The last quarter of the year always feels different. The calendar is heavier, expectations loom larger, and every ask seems more urgent than the one before. But here’s what I’ve learned: leadership in Q4 isn’t about pushing harder. It's about how you show up.
When you walk into a room at year-end, donors and staff alike are watching. They notice your tone, your posture, your clarity — or lack thereof. That’s where leadership lives.You might be a board member, an executive, a fundraiser, or a program staff member. Your title doesn’t define your influence. What matters is how you choose to act with intention, courage, and honesty in these last months.
For Board Members: Lead from Belief, Not Just Oversight
You don’t have to be in the trenches every day to influence momentum. But when you give and speak boldly — earlier, visible, personally — you do more than write a check. You send the message that this matters now. When you make your own year-end gift first and share your “why” with your circle, you help others see that this work deserves priority. Remember, the two most powerful words in fundraising are “join me.”
Leadership is not a duty. It’s a signal. The path toward generosity is easier when someone you trust has already walked it.
For Executives: Be the Calm in the Storm
In October, November, December, the noise multiplies. Emails flood in. Staff feel pressure. As an executive, your greatest gift may be narrowing the path. Cut through the options. Clarify the “must-dos.” Celebrate small wins. Keep a consistent cadence of messages — weekly reflections, reminders, recognition. When your team sees stability in you, their resolve strengthens. Leadership in Q4 often shows up in what you don’t allow: confusion, shifting priorities, burnout.
For Fundraisers: Your Role Is Generosity in Motion
You know how to ask. But leadership is asking with context, with respect, and with gratitude. It’s asking not because you must, but because you believe the work is urgent, significant and shared. Before the ask comes the connection. Before the ask comes the thank-you. Every touch point is leadership in motion.
In my own work, I’ve been in rooms full of people who all heard the headlines that say “the market is down” and “uncertainty ahead.” But donors lean in when the case is clear, the need is articulated, and the ask is confident. Leadership in those conversations is the thread between vulnerability and vision.
For Program Staff: Be the Heart in the Message
You see the mission every day. If you can share one story — just one — with clarity and authenticity, you contribute leadership. No need for polished speeches. Just your voice. When you partner with fundraising colleagues to ground their “asks” in flesh and real lives, you put a “face to the case.” That is leadership too.
The Simple but Hard Truth
This season will test us. It will require late nights, dozens of conversations, and persistence. But what people remember is not the volume of work; it’s how we lead under pressure. Did we show up with intention? Did we live our mission in every interaction? Did we own our role?
As you move through these next weeks, own yours. Don’t wait for perfect clarity. There will be shifts and surprises. But show up anyway — with vulnerability, courage, clarity. That’s leadership. And when you lead, the generosity around you will follow.
Leadership isn't a title – it's an action. Throughout November, we'll examine different facets of effective nonprofit leadership, from building resilient teams to making tough decisions, providing you with actionable insights to strengthen your leadership impact.