Without further ado, here are six waves I see building momentum in 2026 that I think you can ride to create growth for you and your organization.

Does it feel like January is already off to the races? 

I don’t know about you, but by the end of last week, the holidays felt like a distant memory.

In the midst of a fast start, I truly believe that 2026 will be a pivotal year for many organizations. This will be the year they embrace a sustainer-first mindset and truly tap into sustainable giving in a substantial way. For others, 2026 will be the year they accelerate on a strong base of sustainable recurring giving. 

Whether your organization is looking to tap into growing recurring giving this year or whether you have a solid base and want to accelerate growth, today’s Wave Report is for you.

Let’s start with making the message of sustainable giving more accessible – in audio form. 

January 1 has a way of sneaking up on nonprofit leaders.

At 12:01 a.m., the calendar flips – and with it, the emotional math resets. No matter how strong December was, no matter how hard your team pushed, many leaders wake up on January 1 with the same familiar feeling: Here we go again.

Back at zero.
Back at the bottom of the mountain.
Back to asking how we’re going to do it all over again this year.

For decades, we’ve accepted this as normal. We’ve planned around it, budgeted for it, even joked about it. January 1 became the worst day of the year not because leaders lack vision or discipline – but because the system we inherited was never designed to carry momentum forward.

But what if January 1 doesn’t have to feel this way?

Happy New Year. 

I hope you had a blessed holiday season and that in this time you’ve found pockets of peace, rest, and reflection.

Today’s Wave Report is a short one. I want to leave you to consider just one question.

What’s your Imago?

We love watching Christmas movies. Christmas is such a busy season that we don’t get to watch very many, so we take turns picking the movie. Often, the pick is a Christmas classic - Elf, Home Alone, The Grinch (no Die Hard, sorry not sorry).

But one of our new favorites is Journey to Bethlehem. Release in 2023, the sometimes-cheesy film is a musical retelling of the story of the first Christmas (think of it as Wicked but for Christmas 😉). The soundtrack is a standout (here’s the Spotify playlist, including songs such as Can We Make this Work, Mother to a Savior and King, and We Become We).

As we watched the film this week, I was struck by the foresight that the magi must have had as they traveled from the east to find this king to be born in Bethlehem.

I think there are several lessons we can learn from both the wise men and shepherds in the Christmas story on innovation and seeing coming waves of change.

Happy Friday. As you shift into holiday mode, I want to send a short Wave Report about what we can learn from waves, Christmas, and the spirit of aloha. 🌊🎄🤙

I wrote earlier this year about our family’s experience attending a sold-out Savannah Bananas exhibition baseball game at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park. 47,000 fans filled the stands – one of two straight sold-out nights in Seattle. It’s pretty incredible for what is essentially a minor league exhibition team.

But the Bananas are so much more. 

Today is one of my favorite days of the year.

This morning, I’ll sit down in one of my favorite coffee shops and reflect on the year as it comes to a close.

Today is going to be a short one. 

Last week, I wrote about Six Insights at the Intersection of Gratitude and Generosity. 

This week, I’m trying to live those lessons out…

I believe that gratitude and generosity form a virtuous cycle. One leads to the other, and they reinforce each other.

When I practice generosity, it leads to gratitude.

When I practice gratitude, it, in turn, leads to generosity. 

Six Insights at the Intersection of Gratitude and Generosity

Tomorrow, November 15, is National Philanthropy Day. 

Officially recognized as a national day by President Reagan in 1986, National Philanthropy Day is an annual day of celebration that recognizes the contributions of philanthropy to the world. 

Simply defined, philanthropy is the use of private resources for public purposes. The giving of resources like time, talent, and treasure has deep roots in human history.

The word philanthropy comes from the Greek words “philos,” meaning “that which is beloved,” and “anthrōpos,” meaning “humankind.”

Philanthropy, literally translated, means for the love of humanity.

If you acquire any volume of new donors, this Wave Report holds the secret to perhaps the single most effective strategy you have to grow sustainable giving.

$13.1 billion. 

That’s the amount that Americans will have spent on Halloween by the time today is over, according to the National Retail Federation.

Whether it’s costumes or candy, pumpkins or parties, Americans plan to spend an average of $114 per person this holiday.

Over the past 20 years, I’ve interacted with thousands of nonprofit leaders, influenced hundreds of organizations directly, and consulted with 100+ charities individually. 

I’ve been on both sides of the table—hiring consultants and being one. In that time, I’ve seen the difference between a good consulting engagement and a great one that produces results. 

A great consultant can make a difference, but a great partnership can transform your organization. 

After more than two decades of working with nonprofits, today I’d like to share what I’ve seen the best leaders do to maximize their relationships with expert advisors and consultants.

Let’s imagine a world in which generosity has a day. Not a holiday for deals or consumption, but one collective moment carved out for shared humanity and generosity. That world already exists — and it started less than a decade and a half ago.

GivingTuesday started with simple roots at the 92nd Street Y and its Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact in New York City. It was a bold experiment – a “Giving Tuesday” immediately following the Thanksgiving weekend, aimed at redirecting the energy of post-holiday momentum toward generosity.

Today, GivingTuesday is a worldwide phenomenon, with recorded movements in more than 100 countries. In 2024, U.S. donors alone gave $3.6 billion.

I’ve written in the past about the power of invented holidays – shared moments that can shape us, both individually and as a community. GivingTuesday is a case in point, and I’m grateful for its impact on generosity. 

But GivingTuesday is not just a single-day surge. It is also a turning point in how donors think about giving — especially recurring giving.

What do Seinfeld, Game of Thrones, and the Purpose & Profit Podcast have in common

Each came to a natural end in its own time — and ended with a finale.

I just hope that the Purpose & Profit finale is received better than some of those television endings. 🤞

After six seasons of exploring the surprising ideas at the intersection of causes and brands, my co-host Carly Berna and I have decided to bring the show to a close — at least for now.

Some people celebrate anniversaries. At Imago, we celebrate Imagoversaries. And a couple of weeks ago, we celebrated our three-year Imagoversary. 😊🎉🙌

What do the likes of Walt Disney, the Savannah Bananas’ Jesse Cole, and Martin Luther have in common?

They each lead with imagination. 

Also… 

✨ They each have created movements. 

✨ They cared deeply about the people who followed their causes.

✨ They were masters of experience. 

The past week for me has been full of imagination. 

I went from:

💥 Hosting our first-ever Sustainable Giving Workshop, to 

🍌 Attending the sold-out Savannah Bananas game in Seattle, to

🏰 Leading a day at Disney World with a group of 20 charity leaders.

The theme of our time at Disney was “Prototyping Tomorrow: Connecting and creating the world of tomorrow through innovation and imagination.”

Events are one of the most effective channels for growing sustainable giving. In fact, for some organizations, they can be the number ONE channel for sustainer acquisition.

In this Wave Report, I’m going to unpack why events can be so effective in growing recurring revenue, and share seven ways to grow sustainable giving at your next event. 

But first, speaking of events, let’s celebrate. 🎉

This past week, we hosted our first Sustainable Giving Workshop, just outside Seattle. 

Today, we continue our series on the worst advice I’ve seen when it comes to growing sustainable recurring giving. 

This advice is almost always well-meaning and might sound reasonable in the moment, but it can be dangerous if followed.