Tellwell: The Podcast

Jenny Olson left Microsoft twice, built a state government office from scratch with no background in the field, and now leads the advancement team at Concordia College. Her grandma asked why she’d forsake a bird in the hand for two in the bush, and she walked away from the sure thing anyway. Six leaps in, she sat down with Max Kringen to talk about authentic leadership, managing your emotions at work, and why she still calls a mentor she hasn’t seen in years before she decides. 🎯 This one is for anyone staring down a change they don’t feel ready for.

Before you listen, ask yourself:

• Whose career are you watching to figure out your own next move?
• When you weigh a big risk, who do you actually call?
• Are you dampening your personality down to fit a room?
• When you walked away from a sure thing, what did the fear sound like?
• Who refills your bucket, and are you keeping that thread alive?

By the end, you’ll know how to:

• Pick your next move by watching where leaders you admire spend their energy
• Call a mentor you’ve lost touch with and keep that relationship alive
• Set up a hard conversation by putting all your cards on the table first
• Coach your team from what works for you, offered as a perspective and not a playbook
• Bring your full personality to work instead of filing it down to fit in
• Refill an empty tank by turning outward, the way a runner at mile 10 thanks the volunteers and gets the energy back
• Walk away from a golden-handcuffs job when the calling in your gut won’t quiet down

Key quote highlights:

“I’ve always followed good leaders in my career. I fundamentally believe in the principle you are what you surround yourself and what you will become.”

“I did not know you could be inspired in your work, actually feel the feeling and the emotion of being inspired literally five days a week.”

About Jenny Olson: Jenny Olson grew up in Cokato, Minnesota, graduated from Concordia College in 2001, and built her career in the Fargo-Moorhead region. She spent years at Microsoft and Great Plains Software, then left to launch Recovery Reinvented, North Dakota’s initiative to eliminate the stigma of addiction, before returning to Microsoft to lead the Fargo campus. Today she leads the advancement team at Concordia College, her alma mater, where she describes herself as a confetti cannon in a sector known for moving slowly. Learn more at [CONCORDIA URL]

⏱ Timestamps
00:00 Who the heck is Jenny
05:00 The gutsy leaps and the golden handcuffs
09:10 What it looks like to follow a good leader
14:35 Emotions at work, and why self-awareness is the job
19:53 Recovery Reinvented and the heroes in her backyard
26:39 How every road led to Concordia
34:46 Showing up when the energy is hard to bring
43:40 One good thing: everybody wants to help

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Concordia College: [CONCORDIA URL]
• Recovery Reinvented: https://www.recoveryreinvented.com
• The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann

🔔 Stay Connected
Subscribe wherever you listen so you catch the next conversation, and send this one to someone weighing a leap they don’t feel ready for.
Website: https://wetellwell.com
Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/
Max on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkringen

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast
Tellwell: The Podcast is a weekly conversation with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven storytellers about building trust and belonging. Host Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller and founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, North Dakota, talks with the people doing the work about what worked, what didn’t, and what they learned along the way.

#followinggoodleaders #nonprofitleadership #authenticleadership #sayingyes #concordiacollege #tellwellpodcast

99% of nonprofits are fighting over 1% of the pot. That is cash. The real money sits in everything else a donor owns.

Most fundraisers ask for a check and stop there. Eric Wilke has spent 25 years in the nonprofit sector, first in the trenches at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, now leading the FM Area Foundation in Fargo. In this conversation he walks through non-cash giving the way donors actually experience it: the farm nobody wants, the second home in California, the appreciated stock, the IRA that gets taxed to pieces when it passes to the kids. He also makes the case that generosity is harder work than most people think, that a planned gift can outlive the donor, and that the best major gift conversations often never mention money at all. He also tells the story of a million dollar gift that turned on a book left in a milk crate. Get this right and a modest giver becomes a major one. 💡

Ask yourself:

📌 Are you only ever asking for cash?
📌 Do you know which of a donor's assets are good to give and which are bad?
📌 When someone offers an unusual gift, is your first instinct yes or no?
📌 Are you listening for the gift, or waiting for your turn to pitch?
📌 Would you keep showing up for a donor even if you knew there was no gift coming?

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Spot the non-cash assets sitting inside almost every donor's estate
• Explain why an appreciated asset gives more to the cause than the cash left after tax
• Compare good gift assets against bad ones, starting with the IRA-versus-life-insurance question
• Reframe the conversation around the donor's need to give instead of your need to have
• Listen for the story that opens the gift, the way Wilke did across a milk crate and an aunt from the 1930s
• Make the ask without apology, because people genuinely want to be asked
• Position a community foundation as a donor's charitable checkbook without overselling it

Key quote highlights:

"99% of the nonprofits are fighting over 1% of the pot because not all of them will only take cash."

"Giving has to be about the donor's need to give and not the charity's need to have."

⏱ Timestamps
00:00 The 1% problem, and why cash is the wrong fight
02:30 The nonprofit trenches, and what program work teaches you about the money that funds it
06:47 What people get wrong about giving, and why it is rarely transactional
12:22 Maximizing philanthropy through appreciated assets, plus the California home nobody would take
19:45 Good assets, bad assets, and why the IRA should go to charity
25:50 What a community foundation actually does, and who it says no to
31:54 The million dollar gift that started with a milk crate, and why the ask is a gift in itself

📌 Resources mentioned

• FM Area Foundation: areafoundation.org
• Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch
• Fargo Theatre (a nonprofit, in case you did not know)
• Seasons of Story by Max Kringen
• WellTold Conference, featuring keynote Clay Buck
• Edwin Markham, "Outwitted" (the circle poem Wilke closes on)

🔔 Stay connected
New conversations with nonprofit leaders every week. Subscribe so you catch the next one.

• Web: wetellwell.com
• Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/
• Max on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkringen

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast
Tellwell: The Podcast is a weekly show hosted by Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller and founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, North Dakota. Every week Max sits down with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven storytellers to talk about the work of building trust and belonging. You get real conversations, honest advice, and ideas you can put to work on Monday morning. If you raise money or lead a mission-driven organization, this is a table worth pulling up a chair to.

#nonprofitfundraising #plannedgiving #majorgifts #communityfoundation #nonprofitleadership #philanthropy #donorrelationships

What if the grant application is the thing standing between a small town and the money it needs? Megan Langley of StrengthenND asked that, then scrapped the application entirely.

