Bernard Ross, director of the Management Centre, shares how fundraisers can apply the nobel-prize winning work of psychologist Dr. Daniel Kahneman to better understand how donors think.
Kahneman argues that we use two processes to make decisions: System 1 and System 2. System 1 is fast, instinctive, and emotional, while System 2 is slower, more deliberate, and logical. While we think System 2 is usually at work, Kahneman has found that it is actually System 1 that makes philanthropic decisions.

Ross asserts that donors make these choices based on certain mental heuristics, or System 1 short cuts. He discusses how fundraising professionals can tap into these short cuts to truly connect with donors in this edition of The Beacon.

Bernard Ross has worked for over 20 years with non-profit organizations, including UNICEF, Amnesty International, the US Public Broadcasting Service, and Greenpeace. His work has taken him to almost 40 countries.

Ross is also the co-author of Breakthrough Thinking for Non-Profit Organizations, which was voted the Best Non Profit book in the USA in 2004. He is a regular keynote speaker for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (USA), the Institute of Fundraising (UK) and Resource Alliance.

You can read more about Bernard on his website or on Twitter:
 

bernardross.wordpress.com/about/
 

@bernardrossmc