Give & Take

  Don’t Keep Them Bottled Up! Some of you who never read Forbes Magazine might think it’s just a stuffy business periodical designed for men in gray suits who dream in pie charts. But how stuffy can a magazine really be when it runs a glowing feature on “investment-grade” Scotch whisky? That’s right. Investment-grade. As in, the kind of Scotch that doesn’t go in your liquor cabinet so much as your portfolio. Because apparently, in today’s world, a bottle of booze might outperform your 401(k. And with dollar values per fifth reaching into the five and six figures, what nonprofit wouldn’t appreciate a donation of such a very special bottle of, shall we say, “liquid assets”? The Fine Art of Gifting Booze (No, Really) When canny marketers decide to pull the cork on high-end snob appeal, the sky’s the limit — at least for them. Me? My personal Scotch budget

Originally Published September 16, 2010. Updated for January, 2025. Apology Not Accepted: Why You Shouldn’t Beg for Forgiveness in Fundraising A few years back, I was lying on a beach with my wife, margarita in hand, enjoying the sound of the waves and the luxury of ignoring my phone. Naturally, that’s when it rang. On the other end was a client, panic vibrating through his voice like a dentist drilling too close to the nerve. “I’m going to have to apologize to all of them,” he moaned. “In fact, I’m writing the apology letter now.” “To who? About what?” I asked, already mentally preparing to cancel my vacation. We had just designed a planned giving brochure for him, and it was going out to over 22,000 of his prospects. My stomach twisted like a corkscrew—I was sure we had screwed it up. But (thankfully for me), it wasn’t our fault.

I’ve been in the planned giving marketing industry for 25 years, and for 25 years I’ve been saying that planned giving is a people business. If you love people, you will go far in planned giving (and in your career).

The next four years are yours to shape, no matter who's in office. Success isn't luck — it's mindset, action, and personal growth. Staying in your comfort zone, no matter how hard you work, won't get you ahead. Growth requires discomfort, risk, and learning new skills. Every top performer faces fear but uses it to grow stronger. Will you survive and hope someone else fixes your life or thrive by taking charge? Life isn’t a ballot box—no one else can vote for your success.

“People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamp post; for support rather than illumination.” (Mark Twain)

When most people think about philanthropy, they envision cash donations or planned giving from stocks. But what about real estate? For donors looking to make a lasting impact, Realty Gift Fund (RGF) is leading the way in transforming real estate assets into significant charitable contributions. Realty Gift Fund (RGF) is a qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, meaning it is a charitable organization that is eligible to receive tax-deductible donations; its primary focus is facilitating the donation of real estate to other non-profit organizations. We sat down with Jay Grab, one of RGF’s experts, to discuss how the organization simplifies these complex transactions and amplifies donors’ legacies.