This episode of Tellwell: The Podcast is a working session on rural philanthropy and what it takes to move resources into communities the funding system skips. Megan leads StrengthenND, a North Dakota organization supporting smaller communities through grant making, an incubator farm, local foods work, and a People Power AmeriCorps program. She makes the case for community-owned capital, trust-based grant making, and systems change that starts with one small lever. If you raise money for a mission, fund other people's work, or fight for a town most maps ignore, this one is for you. 🌾

Ask yourself:

📌 Does your grant process reward good writing more than good ideas?
📌 Are you funding the prettiest brochure, or the org closest to the problem?
📌 When a project changes mid-grant, can your grantee call you, or are they stuck to a promise from nine months ago?
📌 Who in your community gets left out before they ever hit submit?

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Rethink the grant application as a barrier instead of a default
• Design funding that lets a town of 150 compete with a fifteen-million-dollar org
• Build trust-based relationships that survive a change in scope
• Find the one lever of change worth pushing in a community
• Structure community-owned capital that treats a town like an entrepreneur
• Spot the difference between efficiency fixes downstream and systems change upstream
• Lead like a builder when tearing things down would be easier

Key Quote Highlights:

"What's that one lever that we could push to make things easier for everybody, to make it more equitable for everybody? Get rid of a grant application."

"It doesn't matter what you've done in the past. We're just gonna have to try. Everything is figureoutable."

Guest Bio:

Megan Langley leads StrengthenND from a farm outside Souris, in a community of about 35 people. She started at the Minot Area Community Foundation, where she kept a dream book of ideas the system was not ready for yet. Today she runs grant making and rural development across the state, including the Creative Community Solutions program that has funded 44 of 45 projects by getting to the root of what people actually need. Learn more at strengthennd.com

⏱ Timestamps (estimated, verify against the final edit):

00:00 Meeting in Williston and why rural gets overlooked
04:11 Why rural is a choice worth defending
07:09 The dream book and parking ideas that are not ready
11:09 Finding the one lever of change in a community
12:16 Killing the grant application and what changed
17:08 A 44 of 45 success rate and why trust beats brochures
21:05 The rooster, the wiffle ball bat, and figureoutable

📌 Resources Mentioned:

• StrengthenND: strengthennd.com
• Creative Community Solutions grant program
• Cheyenne Grit, the community-owned financing pilot in Cheyenne, ND
• Northwest North Dakota Community Foundation
• Minot Area Community Foundation
• The Arnold Bezran Fund

🔔 Stay Connected:

Subscribe for weekly conversations with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven storytellers. New episodes every week.

• Website: wetellwell.com
• Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/
• Max on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkringen

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast:

Tellwell: The Podcast is a weekly show hosted by Max Kringen, founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, North Dakota. Every episode is a real conversation with the people building trust and belonging inside mission-driven work. You get honest talk and usable ideas that change how you show up for the people you serve.

#ruralphilanthropy #nonprofitleadership #grantmaking #northdakota #ruraldevelopment #communityfoundations #missiondriven

Scaling a nonprofit usually means working harder until something breaks. Missy Heilman found another way.

She spent 15 years in marketing and tech before launching BIO Girls in 2013, and she brought a business mind to a mission most people lead with their heart alone. The result: one Fargo church program grew into 120 locations across five states, reaching thousands of girls every year. In this episode, Missy Heilman breaks down nonprofit strategic planning, how she avoids mission drift, and why she still shows up as a hands-on site director while running the organization. She talks openly about the teen program that failed, the EOS operating system her team runs on, and the stretch goal they missed on purpose and still call a win. 💡 If you lead a nonprofit and you want to grow without burning out your people or losing your why, this one is for you. 🌱

Ask yourself:

• Are you chasing shiny new programs that pull you off your actual mission?
• Does your strategic plan live in a binder on a shelf, or does it run your week?
• Are you afraid to call a pilot a failure when the data says it is?
• When did you last get out of your CEO chair and back on the ground?

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Scale your programs without becoming surface-level or burning out your team
• Build a three-year strategic plan that actually drives quarterly decisions
• Protect your mission when every good idea wants a piece of your capacity
• Run an operating system like EOS inside a nonprofit, not just a business
• Reframe a missed goal as progress instead of a verdict on your worth
• Stay connected to the people you serve when you could delegate it away
• Lead a team that treats failure as a point in time, not an identity

Key Quote Highlights:

"My friends and coworkers, they dreamed big for me before I was willing to."

"Failure is a point in time. It doesn't define who you are, and the best thing you can do is remember the lesson, forget the mistake."

Guest Bio

Missy Heilman is the Founder and CEO of BIO Girls, a nonprofit that helps second through sixth grade girls build self-esteem and understand that they matter. Before going all in on BIO Girls in 2018, she spent 15 years in marketing and technology, including CRM and marketing automation work that shaped how she scaled the organization. Under her leadership, BIO Girls has grown to 120 program locations across five states and now reaches roughly one in eight North Dakota girls every year. She is also a mom of three and a half Ironman triathlete.
Learn more at biogirls.org

⏱ Timestamps (estimated, verify against the final edit)

• 00:00 The marketing mind behind a mission
• 03:30 From two girls to 120 locations across five states
• 08:50 Why every decision at BIO Girls is mission first
• 13:36 Avoiding mission drift and the teen program that failed
• 17:50 What makes a strategic plan you actually use
• 24:28 Leading without fearing failure
• 31:32 The postmaster mom who set the example

📌 Resources Mentioned

• BIO Girls: biogirls.org
• EOS, the Entrepreneurial Operating System
• Olivet Lutheran Church, Fargo
• North Dakota Youth Risk Behavior Survey

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe for weekly conversations with nonprofit leaders and mission-driven storytellers.

• Website: wetellwell.com
• Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/
• Max on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkringen

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is a weekly show hosted by Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller and founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, ND. Every week, Max sits down with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven storytellers about the real work of building trust and belonging. You get honest conversations and takeaways you can use in your own organization.

#scalinganonprofit #nonprofitleadership #strategicplanning #missiondriven #biogirls #nonprofitpodcast #storytelling

Most leaders think they're self-aware. Most are missing the mark, and the gap shows up in how their teams feel about them.

In this episode, Kara Jorvig, Founder and CEO of Allegro Group, sits down with Max to unpack why self-awareness in leadership is the foundational skill most executives skip. Kara advises CEOs and senior teams across the country on building clarity, alignment, and trust through feedback. She names the leadership gap plainly, explains how boss holes actually get formed under pressure and pace, and makes the case that personal growth is what drives real business results. Kara has spent her whole career studying people, leadership, and clarity and alignment, and she brings that lens to every CEO she advises. This one gets honest fast. 🎯 Max even owns his own "asshole-ish tendencies" on the record. 🪞

Ask yourself:

• Do you think you're self-aware, or have you actually tested it?
• Who in your life is willing to hold up the mirror, and do you trust them?
• Are you applying what you learn, or just collecting books and podcasts?
• Has success started to feel a little empty?
• When did you last admit you didn't know something?

