is funders and donors often don't invest Enough in the nonprofit they're trying to support. meaning there's, there's kind of this myth that a nonprofit is effective if 99 cents of every dollar given goes to, you know, help the people they serve, and only one cents on the dollar is for quote unquote, overhead or administration, which is somehow bad, right? But it really makes no sense. Because if there's a nonprofit that you believe in, and they're doing great work, you know, if it's on trying to end human trafficking, or if it's supporting mental health services, whatever the issue is, if they're doing a great job, well, don't you want them to have top talent? Don't you want them to have great financial management practices, a good ability to raise funds, a way to communicate effectively a good website, a great board of directors, the ability to evaluate themselves and make improvements? Well, of course you do, right. But that cost money, you know, those things don't just happen. And too often, I think we expect nonprofits to get by on a shoestring. And we, and then we, we forced that upon them, because we only give them little bits of money, you know, it's never enough. And there's, there's sort of forced to like cobbled together bits of money from different sources to actually fund their work. It doesn't allow the executive director enough time to build relationships to network to fundraise to like to think or plan, God forbid, you know, plan. And so we really just want to get as delusional, you know, you think you're being I don't know, like a good steward, or you're being really efficient with your money, but really, you're just holding the nonprofit back, and preventing them from doing the good work that they could be doing, if they had the sufficient resources they need. So that's one example that scarcity mindset. Another is feeling fearful. And I think fear really holds back, even the wealthiest of donors. And it holds all of us back really, but happens in a few different ways. I think there's a lot of fear of failure. in philanthropy, there's some good alliteration there. Fear of failure in philanthropy. So that happens when you know, you you you want to make a difference and kind of create change, but you're worried that the nonprofit you're going to invest in isn't going to be successful. So you kind of hold back, or you worry that you are going to be it kind of exposed as a as a donor, right, as a wealthy individual. There's a lot of fear that the wealthiest have around others knowing their wealth. That seems odd. But because it can change there can change relationships, it can change family dynamics, and suddenly they're looked at differently, or people have expectations on them that they didn't previously have. There's fear of coming out in support of a particular cause or issue, right? Because there could be so much backlash. You know, even if you recall, a few years ago, there were the fires in Paris and the Notre Dame Cathedral. Yeah, these were caught on fire, right, which was a huge, you know, devastating, and many ultra wealthy families came out and really fallen topically, almost for the first time to contribute to the rebuilding of the cathedral, which was great. And a lot of people criticize them. The criticism came in the form of well, why do you care about cathedrals and not synagogues and mosques? Why are you supporting the cathedral and not like migrants, you know, drowning and oceans? Trying to get to safety? Why are you supporting the cathedral and not people that are starting around the world, right, so
and all that really does is scare the donor into like, back into hiding, you know, it kind of prevents them from from being philanthropic. So there's a lot of fear, fear of losing control, I think part of that issue around, not giving nonprofits the resources they need, and not offering them general operating support, putting a lot of restrictions on their funding is kind of fear of losing control. It's my money. And I'm going to tell you, nonprofit, exactly how you should do your work. When really, it's a nonprofit that knows the issue and knows the community and knows what needs to get done. And the third is not having a strategy. I mean, the third mistake that comes out a lot is just lack of a strategy. And, you know, if you don't know where you're going, you're not likely going to get there right away. Again, for business, it's true for nonprofits, and it's very true for philanthropy. And too often funders don't have either don't have clarity of their strategy or They spend an enormous amount of time developing their strategic plan, meaning like a year and a half, to kind of create the strategic, the beautifully designed strategic plan documents, to go on the website, and then by the time you've been created their strategy, like the world has changed, or at least was right, it's outdated. And then they're delayed in implementing it. So either they don't have one, we typically either they don't have one, or they've exhausted themselves spending a lot of money, a lot of time creating the strategic plan, that never really gets off the ground. And by the way, it's actually out of date. And so I really advise my clients to rapidly create your strategy. It's really just thinking about, what do we want to accomplish a year from now? What kind of philanthropists do we want to be in a year? And where are we today? And what are the three things the three most important things that are going to help us get from where we are today to where we want to be? And who's accountable for each of those? And let's get moved. It really is that simple.
