Happy New Year: Choosing Your Word of the Year for Intentional Growth

What if a single word could redefine your entire year? Join us as we challenge the all-or-nothing mindset of New Year's resolutions with a transformative approach to goal-setting. Instead of making fleeting promises, we invite you to select a "word of the year" that can guide your personal and professional journey throughout 2025. Picture your fundraising efforts and personal growth thriving on a foundation of consistency, intention, or engagement. Tune in to discover how small, sustainable actions can lead to meaningful results, from maintaining a steady fitness routine to enhancing donor relationships through regular updates or storytelling.

This episode encourages you to choose a word that truly resonates with you and use it as your compass for impactful change. We explore the essence of progress over perfection, emphasizing the power of consistent steps in building something significant. Share your chosen word with us on social media and become part of a community striving for a purpose-filled year. As we embark on this journey together, gear up for next week's episode where we'll uncover practical fundraising strategies to maintain your momentum. Here's to making 2025 a year of growth, intention, and engagement. Happy New Year and happy fundraising!

Chapters

• 0:05 Choosing a Word of the Year
• 11:40 Inspiring Fundraising Goals and Habits

Transcript

Keith Greer, CFRE: 0:05

Hey, there, hi, and welcome back ambitious fundraisers. Happy New Year. It's the start of 2025, and if you're anything like me, you're probably feeling that mix of excitement, possibility and let's be honest, a little bit of pressure that comes with a brand new year. But here's the thing While the world is buzzing about New Year's resolutions, I want to invite you to hit pause. Let's skip the all-or-nothing mindset of I'm going to change everything about my life, starting today, because we all know where that leads usually to disappointment and a half-eaten box of cookies by mid-January. Instead, I want to share a different approach, one that's grounded, intentional and powerful. Today, we're talking about setting goals with intention, and not just any goals. I want to introduce you to the idea of choosing a word of the year, a word that becomes your guide, your anchor and your focus in 2025. This isn't about lofty promises or quick wins. It's about progress, consistent, sustainable progress. And to make this real, I'll share the word I've chosen for myself this year Consistent. I'll tell you how it's shaping my goals personally and professionally, and how it might inspire you to take intentional steps forward in your fundraising and maybe even your life outside of work. So, if you're ready to set this year up with purpose. Let's talk about what it means to be consistent and how choosing the right word can change the game for your 2025. All right, so let's talk about the difference between resolutions and goals, because it's a subtle shift, but, trust me, it makes all the difference. Here's the thing about resolutions they often feel like an all-or-nothing commitment. I'm going to go to the gym every single day. I'll never eat sugar again. I'm going to double my nonprofit's donor base by March. These resolutions sound bold and exciting in January, but when life happens and it always does missing a day or falling short can feel like a failure, and that's when people throw in the towel Sound familiar. It's that go big or go home mentality. And while I love ambition hello. This podcast is called let's Talk Fundraising I also know that success in fundraising and in life isn't built on extremes.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 2:31

It's built on progress small, intentional steps forward, repeated consistently over time. That's why I love goals over resolutions. Goals are flexible. They let you adjust, measure progress and keep moving even when things don't go perfectly. Think about your biggest fundraising wins. They probably didn't come from a one-and-done effort. They came from incremental actions. Maybe it was 10 phone calls a week to donors, or consistently sending stewardship updates, or slowly growing that major gift pipeline month after month. And this applies to your personal life too. Whether you're trying to build a fitness habit, strengthen your relationships or find a better work-life balance, setting intentional goals allows for longevity. It's not about perfection, it's about persistence.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 3:24

So here's my challenge to you let's move away from quick fixes. Let's focus on something bigger, something sustainable, and for me, this year, that means embracing my word of the year, consistent, because consistency that's where the real magic happens. Now let me tell you how this word consistent is already reshaping my own goals for 2025, and how it might inspire yours. Let's dive into this idea of choosing a word of the year. If you've never tried it before, it's exactly what it sounds like Picking one word, just one, that will act as your guide for the year. It's a word you can come back to when life gets busy or you're feeling a little stuck. Now I'll be honest with you my word this year is consistent, and let me tell you why.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 4:14

I don't know about you, but when it comes to personal goals, I've had a habit of going all in for about three weeks, like my fitness routine. Last year, I hit the gym five times a week, tracked every calorie and expected to see massive results instantly. By week four, when I didn't look like a superhero, I felt defeated and I quit. Does that sound familiar? But here's what I've learned you don't get results from perfection. You get them from showing up consistently. It doesn't matter if it's a 45-minute workout or a 10-minute walk around the block. What matters is that you keep showing up. Small efforts, repeated over time, create big changes. The same applies to this podcast. I made a promise to you that let's Talk. Fundraising would be a resource you can rely on, and that means committing to releasing a new episode every week. This year, I'll let you in on a little behind-the-scenes secret I'm also building a bank of episodes to cover those weeks when life throws curveballs Fundraising events, conference travel or even getting knocked out by the flu. Why? Because consistency builds trust. For you, that means knowing that you can count on this podcast to be here every Monday with practical tips and inspiration, and for me, it means honoring the commitment I've made. And you know what. The same principle applies to fundraising Consistency in your donor relationships, your stewardship and your communications is what moves the needle.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 5:49