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Spot the self-awareness gap that keeps confident leaders stuck
• Build the kind of trust that makes hard feedback possible
• Receive a mirror without getting defensive
• Separate "I'm aware of this" from "I'm doing something about it"
• Lead through pressure without projecting it onto your culture
• Temper your intensity instead of trying to rewire who you are
• Anchor your work in values when success stops feeling like enough

Key Quote Highlights: "Success without fulfillment would be the ultimate failure." (Kara Jorvig) "The most important part of being a storyteller is actually being a story listener." (Max Kringen)

Guest Bio Kara Jorvig is the Founder and CEO of Allegro Group, where she serves as chief advisor to CEOs and presidents navigating growth, scale, and leadership transitions. She has spent her career studying leadership, business, and human behavior, starting with a decade of interviewing and placing people in jobs. Her work pairs strategy and team performance with a deep belief that personal growth translates into business results. Rooted in North Dakota values of work ethic and humility she learned from her mom, a kindergarten teacher, she now advises leaders across the country on the skills and behaviors that drive culture. Learn more at [GUEST WEBSITE URL]

⏱ Timestamps (estimated from transcript; verify against the final edit) 00:00 Meet Kara Jorvig 01:08 What Allegro Group actually does 04:35 The self-awareness blind spot, and how boss holes get formed 10:00 Trust, mirrors, and the courage to give feedback 20:51 Midwest values, work ethic, and lessons from Mom 27:00 A loss that changed everything 29:02 Lead with love, every day

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Allegro Group: https://allegro-group.com/
• Adam Grant's podcast work on vulnerability and feedback
• Brené Brown on curiosity and vulnerability

🔔 Stay Connected New conversations every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one.

• Website: wetellwell.com
• Newsletter: Start with Story
• Conference and community: WellTold
• Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/
• Max on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxkringen

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast Tellwell: The Podcast is a weekly conversation with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven storytellers about the work of building trust and belonging. Hosted by Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller and founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, ND, every episode gives you practical thinking and real stories you can bring back to your own mission. Less theory, more of what actually works when you're trying to lead people well.

#selfawareness #leadership #nonprofitleadership #fundraising #trust #feedback #missiondriven

How do you rebuild university brand trust after a massive transition? In this episode, Meloney Linder (VP for Marketing & Communications at the University of North Dakota) breaks down 8 years of building brand consistency, shifting to data-driven storytelling, and earning community belief.

Checklist before you watch/listen:
✅ You lead marketing for a college, university, or mission-driven institution.
✅ Your brand got reset, and buy-in still feels shaky.
✅ Athletics or one program defines you more than your actual mission.
✅ You want data to settle the "everybody's a marketer" debates.
✅ You believe stories should come from your community, not your committee.

Higher education branding fails when nobody believes it yet. Here's how UND earned belief.

When Meloney stepped into her role in 2018, the university was navigating a historic brand reset. The Fighting Sioux logo was retired, the brand was entirely new, and community buy-in had to be built from the ground up. What she did next is a clinic in university marketing. 🎯 She shows how a "Leaders in Action" positioning went from a document to something people felt in their bones.

By the end, you'll know how to:
• Inherit a half-written brand and find where to start.
• Give people new reasons to believe when athletics no longer carries the brand.
• Tell stories that reaffirm what's already true about your institution.
• Build a data culture from zero so opinions stop running the room.
...

⏱ Timestamps
00:00 – Meet Meloney and the UND brand evolution
02:25 – Fergus Falls, two daughters, and Sophie the Havanese
03:50 – Inheriting a brand fresh off a major reset
08:22 – The moment the brand became real
10:37 – Why a logo and tagline are not your brand
14:41 – Building a data culture from scratch
19:52 – The UND stories that surprised her
22:00 – Selling higher ed's value in a TikTok world
24:24 – Feedback is a gift

If your donor engagement strategy is louder than it is listening, this episode is for you.

Nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and executive directors: Scott Holdman shows you how slowing down builds the trust your campaigns are missing.

Recorded live at the WellTold Conference in Fargo, North Dakota, this conversation between Max Kringen and Scott Holdman digs into what actually moves nonprofit fundraising forward.

Scott has coached hundreds of organizations across the Upper Midwest as the founder of Legacy Logic. You will hear why listening builds trust faster than pitching, how to lead with fundamentals, and why eldership and community belong at the center of nonprofit leadership today. ✨

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Listen for the priorities buried inside a donor conversation
• Identify the fundamentals your role keeps skipping
• Sculpt your strategy by removing, not adding
• Invite multi generational voices into your fundraising
• Spot the difference between change and real evolution
• Use the TALK framework to run better donor meetings
• Build community in a culture that defaults to alone

Key Quote Highlights:

"If you look at the person next to you, they're as mysterious and amazing and as wonderful as a planet.""We could do anything but we can't do everything, and now we have to learn how to do prioritization."

Guest Bio

Scott Holdman has spent more than two decades helping nonprofits and givers close the gap between good intentions and real impact.

He is the founder of Legacy Logic, where he works as a philanthropic butler, a trusted partner walking alongside givers and the organizations they support. Around the Upper Midwest, Scott is considered fundraising royalty.

Learn more at https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottholdman/

⏱ Timestamps

• 00:00 – Welcome to a live episode
• 03:30 – Why listening is as powerful as speaking
• 08:00 – Fundamentals vs. dopamine distraction
• 13:15 – Change vs. evolution
• 18:45 – The hardest fundamental Scott learned
• 24:00 – Eldership, authenticity, community
• 32:30 – Life tasks and life quakes

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Scott Holdman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottholdman/
• Legacy Logic, Scott's advising practice
• The TALK Framework by Alison Wood Brooks
• Bill Plotkin on the role of elders
• Seasons of Story framework by Tellwell
• WellTold Conference, Fargo, ND

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell: The Podcast so you never miss a conversation built for mission-driven leaders.

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tellwell-story-co
• Website: https://wetellwell.com
• Newsletter: Start with Story by Max Kringen

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max Kringen, founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, ND. Two people, two microphones, one real conversation for nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven thinkers.

#nonprofitfundraising #donorengagement #nonprofitleadership #storytelling #fundraisingstrategy #welltold #tellwellpodcast

If you lead development work and you're tired of the grind, this nonprofit fundraising podcast episode is for you. Fundraising doesn't have to feel heavy. It can feel like joy.

