Description
Terry Munday, former vice president for advancement at Indiana Wesleyan University, brings a candid and experience-driven perspective to the realities of fundraising and advancement leadership. Drawing from more than 35 years in higher education, Terry shares what he learned by sitting knee to knee with donors, navigating early career uncertainty, and building systems that sustained generosity over time. This conversation focuses on the discipline of relationship-building, the leadership habits that matter most in advancement, and why patience, consistency, and trust are essential to long-term fundraising success.
🎧 What We Cover in This Episode
How Terry transitioned into advancement leadership without formal fundraising training
What decades of donor relationships reveal about trust & timing
Why effective fundraising depends more on consistency than charisma
Leadership habits that separate sustainable advancement programs
How to navigate early-career pressure, uncertainty, and credibility gaps
The strategic role of the annual fund in building future major and planned gifts
🎙️ Episode Highlights
02:02 Learning fundraising by doing it and why early discomfort matters
07:34 The discipline of relationship-building and why assumptions derail trust
10:17 What donor behavior teaches leaders about patience and stewardship
15:27 Why successful fundraising careers are built over decades, not cycles
27:37 Managing ego, rejection, and momentum in early fundraising years
32:15 How the annual fund supports institutional flexibility and growth
36:53 Turning routine donor outreach into long-term institutional impact
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