During our time away at Lake Gaston this summer one afternoon I tore myself off the boat and into the car to return to Raleigh for a meeting.

Summer is winding down and kids are headed back to school. I’m seeing back to school flyers in the papers and first day of school pictures popping up all over my newsfeed on Facebook.

I recently traveled to California - a 3-hour time difference from North Carolina. Each morning my inbox was full from people on the east coast who had been up working for three hours before me. My usual 9 and 10 a.m.

There I was, sitting down for a quiet breakfast in a corner table of a local favorite restaurant.

Does anyone really like change? I’m not sure I know anyone who can accommodate major transitions without a level of anxiety and stress.

A leader makes or is encouraged to make a hasty exit after a short tenure at a non- profit. Word spreads quickly through the non-profit community and people begin to share their opinions.

I am fortunate to be surrounded in both my professional and personal life by people and organizations who are focused on doing good and helping others.

I love the 4th of July! The cookouts, the family gatherings, and, of course, the fireworks! This year I’ve been thinking about the whole idea of independence and how that relates to the world of nonprofits.

I work with clients to create development plans to ensure interdependence from one or two sources of income like events or publicly funded grants. The question “How do we label different types of donors?” always comes up.