In this episode, host Max Kringen sits down with Tesha McCord Poe, founder of Joy Raising, for a candid conversation about joyful fundraising, inclusive philanthropy, and donor engagement that actually builds relationships. 💛

Tesha is a former lawyer, banker, journalist, and chief advancement officer who now coaches leaders to raise more money with more people and more joy. She unpacks boundaries, belonging, ego, and the moment she realized she was excluding herself from the ask. ✨

You'll Learn

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Reframe fundraising as a relationship practice, not a performance
• Stop excusing yourself from asks where you belong in the room
• Build boundaries that protect your wellbeing and your team
• Prepare well enough to walk in with honest confidence
• Find points of connection with donors beyond wealth or status
• Choose joy as a daily, practiced leadership muscle
• Lead with courage even when the work feels heavy

Key Quote Highlights:

"If you have the capacity for joy right now, don't you dare keep it to yourself."

"Boundaries are the space between you and I that allows me to love us both."

Guest Bio

Tesha McCord Poe is the founder and CEO of Joy Raising, a consultancy helping mission-driven organizations raise more money with more people and more joy. She holds a JD/MBA and has served as a lawyer, banker, journalist, school administrator, and chief advancement officer. Tesha is a sought-after keynote speaker and coach known for her work in inclusive philanthropy and donor engagement. Learn more at https://joy-raising.com

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – Welcome and how Max and Tesha met 02:30 – The meaning behind Tesha's name and middle name Joy 05:45 – From the Bronx to Barnard, and learning about access 09:15 – Choosing joy through profound personal loss 12:30 – Boundaries as love, not distance 16:00 – Why fundraising felt terrifying, and what changed 21:45 – The ask she excused herself from, and what it taught her

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Joy Raising: https://joy-raising.com
• Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown
• The dash poem, the origin of Joy Raising's URL
• Connect with Tesha: tesha@joy-raising.com

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell the Podcast wherever you listen, and leave a review if this episode moved you.

Follow Tellwell on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/tellwell-story-co Follow host Max Kringen: https://linkedin.com/in/maxkringen Visit us: https://wetellwell.com

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Tellwell the Podcast is a show for mission-driven leaders who believe story is the most powerful tool they have. Hosted by Max Kringen, founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, ND, each episode features honest conversations with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and storytellers about the work of building trust, belonging, and impact.

If you're in nonprofit leadership and wondering how to build real connection with your community, this episode will change how you think about growth.

Kelly Krenzel turned recycled jars, donated flowers, and a spark of inspiration into Hope Blooms. A Fargo nonprofit that has delivered over 115,000 bouquets to people facing isolation and hardship. Her approach? Leading with vulnerability and showing up with intention every single time.

Kelly sits down with Max Kringen to unpack what intentional kindness looks like inside a growing organization. She shares the story of building a 100% community-funded nonprofit, attracting thousands of volunteers and creating a culture where generosity is the operating system. If you care about donor engagement or doing meaningful work without burning out, this one is for you.

✅ Checklist

• A framework for leading with vulnerability instead of polish
• How to build trust through authentic, non-transactional relationships
• The mindset shift that turns small acts into a sustainable mission
• Why surrounding yourself with the right people matters more than having all the answers
• Practical ways to sustain your own energy while giving your heart to the work

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Lead with intentional vulnerability to attract high-hearted supporters
• Move past transactional fundraising into relational donor engagement
• Use a simple, repeatable act of kindness as the engine for growth
• Build a volunteer culture rooted in authenticity and genuine connection
• Identify when to invite others into the conversation instead of going it alone
• Protect your energy while leading mission-driven work that demands full presence
• Turn everyday moments of connection into long-term community investment

🌸 About Kelly Krenzel

Kelly Krenzel is Founder, Executive Director and Chief Joy Maker at Hope Blooms in Fargo, North Dakota. Over nine years she built a 100% community-funded nonprofit that repurposes donated flowers into bedside bouquets for people experiencing isolation, grief and hardship. Hope Blooms has delivered more than 115,000 bouquets, built nearly 100 community partnerships and mobilized thousands of annual volunteers. Learn more at https://hopeblooms.org

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – Meet Kelly Krenzel and the Hope Blooms mission

03:00 – What "more than flowers" really means after nine years

11:00 – Leading a mission built entirely on generosity

14:30 – How nonprofit leaders sustain joy without burning out

20:00 – Balancing heart-led work with organizational structure

27:45 – The Mavis story: what one visit taught Kelly about showing up

33:00 – What Hope Blooms wants to teach this community

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Hope Blooms: https://hopeblooms.org
• Hope Blooms on Facebook: https://facebook.com/hopebloomsnd
• Kelly's first podcast appearance: Episode 15, Season 1
• Blog post: https://wetellwell.com/2025/03/welltold-kelly/
• Radical Candor by Kim Scott

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell the Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube so you never miss an episode. Connect with Tellwell on LinkedIn and follow along at wetellwell.com.

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Hosted by Max Kringen, founder of Tellwell Story Co. in Fargo, ND. Real conversations with nonprofit leaders, community builders and mission-driven professionals about fundraising, storytelling and organizational growth.

#nonprofitleadership #intentionalkindness #donorengagement #nonprofitpodcast #communityimpact #volunteerengagement #hopeblooms

Why fundraising feels hard isn't about effort. It's about clarity. If you're a nonprofit leader drowning in shoulds, this episode will show you how to focus on what actually moves the needle.

Noah Barnett, Chief Strategy Officer at DonorDock and speaker at the WellTold Conference, believes the real villain in fundraising isn't lack of resources or strategy. It's the question haunting every fundraiser at night: Am I doing enough?

In this conversation, Noah walks through his framework for nonprofit focus, donor engagement, and strategic clarity. You'll learn why the best fundraising strategy isn't about doing more. It's about doing what matters most and actively choosing what to omit. This episode is for executive directors, development teams, and nonprofit leaders tired of adopting every "should" from the outside world.

Checklist

✓ Stop chasing shoulds and start defining what matters most
✓ Use the omissions list to reclaim agency and reduce stress
✓ Focus on three priorities per time period, not thirty
✓ Align strategy with mission before adding tactics
✓ Put your head on the pillow knowing you did something that mattered today

Key Quote Highlights:

"I think that's what's at stake. This deep uncertainty and letting this villain survive, which is, am I enough? Am I doing it enough? Is this the right thing to do? That villain loves to keep you distracted."

"If we can help our users put their head on their pillow at night and say, I got done today something that mattered, that's what we're doing here."