Well, and my thing is like, you exactly the third thing that you said, I even see it so much in businesses, like going in and say, absolutely, oh, it's okay. Like you have a book launch. And or you have a podcast launch, or you have something to launch? And I'm like, what, what? What's your strategy, your strategy, like your 90 day plan? to roll it out through social media? Or what's your budget to run ads, so that you can actually reach more people? And exactly what you're saying about this? People? I don't know, who were we as human beings, we make shit up in our heads? And so they're like, Oh, well, we can't spend money on ads, because exactly what you're saying, well, we need to take this money, because so and so donated this. And I'm like, Well, wait a minute. I mean, we can really reach the right people by being strategic. And if we spend $1, and we make $5, or $2, or even 50 cents on the dollar, why would we not take some of that fund the money and use it to reach people? And even right now, we have a, we work with a few nonprofits, and I'm involved at a different level, just from some of his personal experience. You know, if you were to ask me five years ago, would you be involved in human trafficking or something about als? No, but my sister has ALS, my brother started something for human trafficking, he saw something he's like, we're going to do something about it. And we're also going to partner with the other nonprofits that are trying to make a difference in Middle Tennessee. So of course, whatever my brother and sister doing, like, I'm going to support that. And so one thing that I really can bring to the table and being on the board is that, you know, from a marketing perspective, and an events perspective, and when they Oh, my gosh, like, they have to read your book, like all these people, because they're like, well, we really should have a bar or valet, because, you know, it's somewhat nonprofit. And we are on that shoestring budget, I'm like, but it's all about creating an experience. And if there's a tornado warning, and there's really bad rain, and there's no parking garages around, where we chose to do it in downtown Nashville, because this space was donated, you know, whatever. Like, we still need to provide that experience. And so it's the mindset that hasn't been set on the right path. And there's a major difference, I don't see the major difference between if you own a business, like you kind of get it, like you need to invest the money to run the business portion. And if you're not running a nonprofit as a business, then the money usually isn't being used in a strategic way because you don't have a plan. And I always say it's like getting on a flight. And your pilots blindfolded and you bought a ticket, but you don't know where you're going. None of us would do that usually, but people do with their business all the time. And then I see it even in nonprofits. It's not that people intentionally do it, they just they don't know what they don't know. And so I think that this is awesome, because it's really going to shift that mindset of you've got to show up with a plan. I mean, even the, the Human trafficking is, you know, work with a bunch of guys, and they came from the Drug Task Force and two of them that this has been their career. There's two gentlemen in the entire state of Tennessee that help fight Human Trafficking, it's not enough people. And so we recently went to a fundraiser and they were saying the funds are being allocated specifically to hire more people in the private investigation world to actually help catch these people. It's like a billion dollar industry, it's very sick. And so exactly what you're saying, again, it's like, what is my money going towards? And a lot of people, they do ask those questions. But let's just take a step back and think about the business portion. You know, it's really important that you're providing a great experience for people and telling the stories and, and showing up to share the difference that that things are making. But yeah, the business piece, I just, I don't understand. But now in like, talking through it with you, I'm like, Oh, I totally get it. They don't know what they don't know. Right. And then the other interesting point you have about fear. And I will even say that, I've experienced a little bit of this where on LinkedIn, someone reached out and I was they heard a podcast, and they heard me talking about something I was involved in in there. But I didn't tell the backstory. I'm like, Oh, the reason is, because my, my sister has that. And so I've really been thoughtful. And like, if I bring something up, that people are going to come back and question and it's fun, like asking questions is good, but they wanted me to come and donate and back their stuff. And basically, I responded, and I said, you know, we have a budget, we have a budget every year for how much time I'm going to spend from a marketing perspective, from a website perspective, from a support subject perspective, and then how we're going to give monetarily and so they were trying to push me and say, why this come over to this, I think you'd be great for this. And I'm like, we've already allocated all of our funds, you know, for that year. And so people see people giving, and then it's like, opening the doors to all this stuff. And then they see, because we talked about as women making a profit, and, and building revenue and making sure you're profitable. And they think that, you know, some of us, we walk in ship money or something. And it's like, no, it just because someone's running a 678 910 figure business doesn't mean that you have all this extra money just laying around and you should give it to charity. Like, there's a strategy behind that. So I again, but I never thought of it that way. And then there's even where some of the singers and songwriters that we work with in Nashville, they don't want people to know, they're completely anonymous. And of course, their publicist from a PR perspective is like, Oh, this is a group and it's like, I'm not doing it for PR I that's not why I'm doing this like I genuinely want to help like when the tornadoes came through. And demolish demolished East Nashville. There were some people that that stepped up and, and really donated. Not that that was, you know, something that's a long term nonprofit we have that never happens again. But just the way that people stand up, do it. And they don't want people to know, to meet me. And it's kind of sad that, that they're afraid. But I never really thought of it that way again, until it like you bring up great, great points. So if people want to give back and they want to get involved, there's probably some questions they should ask. If you can give us some tips on that.
