Most people don’t go to school to be fundraisers—they bump into it in a variety of ways, and Martin Leifeld was no different. He was originally a theology major, and eventually found fundraising to be a more practical way to be mission-minded.
However, over his past 20-plus years at institutions including the Archdiocese of Belleville, Saint Louis University, and the University of Missouri–St. Louis, Leifeld has learned a great deal about fundraising, leadership, and business, and now he’s sharing those insights in the new book Five Minutes for Fundraising: A Collection of Expert Advice From Gifted Fundraisers.
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“About five years ago, I decided I wanted to write a book as a way of doing a couple of things. One is giving back to my profession. I felt like after being in the business almost 25 years now, that I had learned some things that could be helpful,” said Leifeld. “The book was not trying to create a comprehensive how-to manual to fundraise. What I am trying to do is pick some points that I think are really important—differentiators.”
Leifeld reached out to colleagues across the country, and 26 contemporaries wrote essays enhancing what he had to say on a number of topics the book covers.
“And it made it so much better—just multiplied the interest and what the book tried to say,” said Leifeld. “What I really want to do is to be able to take whatever life experiences I’ve had, and to draw upon it to be as helpful as possible, and make the greatest impact and contributions I can.”
Over the course of his career, Leifeld has asked for millions of dollars in donations. Here are four things you might not realize about his job.
The job of the fundraiser is about the donor.
“We want to facilitate philanthropy for the donor, to help them expand their ability to impact the world and make it a better place. Trying to do that is really a very different job than just trying to get money. … I do believe the act of giving, and the act of generous giving, is ennobling. It makes someone a greater person by doing so because they are taking their eyes off themselves. They are not trying to control their resources, their money; they are trying to give it away as a gift with the hope that others can be transformed, the world can be improved. And for many people, it’s a risk, because they are parting with something that is not an infinite commodity for them.”
He doesn’t worry about “no’s.”
“The thing about no’s is, they’re almost as good as a yes, because they give you an opportunity to ask why and to better understand the mind, the attitude, the outlook, the priorities of the person who is saying no to us. … Occasionally there is a no forever, but usually, if we respect them, they’ll see us again and eventually a no may become a yes.”
The giving scene in St. Louis
“St. Louis is known nationally in terms of being really strong in corporate giving. Even with the turnover of major corporations and the emergence of new, growing corporations over the years, corporate St. Louis is as generous as ever—and perhaps even more so. I think this idea of corporate social responsibility is a value that is really held by [the St. Louis business community from] the small modest privates to the large privates and the small public to the large public companies.”
Leaders have to know themselves.
“In order for us to be powerful people, and I mean powerful in the sense of making a meaningful contribution to the world and those around us, it requires having a self-understanding. A clarity about who you are, what you’re about, and what you want to accomplish. And the clearer you are about that the greater impact you can have in the world.”