Guest Bio

Noah Barnett is Chief Strategy Officer at DonorDock, where he helps nonprofits use technology to scale growth without losing their humanity. He's spent over a decade in nonprofit technology after seven years in international relief and development. Noah is a builder, conversationalist, and strategist who believes the best work happens when you focus on what matters most and intentionally omit the rest. He'll be speaking at the WellTold Conference on April 30th in Fargo. Learn more at https://toolry.com/walk

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – The villain keeping fundraisers distracted
03:15 – Noah's journey from international relief to nonprofit tech
08:00 – Where the focus framework came from
13:30 – The omissions list: deciding what NOT to do
19:00 – When it's never going to be enough
23:00 – What we lose when we're scattered
26:00 – The Eastern Europe story that changed everything

📌 Resources Mentioned

• DonorDock CRM platform for nonprofits
• WellTold Conference (April 30, Fargo): https://welltoldconference.com
• Book a virtual walk with Noah: https://toolry.com/walk
• Friend of DonorDock promo code: 20% off WellTold registration

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell the Podcast wherever you listen. New episodes every week with mission-driven leaders, fundraisers, and storytellers who are actually doing the work. Follow Max Kringen and the Tellwell team on LinkedIn for more stories that move people to action.

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Hosted by Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller at Tellwell Story Co., this podcast gets to know the humans behind the campaigns, brands, and causes that move people to action. Every week we talk about what worked, what flopped, and the moments that changed the way our guests think about fundraising, storytelling, and inviting people into a story worth joining.

#whyfundraisingfeelshard #nonprofitleadership #donorengagement #fundraisingstrategy #nonprofitfocus #tellwellpodcast #welltold

Nonprofit storytelling doesn't always start with a strategy deck or a brand workshop. Sometimes it starts with a rare diagnosis, a meal train, and a small town that wraps its arms around you.

On this episode of Tellwell: The Podcast, host Max Kringen sits down with Kyle Gagner, an insurance agent, public speaker, and founder of Levi's Hope, a nonprofit advocacy group born out of his son's life-limiting muscle disease. Kyle shares how that experience cracked him open, reshaped his faith, and taught him that the most powerful stories come from people willing to just be alive out loud.

This isn't a polished keynote recap. It's a raw, funny, and deeply human conversation about what happens when you stop performing and start surrendering to generosity, community, and the messy truth of who you actually are.

✅ What You'll Walk Away With

• Rethinking how vulnerability fuels authentic nonprofit storytelling
• Understanding the difference between giving to receive and surrendered generosity
• Seeing how small-town community rallies around trauma in ways that teach us about donor relationships
• Learning why "just do it" applies to the stories you've been afraid to tell
• A fresh lens on the go-giver mindset and how it applies to mission-driven work
• Proof that you don't need a perfect origin story to move people to action
• Permission to stop pretending and start connecting

Key Quote Highlights:

"Being alive means not pretending to be anything that you are. Just be who you are. Just be alive."

"The more that we've given, the more that we've gotten. But you can't go into that with the intent to gain only, or it's not gonna come."

Kyle Gagner is an insurance agent with Farm Bureau Financial Services, a public speaker, and the founder of Levi's Hope, a nonprofit advocacy group supporting children with rare muscle diseases. Based in Cavalier, North Dakota, Kyle has spent the last decade turning his family's story into a platform for authentic connection, community building, and radically honest leadership. His speaking platform, Kyle Speaks, is growing fast because his message is simple and real: just be alive. Learn more at kylespeaks.com

📌 Resources Mentioned

• The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann
• Levi's Hope: levishope.com
• Kyle Speaks: kylespeaks.com
• Kyle Gagner at Farm Bureau Financial Services: fbfs.com/find-an-agent/kylegagner
• Levi's Hope film on YouTube
• WellTold Conference: welltoldconference.com
• Tellwell Resources: wetellwell.com/resources

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell: The Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. Connect with Tellwell on LinkedIn and visit wetellwell.com to explore how strategic storytelling can move your mission forward.

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max Kringen and produced by Tellwell, a strategic storytelling agency serving nonprofits and mission-driven organizations. Each episode brings you real conversations with leaders who are using story, strategy, and vulnerability to build deeper connections and drive lasting impact. Whether you're a fundraiser, executive director, or communications lead, this show gives you tools you can use today.

#nonprofitstorytelling #nonprofitpodcast #donorengagement #gogiver #nonprofitleadership #storytellingformissions #tellyourstory

Is your nonprofit struggling to stand out in a crowded space? Nonprofit leadership gets a lot easier when you stop trying to do everything and start owning your story.

Ashley Ham, Executive Director of Dear NICU Mama, knows what it means to build something meaningful from a place of deep personal experience. In this episode of Tellwell: The Podcast, Ashley shares how leaning into the power of story transformed a small peer support idea into a national nonprofit reaching millions of NICU families every year.

This is not a conversation about tactics. It is a conversation about identity, clarity, and what happens when a leader stops trying to fit a mold and starts leading from who they actually are.

What you will walk away with

• Why story is the most underused tool in nonprofit leadership
• How Dear NICU Mama grew into a national organization almost overnight
• Why Ashley chose podcasting as a primary community-building tool
• How virtual programming unlocked reach and accessibility for vulnerable families
• The power of peer support over clinical resources for families in crisis
• Why doing one thing exceptionally well beats trying to serve everyone

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Identify the single story your nonprofit is uniquely equipped to tell
• Use audio content to reach your audience where they already are
• Build community without requiring people to show up in person
• Create programming that gives your audience a sense of control
• Lead with authenticity instead of trying to match a prescribed executive director mold
• Position your organization as the go-to for one specific, powerful thing
• Use story to eradicate shame and build genuine human connection

Ashley Ham is the Executive Director and co-founder of Dear NICU Mama, a national nonprofit she built from her own experience delivering her son Silas at 28 weeks. What began as a desperate search for community and hope grew into an organization reaching over 8 million people annually on Instagram and 11 million on Facebook. Ashley is also the host of the number one NICU podcast in the world and the author of the new children's book Right On Time, a love letter to NICU families reminding them that growth is not linear and every baby's story is unfolding exactly as it should. Learn more at https://www.dearnicumama.com/

📌 Resources Mentioned

Dear NICU Mama website: https://www.dearnicumama.com/

Right On Time children's book: https://www.dearnicumama.com/right-on-time-book/

Dear NICU Mama podcast: Search Dear NICU Mama on your favorite podcast platform

Tellwell resources: wetellwell.com/resources

🔔 Stay Connected

If this episode resonated with you, subscribe so you never miss a conversation like this one. New episodes drop regularly on YouTube and wherever you listen to podcasts.