Yeah, absolutely. So if you want to, what I would start with the question why think about like your purpose of giving, you know, why give like, What are you trying to accomplish with giving and it might be because you personally have been impacted by an issue or cause or maybe a family member is involved or you've just learned about something through you know, watching the news or whatever is happening in your community or, you know, some families there why of why they give is they want to kind of build a culture of philanthropy across generations, in their family, and that's part of their why. And so when you get clarity on your, your why and your what, you know, what kind of impact do I want to have? What issues do I care about? What kind of philanthropic family or business do I want to become, then the how becomes easier. So then you can figure out you know, like, one of my A friend of mine is in an ultra high net worth family there. Her father was the CEO of a company, I can't name it, but as one would probably own the product. And they're very philanthropic family and their y was, you know, they really wanted to build a culture of giving in their philanthropy and and so how they do that is every year As a family, they pick one issue. And they learn about it together as a family. And then together, they come up with, they come up with, like, you know, nonprofits that they want to support, and they fund those organizations and kind of learn from those organizations. And then after three years, they move on to a different issue. And they're very clear with those nonprofits, this is not going to be a long term, you know, funding relationship, but that's how they do their giving, because of why they give and what they want to accomplish. Whereas, you know, if, you know, you're supporting, you know, your brother in human trafficking, human trafficking organization, you know, how you could support him might be in different kinds of ways it could be financial, but it could also be donating your experience and your know how, as a business owner, and in marketing, and all the ways that you can support events and whatnot. So I think, you know, it's, it's getting that clarity first, and, and, you know, taking the time and reflecting on your life experience, and what issues are meaningful to you. But also, you know, not worrying about getting it right, you know, not feeling obsessed about Gosh, what is more important, like mental health or substance abuse treatment? Well, you know, they're both important, like, you know, yes, one or one vote, you know, and learn a lot and see where it goes. And if you choose that you've learned something different, or you want to support a different issue, like that's perfectly fine. In fact, I think, you know, the same is true for strategy development and creating a plan, it can feel very daunting these days, to plan ahead, right, because, as we've learned with COVID, and everything, the world is changing, and it will go on a dime, right, and it will continue to change. But the reality is, the future is no more uncertain today than it was two years ago, or last decade or last century. And so rather than having that feeling of this, the future is uncertain, paralyze you, we need to change our mindset to let that free us and recognize that that's, that is normal, actually, and, you know, we don't have to plan for every contingency, but we still can, you know, kind of rapidly create a plan that we can count on with the confidence that we can pivot and change and adapted along the way. Because that really is how it always is, right? Like there is no new normal coming. No.
Because it never wasn't normal, right? Things are always been changing. And so we have to, I think, embrace those agility and pivoting muscles we've been developing recently, and continue to exercise them. And very practically, like, again, what are you trying to accomplish with your business with your philanthropy? Where are you right now? What are the three things you should focus on? Like getting moving on those? And then build in time, like in the next year, every two months, once a quarter, once, whatever makes sense, once a month? And check in? How are we doing on this plan on this? Are we implementing our strategy? What's working? Well, what's not working? Well? What do we need to change? Has anything in the world changed recently that would cause us to adapt what we're trying to do? If so great, like then change it. But keep going. Because that strategy is really your decision making framework, it's really what's helping you figure out where you're headed. And when shiny objects come at you, you can decide, you know, is that a shiny object I should ignore? Because it's not helping me achieve my goals? Or is it something new, that I should take a look at that actually will help me because things have changed. And so I did want to share, I have a guy that I think would be of interest to your listeners that maps out eight steps to do this, yes, that I want to share and it's called eight things every philanthropist can do to change the world, even when the world keeps changing. And you can go to eight things.org and it's a free download. And again, it's it's written for funders and donors, but honestly, it's as applicable to a business owner as it is a nonprofit as it is to a philanthropist. So again, eight things.org. And there's that free download.
Thank you so much. And we will put that in the show notes as well. And I also know that top donors seek you out to to help them and guide them and lead them and so from a coaching and consulting perspective, if someone would like your help in do you help people like from the ground up like do you if they want to start a nonprofit? Or are you like they need to be in existence for five for 10 years, like what are the pre qualifications that if people need help, or coaching or consulting? How could they work with you?
Yeah, I help philanthropists and leaders of foundations and corporate giving programs really at any stage of their philanthropic journey. So I love helping when it's brand new, you know, sometimes it's a family coming into wealth, or there's a sale of a business. And they're deciding how to give, or they've been giving, but want to become more strategic and focused, or I work with a lot of, you know, existing foundations and organizations that are trying to shift the way that they're working. And so I do a lot of strategy development and strategy implementation. And then I coach CEOs of foundations and corporate giving programs and high net worth donors, and also, you know, serve as a trusted adviser.
That's awesome. So would they go to your website for that? To reach out to you? Yes.
So my website is Putnam dash consulting, calm, and you can contact me there. And also, if you go to eight things.org, to download that free guide, that's also part of my website, so you can find me there as well.
And where can they get the book? Well, of course,
it's available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. But if you go to delusional altruism.com, that's the book website and all the links to purchase the book I write, they're
awesome. And guys, if you're listening, and you're multitasking, because I know a lot of you do, we will put all of this in the show notes. Chris, this was so awesome. If people want to reach out to you through social media, do you have like a favorite platform where they should connect with you?
Yeah, LinkedIn is the main place where I am these days, and I'm there at Chris Putnam. This is the best way to find me.
Awesome. This was so insightful and so helpful, and such a need of conversation that we just haven't had the opportunity to really talk about it. So thank you for reaching out to us. And thank you for really helping set the stage for a mindset of how you can think differently and really help support a nonprofit and help them thrive. So this was amazing.
Awesome, thank you so much for having me.
Of course and everyone that's listening and watching. Be sure to tune in next week for another episode of business unveiled by y'all.
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