Designing Tomorrow: Creative Strategies for Social Impact

What do you do when your mission is evolving… but your brand, programs, and funding strategy haven’t caught up yet? In this episode, Jonathan brings a live challenge to the table: a bold new vision for the Seymour Center that could reposition it as a hub for climate solutions and STEM leadership — but it comes with branding risks, potential backlash, and major funding implications. Eric coaches hi...

The funding landscape is shifting, and relying on the same revenue strategies that got you here may not be enough to take your organization to the next level. Many nonprofits and social enterprises struggle to generate enough revenue—not just to sustain their work, but to fully fund their missions and reinvest in long-term growth. So how do you build a revenue model that works? One that’s not just...

We are living through the biggest shift in media and marketing of our lifetimes. Misinformation spreads faster than ever, trust in institutions is crumbling, and social impact leaders are left navigating a fractured, chaotic digital landscape. So how do you build credibility, mobilize communities, and create real impact when attention is scattered and trust is eroding? In this episode, Eric and Jo...

Most social impact leaders think they’re measuring their impact — but are they really?  Measuring impact is especially difficult when change happens over years or even decades, and when the outcomes are tied to complex, systemic issues. On top of that, the process of evaluation and measurement can feel like extra work — another task on an already full plate.  But without it, we risk relying on ane...

Nonprofit leaders constantly hear that diversifying revenue streams is the key to financial stability. But what if that advice isn't the whole story? Research shows that 90% of high-growth nonprofits rely on a single dominant funding source. Does that mean nonprofits should double down on one funding stream—or is there a smarter way to approach fundraising? In this episode, Eric and Jonathan...

Failure isn’t just a possibility in social impact work — it’s inevitable. But are we failing constructively? In this episode, Eric and Jonathan break down the difference between constructive failure and harmful failure, and why embracing the right kind of failure is essential for innovation, leadership, and long-term impact. From team dynamics and funding challenges to moonshot thinking and psycho...

If you’ve ever felt like your messaging isn’t quite landing — like people don’t get it or aren’t inspired to take action — you’re not alone. We hear it all the time: “We’re struggling to tell our story.” But here’s the thing: your story isn’t the story that matters most. The real question is: How do you craft messaging that actually moves people? In this episode of Designing Tomorrow, we’re breaki...

The way we work is changing — fast. Remote work, shifting boundaries, and evolving expectations have reshaped what it means to work in the social impact sector. But are nonprofits keeping up? In this episode, Jonathan and Eric dive into the unique challenges mission-driven organizations face in building a sustainable, healthy work culture. From balancing remote flexibility with team cohesion to ta...

Confidence: it’s one of the most critical traits for effective leadership, but also one of the trickiest to master.  In this episode of Designing Tomorrow , Eric and Jonathan dive into what it truly means to embody confidence as a social impact leader. From personal struggles with self-doubt to lessons on humility, resilience, and overconfidence, this conversation pulls back the curtain on the rea...

Marketing and fundraising are the lifeblood of social impact organizations. But too often, they're working in silos, disconnected, or even at odds with each other. This is a huge problem. Because when these two critical functions aren't aligned, it hurts your ability to build trust with donors, limits your fundraising potential, and ultimately reduces your impact. In our latest episode o...

Trust is not a given — it’s earned.  In this episode, Eric and Jonathan explore how trust is shifting away from institutions and toward relationships, and why that’s reshaping the way nonprofits and social impact organizations must operate. You’ll gain insights on: The hidden power of impact storytelling and why nonprofits often overlook it. The five pillars of trust backed by science—and how to a...

How do you keep your team energized, engaged, and aligned—especially in the demanding world of social impact? Passion and purpose are key, but they’re not enough on their own. In this episode, Eric and Jonathan unpack the essential elements of team motivation, exploring why some teams thrive while others stall, and revealing the missing ingredient in traditional approaches to workplace fulfillment...