Follow Tellwell on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/tellwell Visit us at: wetellwell.com

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max Kringen and is built for nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven communicators who believe that story is the most powerful tool they have. Each episode features honest conversations with people doing remarkable work, and every episode is designed to leave you with something you can actually use. Find more at wetellwell.com

#nonprofitleadership #nonprofitpodcast #storytelling #nicumom #nonprofitcommunity #missiondriven #dearnicumama

If your board goes silent the moment fundraising comes up, this nonprofit fundraising podcast episode is for you. Learn how to help your board members find their story, build real confidence, and actually show up for the mission.

Most boards aren't lazy. They're unprepared. There's a difference. And once you understand that difference, everything changes.

Christal Cherry has spent 20 plus years working at the intersection of nonprofit fundraising and board governance. She's worked with grassroots organizations, hospitals, foundations, libraries, and everything in between. In this conversation, she breaks down why boards disengage, how storytelling unlocks confidence, and what consistent board development looks like week to week. If you lead a nonprofit or serve on a board, this one is going to hit.

Checklist:

• Does your board know their own story?
• Are you giving board members tools or just expectations?
• Is accountability built into your board culture?
• Are you doing consistent bite-sized board training?
• Do your board members feel prepared to make an ask?

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Unlock your board members' personal connection to the mission
• Use storytelling to replace fear with confidence and purpose
• Reframe fundraising as an invitation, not an imposition
• Build consistent board development into every single meeting
• Create a culture statement that sets the tone for how your board shows up
• Use simple accountability practices that feel supportive, not threatening
• Onboard new board members in a way that actually prepares them to lead

About Christal Cherry:

Christal Cherry is a nonprofit board development consultant, speaker, and coach with more than 20 years of experience in fundraising and governance. She works at the intersection of board leadership and fundraising strategy, helping organizations of all sizes build boards that are engaged, accountable, and mission-driven. Her clients include grassroots nonprofits, university foundations, hospitals, and libraries. She is also the chair of a nonprofit board herself, which means she practices what she preaches every single day.

Learn more at theboardpro.com

📌 Resources Mentioned

• theboardpro.com — Christal Cherry's home base for board development resources, consulting, and speaking
• WellTold Nonprofit Storytelling Conference — April 30th in Fargo: welltoldconference.com
• We Are For Good Podcast — where Max and Christal first connected through a mutual speaker, John McCoy
• Christal Cherry on LinkedIn: search Christal Cherry
• The Board Pro on Facebook and Substack

🔔 Stay Connected

If this episode gave you something to think about, subscribe so you never miss a conversation. New episodes drop regularly and every one is built for nonprofit leaders who want to lead with more clarity, more story, and more purpose.

Follow Tellwell on LinkedIn and visit wetellwell.com to learn more about how we help nonprofits tell stories that move people to give.

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max Kringen and brought to you by Tellwell, a strategic storytelling agency for nonprofits. Each episode features honest, practical conversations with fundraisers, consultants, board leaders, and mission-driven thinkers who are doing the work. If you lead a nonprofit, sit on a board, or raise money for a cause you love, this show was made for you.

#nonprofitleadership #boarddevelopment #nonprofitfundraising #storytellingfornonprofits #boardgovernance #donorengagement #nonprofitpodcast

Nonprofit storytelling doesn't have to be a tearjerker to move people. It just has to be human. If you're a fundraiser who feels stuck telling the same sad story, this episode will change how you think about your work.

• Rethink the tearjerker story formula
• See donors as partners with a role to play, not an audience to convince
• Use CRM data as a window into real human stories
• Move from solicitation mode to invitation mode
• Find the quiet, powerful story hiding in plain sight
• Give donors a clear role and a genuine place to matter

Clay Buck has spent over 30 years in fundraising, moving from database admin to chief development officer. In this conversation, he challenges the core assumptions baked into how nonprofits approach donor engagement and nonprofit storytelling.

Clay makes the case that donors aren't customers making a transaction. They're partners enacting their own values and identity. When we treat them that way, everything shifts, from our appeals to our data strategy to the stories we choose to tell.

This episode is packed with practical reframes on nonprofit leadership, storytelling, and what it really means to invite someone into a mission.

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Reframe the deficit-based story into something quieter and more powerful
• Identify the stories hiding inside your CRM data
• Shift from solicitation mode into genuine invitation
• Give donors a clear role and a reason to belong
• Use perspective and detail to make any mission feel relatable
• Stop chasing donors who just aren't that into you
• Approach fundraising as community building, not transaction management

Clay Buck is a fundraising strategist, speaker, and principal at Next River Fundraising with more than three decades of experience across performing arts, social services, and homeless services organizations. He has held roles from database administration and grant writing to chief development officer. Clay is known for challenging conventional wisdom in fundraising, including the belief that donors are customers, and for helping organizations move from surface-level transactions to genuine, lasting donor relationships. Learn more at nextriverfundraising.com

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 - Welcome and intro to Clay Buck 03:20 - Why quiet stories outperform tearjerkers 08:45 - The three-legged stool: donors, nonprofits, and beneficiaries 13:30 - Donors aren't customers: a fundraising reframe 17:00 - Giving as an act of mattering and belonging 19:30 - Donors are data: what your CRM is really telling you 26:00 - Clay's personal story on being too much and being enough

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Clay Buck, Next River Fundraising: nextriverfundraising.com
• Clay on LinkedIn: TKBuck
• Well Told Nonprofit Storytelling Conference, April 30, 2026, Fargo, ND and online: wetellwell.com

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe so you never miss an episode of Tellwell: The Podcast. New episodes drop regularly, so subscribe and never fall behind. Visit us at wetellwell.com and connect with us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell/

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max and brought to you by Tellwell, a strategic storytelling agency helping nonprofits raise more money, build stronger communities, and share stories that matter. Each episode features honest conversations with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and creative thinkers doing the real work of mission-driven storytelling. If you work in or lead a nonprofit and want to get better at telling your story, this is your show.

#nonprofitstorytelling #fundraising #donorengagement #nonprofitleadership #storytelling #nonprofitpodcast #majordonors

This nonprofit fundraising podcast explores how to turn one-time givers into lifelong partners. If your fundraising feels stuck in transaction mode, this conversation will show you a better way.

Bethany Hardwig is a philanthropy strategist who has spent years building donor pipelines in higher education and nonprofit spaces. She brings a powerful framework to the table: engagement breeds affinity, and affinity breeds investment. In this episode, she walks through practical strategies for donor engagement, alumni engagement, and major gifts that prioritize relationships over revenue targets.

You'll hear about a housing program she launched at the University of Utah that transformed how alumni connected with students and the institution. The result? Donors who stopped asking for their stipends back and started asking how they could give more. This is impact-centered philanthropy in action, and it works across any mission-driven organization.

