HOW TO FIND YOUR VOICE AND MAKE AN IMPACT
Giving is what women do, of course. We nurture kids and relatives. We drop everything for friends in need. We form neighborhood associations, join walkathons, sit on school boards and give to clothing drives. Often as not, we also write charitable checks. So what’s this all about? Something of a revolution, really. Increasingly, women are […]
REWARDS: FLEXING THE POWER OF ONE
Stories about women working toward a bigger purpose, building something that will outlive them, are surfacing frequently. These are altogether contemporary legacies, on a scale without precedent or model. The stories are ongoing and evolving, so the full impact is still largely under the radar. Here are snapshots of four women who put their commitments […]
THE BLISSFUL FEELING OF HAVING ENOUGH
For some years now, I’ve been delving into women’s mixed emotions about money and power, including anxiety, pride, envy, anger and guilt. I’ve been reporting on and investigating sex-based elements of leadership and entrepreneurship, looking at women’s social and political accomplishments and setbacks. And during that time, whether among women with inherited wealth, women who […]
FAMILY PHILANTHROPY IS GROWING
Despite the downturn, the number of US households with a net worth of $5 million or more still is at record levels. Increasingly, these millions of baby boomers — who primarily earned their money the hard way, by themselves rather than by inheriting it — have wrestled with how to nurture their children’s empathy and […]
THE REAL STORY OF PRINCESS CHARMING
Let me tell you the real story of the woman who married Prince Charming. During their forty years together, he enjoyed a lucrative and secure career. She never asked about their assets or how much they spent or saved. They had kids and lived well. You can see where this is headed. The prince died. […]
THE POWER OF ONE IS TAKING CHARGE
Charitable gifts have seen “historic declines” in 2009, for the second year in a row – that’s the academic version of “OMG, it’s scary out there.” Giving USA rates the decline at 3.2% (down to $303 billion in total gifts for 2009). “Chronicle of Philanthropy” reported an 11% drop for the biggest 400 charities in […]
START YOUR OWN GIVING TRADITION
At several meetings I attended over the past week, including a radio interview, a holiday networking party and a local fund-raising initiative, I heard a wide variety of women saying, “I just can’t do the obligatory holiday gift giving anymore. Who needs another sweater?” So I suggest we shift gears, revamp rituals and simultaneously move […]
KICKING ASS AND GIRL-ING OUT
In the “We’ve Come a Long Way” department, Prudential has recently released its latest women and money research, a 10th anniversary edition. Results? It would seem, dear ones, that we the American women are simultaneously kicking ass and girl-ing out. Take a cruise of the findings from the “Financial Experience & Behaviors among Women, 2010−2011 […]
WHY FOR-PROFIT COMPANIES WILL DO THE RIGHT THING
Several years ago, Socially Responsible Investing maven Peter D. Kinder, then president at KLD Research & Analytics (KLD) in Boston, and currently Strategic Advisor to ESG Analytics, wrote a white paper called “Values and Money.” His stated goal was to trace the history of SRI and to provide some real definitions, context and metrics about […]
THE ELEPHANT IN THE NONPROFIT CONFERENCE ROOM
Amid all the current third sector challenges, including how to fundraise in this climate, how to sustain programs, how to maintain the endowment, staff shortages, how to measure and demonstrate impact, how to advance diversity, how to grow the mission, and so on—amid all these concerns and more—I foresee a much bigger crisis coming down […]