Rewind: This episode was orginally published in Season 2, Episode 1. New episodes from Season 3 will continue to publish next week. —  You probably shouldn’t rebrand your social impact organization.  Except, of course, when you really should . (wait, what?) Because when the conditions are right, a rebrand can be one of the most powerful ways to reach your mission faster. But how do you know when i...

REWIND: This episode was originally released in Season 1, Episode 2. New episodes from Season 3 will drop in 2025.  — Today, you’ll consume 74GB of information. That’s the equivalent of watching 16 movies. In one day.  Our inboxes are overflowing, our social streams are noisy, we doom scroll short form content on apps purpose-built to hijack our attention, designed by the world’s smartest minds. B...

Is your organization struggling to turn awareness into meaningful action? You’ve nailed the brand and the website, but supporters still aren’t stepping up. Why? In this episode, Eric and Jonathan tackle the critical but often overlooked concept of activation: turning passive attention into real-world impact. Whether you’re trying to inspire donations, mobilize volunteers, or drive policy changes,...

Low pay the social impact sector is reaching a critical point. Leaders and workers alike are grappling with the harsh realities of compensation in an industry driven by passion and purpose. But at what cost? In the latest episode of Designing Tomorrow , Eric and Jonathan dive deep into this pressing issue, exploring: • The cultural shift around work-life balance and its impact on the sector • Why...

"Is your strategic plan collecting digital dust?" That's the question every social impact leader needs to ask themselves.  We've all been there — investing countless hours and resources into creating the perfect 3-year plan, only to have it sit unused on a shelf. But what if there was a better way? A more agile approach that could energize your team and get your ideas into acti...

Are you losing touch with your community? It might be time to reconnect. As social impact leaders, we pour our hearts and souls into our work. But sometimes, in the rush to create change, we can drift away from the very people we're trying to serve. In our latest episode of Designing Tomorrow, we tackle this critical issue head-on. We explore the subtle signs that you might be losing connecti...

"This looks great. Let me just get the board's input." Those words strike fear into the heart of every social impact leader. You've poured your heart and soul into a project, only to have it potentially derailed at the last minute. But what if getting community input didn't have to be so terrifying? What if there was a way to gather feedback that actually improved your wor...

Are you falling into the trap of transactional marketing without even realizing it? In this episode of Designing Tomorrow , we dive deep into why social impact organizations often default to transactional marketing approaches - and the hidden dangers of this common mistake. We cover: The 6 reasons why we fall into the transactional marketing trap Why "easy" and "inexpensive" ma...

The social impact sector isn’t known for being very risky. In fact, it’s often quite the opposite. Too many orgs play it safe, afraid of over-scrutinization (the double standard is real here) and hoping to protect their mission and resources. But here’s the thing — sometimes the most dangerous thing is playing it too safe. In this episode, Jonathan and Eric dive into the topic of risk: when to tak...

Is your organization's purpose secretly undermining its impact? In our latest episode of Designing Tomorrow, Jonathan and Eric tackle a provocative question: When does your purpose become a problem? We explore the hidden mistakes that can trap even the most well-intentioned social impact organizations, including: • Relying on wishful thinking instead of hard facts • Letting processes become m...

Struggling to measure the impact of your branding and marketing efforts? You're not alone. Ironically, the more analytics tools we have to measure the success of our marketing efforts, the harder it seems to know what’s actually working. This is especially true of broader brand marketing efforts, which are harder to measure and don’t play nice with our modern measurement platforms that have b...

Branding/marketing isn’t going to do anything for your org…if you can’t fund it in the first place.  Unfortunately, justifying the investment in this work — both money AND capacity — for social impact orgs doesn’t come as easily as it might for other sectors. And right now everyone is still stuck in the “do more with less” mentality.  Here’s how to make a solid case for the investment — whether yo...

Social impact orgs aren’t known for being great at branding and marketing. But it's NOT just about limited resources — there's a deeper story here. There’s some big obstacles in the way, like: → The "overhead myth" that just won't die (KILL IT WITH FIRE) → A false dichotomy between choosing to invest in fundraising OR marketing (you need both) → The "scrappiness falla...