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Take every donor "hand raise" seriously and follow up with intention
• Build engagement opportunities that deepen affinity before making asks
• Recognize when your fundraising has crossed into propaganda territory
• Design programs that put donors up close to real impact
• Train your team to lead with love and authentic connection
• Shift from deficit-based messaging to dignity-centered storytelling
• Create a sustainable pipeline of donors at every giving level

Key Quote Highlights:

"There's a fine line between marketing and engagement and propaganda. If I'm reminding you of something that isn't true, I'm lying to you, and love cannot lie to you."

"At a certain point when people raise their hand and you don't call on them, they stop raising their hand. It's my job to take you at your word."

Guest Bio

Bethany Hardwig is a philanthropy strategist and the founder of Signal and Story Studio. She has led donor engagement and alumni relations initiatives at institutions including the University of Utah, where she launched innovative programs that transformed transactional giving into deep community partnership. Her approach centers on authentic relationships, impact-driven storytelling, and creating engagement opportunities that allow donors to see and feel the difference their support makes. Bethany is currently writing a book titled Impact-Centered Philanthropy. Learn more at https://www.signal-and-story.studio/

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Signal and Story Studio: https://www.signal-and-story.studio/
• Bethany's upcoming book: Impact-Centered Philanthropy
• Email Bethany: bethany@signalandstorystudio.com

🔔 Stay Connected

Subscribe to Tellwell: The Podcast so you never miss an episode. Connect with us on LinkedIn for more nonprofit storytelling strategy and fundraising insights that actually work.

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast

Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max Kringen, Chief Storyteller at Tellwell. Every episode brings you honest, practical conversations with nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and mission-driven professionals who are doing the work and getting results. You'll walk away with frameworks, stories, and strategies you can use immediately to move your mission forward.

#nonprofitfundraising #donorengagement #philanthropy #nonprofitleadership #majorgifts #fundraisingstrategy #highereducation

👉 Ready to transform your organization's story into action? Book a free planning call: https://wetellwell.com/get-started

Your nonprofit storytelling might be stuck in reporting mode when it should be in building mode. In this episode of Tellwell: The Podcast, Andrew Jason reveals how he made the shift from journalist to ecosystem builder and why that same shift can transform how your organization connects with donors, volunteers, and community members.

Andrew leads Emerging Prairie and Grand Farm, two organizations that have welcomed over 5,000 visitors from 30 countries in a single year. His secret? Start small, move fast, and invite people to genuinely opt in to your mission. No massive galas required. No perfect plans. Just consistent touchpoints that build real community engagement over time.

This conversation is packed with practical wisdom for nonprofit leaders who feel stuck on the event treadmill or overwhelmed by the pressure to launch big. Andrew shares how his open heart surgery at 21 shaped his urgency and focus on people first, and how that perspective drives everything he builds today.

By the end, you'll know how to:
• Shift from reporting your mission to building your mission through story
• Create on-ramps that invite community members to participate at different levels
• Use small iterative wins to build momentum instead of waiting for the perfect plan
• Develop regular touchpoints that keep your organization top of mind
• Invite donors and volunteers to opt in rather than demanding their attention
• Build depth in your narrative that transforms curious supporters into committed partners
• Put people before technology in everything you design and communicate

Key Quote Highlights:
"The audience will come as far along in the story as you take them."
"At the end of the day, it's about the people. Everything you do comes back to the people and the places."

About Andrew Jason
Andrew Jason is a leader at Emerging Prairie and Grand Farm, organizations focused on ecosystem building and agricultural innovation in the Fargo-Moorhead region and beyond. With nine years of editorial leadership at Spotlight Media and six years building startup and agriculture ecosystems, Andrew brings a unique perspective on how storytelling creates real community impact. Under his leadership, Grand Farm has hosted over 5,000 visitors from 30 countries and worked with 61 organizations on technology demonstrations.
🔗 Learn more at https://grandfarm.com

📌 Resources Mentioned
Grand Farm: https://grandfarm.com
Emerging Prairie: https://emergingprairie.com
Startup Brew (weekly event): https://emergingprairie.com/startupbrew
Tellwell Resources: https://wetellwell.com/resources

🔔 Stay Connected
Subscribe to Tellwell: The Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube so you never miss an episode. Connect with Tellwell on LinkedIn for more nonprofit storytelling insights and resources.
👉 Ready to transform your organization's story into action? Book a free planning call: https://wetellwell.com/get-started

📣 About Tellwell: The Podcast
Tellwell: The Podcast is hosted by Max, Chief Storyteller at Tellwell. Each episode brings you conversations with nonprofit leaders, consultants, and changemakers who are doing the hard work of mission-driven storytelling. Whether you lead a nonprofit, a university foundation, or a community-driven brand, this show delivers practical strategies to help you stop blending into the noise and start inviting people into your mission.

#nonprofitstorytelling #nonprofitleadership #communityengagement #donorengagement #ecosystembuilding #missiondrivenstorytelling #nonprofitmarketing

Many nonprofits are stuck on the fundraising treadmill with little to show for it. This episode on nonprofit revenue strategy shows how to grow without burning out.

Max Kringen sits down with Sherry Quam Taylor, nonprofit growth expert and founder of QuamTaylor LLC, to unpack what’s really holding mission-driven organizations back. If you're still debating the cost of a website while working 70-hour weeks, this conversation will reframe how you think about general operating revenue, major gifts fundraising, and investment-level donor conversations. A must-listen for leaders ready to stop begging and start building.

By the end, you'll know how to:

• Shift from event-driven fundraising to transformational giving
• Reframe how you talk about general operating revenue with donors
• Spot the hidden costs of “irrational frugality” in your organization
• Lead investment-level donor conversations with confidence
• Align your fundraising strategy with your long-term mission
• Break free from the busywork and focus on scalable revenue activities
• Make the mindset shift from scrappy to sustainable

Key Quote Highlights
"You’re not hiding from donors. You’re hiding from your own potential."
"Events should be a step in the donor journey, not the whole experience."