It's those regular check-ins, the thank you calls and the impact updates that deepen connections over time. Donors want to know they can count on you just as much as you count on them. So let me ask you this what could choosing consistent look like for you this year? Maybe it's sending a personal update to your top donors once a month. Maybe it's sending a personal update to your top donors once a month. Maybe it's committing to five handwritten thank you notes every Friday. Maybe it's showing up on LinkedIn every week to share your nonprofit story. Whatever it is, the magic isn't in the big, flashy moves. It's in the steady, repeated actions that build trust, momentum and results. So think about it. What could your word of the year be? Maybe it's grow, or engage, or intentional. For me, it's consistent, because consistency, my friends, is how we make things happen.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 6:44

While I just shared that I don't really like the term resolution, there is one that I'm implementing this year, cutting back on my social media consumption, specifically my deep love of TikTok. I can open that app just to check one thing and, before I know it, I'm an hour or two or three deep into dog videos, dance trends and oddly specific home organization hacks that I didn't even know I needed. It's entertaining, sure, but when I step back and look at how much time I've lost time I could have spent moving toward my goals I know something needs to change, and I'll admit, the recent talk of a possible federal government ban on TikTok might actually help me out here. I mean, if they take the app away, that's one less temptation, right. But seriously, this year is part of my commitment to being consistent.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 7:36

I'm cutting back on mindless scrolling, not because social media is bad. It's not. It's a tool. It's how we use it that matters. For me, that means setting some boundaries. Less scrolling means more time for things that move me forward, like brainstorming, podcast topics, connecting with donors or simply being present with my family. And for you, it might mean the same. Think about it. What could you do with an extra 30 minutes or an hour every day? That's time you could use to draft a new donor outreach email, follow up with someone you met at a recent event, spend a few moments reflecting on what's working and what's not in your fundraising strategy. Or maybe it's just time to recharge and refocus so you can show up better for your team, your donors, your family and yourself. So here's my challenge If you're feeling that pull to scroll? Stop and ask yourself is this helping me move toward my goals or pulling me further away? Social media has its place, but let's use it intentionally this year, because I promise you consistent, focused efforts will always get you further than a hundred TikTok videos ever will. And if the ban happens, well, hey, we can all just call it forced productivity, right. But I want to wrap up with a challenge that I hope will inspire your whole year Choosing your very own word of the year.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 9:03

I want you to take a moment to think about your word of the year for 2025. What's one word that reflects the goals you're striving for, both personally and professionally? Maybe it's engage, because this is the year you're going to strengthen your donor relationships and connect more meaningfully with your community. Or maybe it's grow, because you're ready to expand your donor base, your campaigns, your leadership skills. Or it could be intentional, because you're done operating on autopilot and want every action you take to have purpose.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 9:37

Whatever word you choose, make it yours, write it down somewhere. You'll see it every day. Stick it on your desk, make it your phone background, or even add it to a vision board. And here's the key revisit it At the end of each month, ask yourself how is my word showing up in my work, what's working and what needs to shift For fundraisers? This is where the magic happens. Your word of the year can guide how you plan your donor touches, steward relationships or show up as a leader. For example. If, like mine, your word is consistent, maybe that looks like sending out regular thank you calls, creating a monthly donor update or simply sticking to a follow-up plan after your big event.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 10:23

So here's my question for you how will your word of the year shape not just your fundraising strategy, but your life outside of work? Once you choose your word, I'd love to hear it. Share it with me on LinkedIn or drop me a note. I'm always inspired by the goals you're chasing and the impact you're creating. Let's make this year a purposeful one. Let's choose words that guide us, goals that stretch us and habits that stick with us. And remember, whatever word you choose, you've got this let's keep showing up, keep taking small steps and keep making an impact together. All right, friends, as we wrap up this first episode of 2025, let's take a moment to reflect.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 11:09

Today, we talked about the power of moving beyond traditional resolutions and setting goals with intention. We explored the idea of choosing a word of the year, a simple yet powerful guide to help us focus and ground throughout the year. For me, that word is consistent. Whether it's staying steady in my fitness journey, showing up for this podcast every week or cutting back on my TikTok rabbit holes, consistency is how I'm committing to progress in 2025. Now it's your turn.

Keith Greer, CFRE: 11:40

Think about that word that speaks to you. Is it grow, intentional, engage or maybe something else entirely? Whatever it is, let it inspire your goals, your habits and your fundraising journey this year. And hey, this isn't about perfection. It's about showing up one step at a time and building something meaningful. Before I go, I want to say thank you for being here. This podcast wouldn't exist without you and I'm so excited to walk alongside you in 2025. If today's episode inspired you, I'd love to hear your word of the year. Send me a message, share it on social media or drop me a note, and make sure to tune in. Next week, we're diving into practical fundraising strategies to kickstart your year and keep that momentum going strong. Until then, here's to a consistent, intentional and purpose-filled year. Happy New Year and happy fundraising. See you next time, my friend.