Visionary Voices

Digital will platforms are expensive, slow, and aimed at the wrong donors. High-net-worth households use attorneys; faith-based institutions dominate bequests without these tools. The math is brutal: decades of fees to net very little, while boards celebrate gross and skip the P&L. In the rooms that matter, peers are polite—and quietly laughing. If you want six-figure legacies (average $50K–$90K, with 70% realized within five years of death), fund disciplined, relationship-based cultivation, advisor outreach, and a real moves-management program. Stop signaling convenience over competence. Choose effective over easy—and earn legacies this decade, not the next.

Fundraisers often suffer from a “money allergy.” When terms like “capital gains” or “charitable trusts” arise, the conversation shifts to emotional stories instead. But serious donors don’t think in anecdotes—they think in assets, taxes, and leverage. Until fundraisers speak that language, major gifts remain out of reach. A story without math is fluff. A story with math is a check. Philanthropy’s cure starts with financial fluency.