Guest Bio
Sherry Quam Taylor helps nonprofit leaders scale their revenue by building strong major gifts strategies rooted in confidence and clarity. A former corporate leader turned fundraiser, Sherry has worked with organizations of all sizes to unlock transformational giving without overworking small teams. Her firm, QuamTaylor LLC, empowers leaders to stop being irrationally frugal and start making strategic investments that actually move the mission forward. Learn more at https://www.quamtaylor.com

⏱ Timestamps
00:00 Why working harder isn’t working
04:45 Sherry’s journey from corporate to nonprofit growth coach
08:02 What “hours to dollars” fundraising really means
12:45 Breaking free from irrational frugality
20:15 Shifting from event-based asks to major gift relationships
28:00 How to slow down your strategy to speed up your revenue
34:40 The courage to stop hiding and lead boldly
39:00 Peer-to-peer relationships and authentic fundraising

📌 Resources Mentioned

• Sherry Quam Taylor’s website: https://www.quamtaylor.com
• Sherry’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sherryquamtaylor
• Book: The Answer to How Is Yes by Peter Block
• Ramit Sethi’s podcast and financial philosophy
• Tellwell Story Co.: https://wetellwell.com

🔔 Stay Connected
Enjoying these conversations? Subscribe for more insights that help nonprofits grow with clarity and purpose.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wetellwell
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wetellwell
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wetellwell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wetellwell

📣 About Tellwell the Podcast
Hosted by Max Kringen, Tellwell the Podcast dives into the real stories behind mission-driven work. We talk with nonprofit leaders, marketers, and changemakers to explore how storytelling, strategy, and smart creative fuel meaningful growth.

#nonprofitgrowth #fundraisingstrategy #major gifts #nonprofitleadership #donorrelationships #generaldoperatingrevenue #investmentlevelfundraising

Your most vulnerable stories are your most powerful fundraising tools. Coach Dayna Del Val reveals how to overcome the fear of judgment and build lasting donor trust.

Full Description:

Your most vulnerable stories are your most powerful fundraising tools. Coach Dayna Del Val, former nonprofit CEO of The Arts Partnership, reveals how to overcome the fear of judgment and build the kind of donor trust that secures major gifts.

Nonprofit leaders often hide their most impactful, human moments behind sanitized success stories and generic mission statements. Dayna identifies the root cause: shame and the paralyzing fear of what people will think. This fear creates distance with donors instead of connection.

In this conversation, you'll learn why the most specific stories are actually the most universal—a principle called narrative transportation that transforms passive supporters into committed champions. Dayna shares the "And What Else?" coaching technique to help you and your team peel back surface-level answers and uncover the emotional core that inspires action.

Whether you're an Executive Director, Development Director, or Marketing VP, this episode provides a clear framework for moving past the idea that your mission is "too precious" to share honestly. You'll discover how to identify the external, internal, and philosophical layers of your organization's story—and why leading with humanity is the most reliable path to fundraising success.

Dayna's final reminder: stop worrying about what everyone else thinks. They're not thinking about you. The stories you're afraid to share are exactly what your donors need to hear.

Timestamps:

• 0:00 - The struggle to share your story honestly
• 1:45 - Dayna's journey from nonprofit CEO to coach
• 6:30 - The game-changing feedback that shifted everything
• 11:50 - Why honest, critical feedback is essential for growth
• 14:35 - The biggest barrier to donor connection: shame and fear
• 17:50 - Coaching through shame with small, relatable stories
• 20:55 - The "And What Else?" technique for uncovering real stories
• 23:30 - Narrative transportation: why personal stories generate more response
• 26:10 - Building a community where storytelling drives action
• 29:15 - Settling down and waiting for the quiet answer
• 32:15 - Final wisdom: no one is really thinking about you

Ready to transform your storytelling? Schedule a conversation with the Tellwell team to explore how a human-first strategy can drive your fundraising goals: wetellwell.com

Are you leading an incredible mission-driven organization, yet you find yourself lying awake at 3 a.m. wondering why your most powerful stories aren’t raising the money or driving the engagement you need? It is a common frustration: you are doing vital work, but as you grow, your message starts to fizzle out.

In this episode, we sit down with Jordan McCormick, Executive Director of Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley. Jordan has navigated the intense "growing pains" of taking a volunteer-led concept and scaling it into a regional powerhouse that serves 15 families a day and manages up to 300 pieces of furniture every week.

We explore the transition from "crisis mode" to strategic leadership and the mindset shift required to help people truly start over.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The Difference Between Growth and Impact: Why "bigger" isn't always "better," and how to define what success actually looks like for your mission.
• Crisis vs. Noise: How to distinguish between a genuine organizational crisis and a simple problem "dressed up" as one.
• The Power of Dignity: Why mission-driven work should focus on restoring a person's dignity rather than just being "paid in gratitude."
• Leading a "Volunteer Army": Strategies for keeping a team motivated and aligned when the logistics of growth feel overwhelming.
• Living Your Faith Through Action: How simple acts—like providing a bed or a table—can become the ultimate vehicle for your organization's values.

Key Quotes:

"Everything's impossible until you do it.""Bigger is not always better. Better is better.""We are here not to be paid in gratitude... we’re also here for the people who are struggling with that."

About Our Guest:

Jordan McCormick is a Midwest transplant who has built a deeply local, faith-based operation centered on human dignity. Under his leadership, Furniture Mission helps families recovering from crisis—from addiction treatment to emergency shelters—by providing the physical foundation they need to start a new chapter.

About Tellwell:

At Tellwell, we believe clarity is kind. We partner with nonprofits, higher education, and community financial institutions to translate important work into clear, human-first stories that drive action. Whether through impact films, brand strategy, or web design, we help you break through the noise and turn storytelling into real-world results.

Ready to amplify your impact? Learn more about how we can help you tell your story the right way at wetellwell.com.

In our final WellTold minisode of Tellwell: The Podcast, we introduce you to Bridgette Bitzegaio from DonorDock, a passionate advocate for nonprofit empowerment and innovation. Discover how Bridgette artfully bridges the worlds of music and data, and learn about her unique journey from music education to nonprofit leadership.

What You’ll Learn:
🎻 How Bridgette's nonprofit, Adapt Music, uses music enrichment to foster connections across all abilities
📈 The power of personalized donor communications and effective stewardship journeys
🤝 Insights into the Agile Stewardship Model that can transform nonprofit outreach

Exclusive Listener Bonus! Use the code PODCAST at checkout for “Back to Early Bird Pricing” for the WellTold Nonprofit Storytelling Conference! Secure your spot at WellToldConference.com today.

About Our Guest:
Bridgette Bitzegaio is a dedicated account manager and customer success specialist at DonorDock, where she leverages her experience as a nonprofit founder to connect with customers on a deeper level. Her passion for creating genuine connections through music and data makes her an invaluable resource for nonprofits aiming to enhance their donor relations.

📢 Join the Conversation!
🔗 DonorDock.com | LinkedIn: DonorDock

🎙️ Tellwell: The Podcast is your go-to source for nonprofit storytelling and marketing insights. Subscribe, share, and let's amplify stories that drive meaningful change!