COURAGELAB™️ 2.0: A BIGGER, BOLDER, MORE IMPACTFUL MAJOR GIFTS COACHING PROGRAM FOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS & THEIR DEVELOPMENT TEAMS

Double your individual giving this year without doubling your workload

Get a sustainable fundraising strategy.

Get in sync with your team.

Become an unstoppable fundraising force for your mission.

Get a sustainable fundraising strategy. Get in sync with your team. Become an unstoppable fundraising force for your mission. 

READ ON TO SEE WHAT'S NEW IN 2.0

Right now, you’re losing sleep and hair trying to win small gifts that don’t even move the needle on your mission.

Between constantly:

  • Chasing down donors for piddly $5k gifts

  • Attending endless, mind-numbing team meetings

  • Making decisions about the smallest of details for your latest fundraising headache (ahem, event)

…you’re spread way too thin and working until 10pm more often than you’d like to admit.

And no one’s giving you the support or bringing the energy you need to reach your fundraising goals. But one thing’s clear:

Something’s gotta give.

Yeah, you’ve had some victories along the way. Congrats! For a while those wins—and a whole lot of caffeine—have kept you going.

They also helped fuel the misguided notion that working a little harder just a little longer would eventually result in bigger wins.

But now the writing’s on the wall: This high-cost, low-rewards effort isn’t working, and you’re starting to see that the problem goes deeper:

  • You’re sweating the small stuff. (And that’s keeping you small.)

  • Your skillset doesn’t match your goals. (And you have big goals.)

  • Your team’s not built for next-level success. (At least not yet.)

To raise 5- and 6-figure gifts on repeat without breaking a sweat, you’re gonna have to get comfortable with change.

Major gifts fundraising isn’t just about getting better at asking for more money. 

It’s about leading a cultural shift throughout your entire organization.

Lasting change in your community calls for no less than total clarity, commitment, and courage. And as executive director, that starts with you.

If you want to double your individual giving, you’re gonna need to:

Change your relationship with your team

You don’t need more team meetings—you need radical accountability. No more putting more on your plate to pick up the slack for everyone else. Time to get real about the strategy, budget, and staff needed to support your vision so everyone’s working from the same playbook.

Change your relationship with donors

 Settling for billionaire crumbs is a mission-killer. Donors should be looking to you to guide them in giving in alignment with your shared values.

Change your relationship with your board

Board members aren’t doing your mission any favors if all they’ve given is their name and title on your website. If they’re checked out, it’s time to re-establish expectations and lovingly hold their feet to the fire. 100% board giving and engaged ambassadors, here you come.

Change your relationship with risk

You can’t help your community with politeness and luck. You have to cultivate a high risk tolerance, learn how to stop taking rejection so personally, and develop nerves of steel if you care about the people you serve.

Change your relationship with yourself

Let me be clear: A lot of this is an inside job. Do you believe you can become the kind of leader who smashes their fundraising goals without burning out like everyone else? Are you willing to find out?

Step more fully into the role of a leader and…

Start making calls, not excuses.

Start building relationships, not lists.

Start making decisions, not bottlenecks.

Start delegating to your team, not taking on more.

Start having conversations, not making assumptions.

Start taking ownership, not waiting for people to step up.

Start trusting yourself, not second-guessing.

Start raising money, not stalling for time.

INTRODUCING

2.0

A MAJOR GIFTS COACHING MEMBERSHIP TO HELP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS, DEVELOPMENT DIRECTORS & THEIR TEAMS RAISE MORE 5- AND 6-FIGURE GIFTS FROM INDIVIDUALS

Live Coaching & Training by Julie Ordoñez

This hands-on program will walk you and your development team through the mindset, principles, and proven strategies of badass fundraisers.

This is the fire-in-your-belly, kick-in-your-behind, then hug-you-because-you-did-great kind of coaching and strategy you need to take your fundraising game to the next level.

Think personal AND professional development.

(‘Cause you’re gonna need both.)

Because it’s not JUST about being a better fundraiser. It’s about becoming a better leader in your donors’ lives and in your community.

What is CourageLab 2.0?

What’s Included in CourageLab 2.0

6-Months of 1:1 and Group Training and Coaching for Executive Directors, Development Directors Plus, Board Member Training

Mentorship & Coaching

  • 1:1 1-hour Strategy Session with Julie for each person on your team in the first 30 days of joining (worth $1,200 for up to 3 team members)

  • Board Fundraising Bootcamp for your board leadership (up to 2 board members)

  • 1:1 1-hour Coaching Call with Julie and Board Chair or Development Committee Chair after the Board Fundraising Bootcamp

  • Unlimited Coaching Support from Julie in the Private Circle App Community Chat for questions and challenges from Julie Monday - Friday

Training & Resources

  • 2x a Month Live Trainings and Hot Seat Coaching Calls with Julie

  • The CourageLab 2.0 Training Vault to answer all your Qs about how to conduct a donor meeting, how to make the ask, how to engage your board, how to run no-cost events and everything you’ll need to raise more 5-figure gifts

  • 29 Done-For-You Templates: KPI Tracker, Major Donor Proposal Template, Proven Pitch Framework to remove the guesswork from how to ask forever, Email Templates to ask for meetings, ask for a donation, and Julie’s full major gifts toolkit are yours

Courageous Community

  • A Generous Group of Executive Directors, Development Directors, and Major Gifts Officers (aka the Courage Crew) willing to trade tips, feedback, and support

  • Get Support Monday-Friday on urgent matters, celebrate wins, and learn from other brave leaders inside the private community chat in the Circle App

  • BONUS 2.5 day In-Person Intensive in Los Angeles for your whole team to join (retreat is included in CourageLab)

This Development Director used my Proven Pitch Framework to raise their organization’s first $100,000 gift

That’s 10x ROI from just one gift from one donor. Before CourageLab, their annual budget was $600,000~ and they had no previous major gifts training

METHOD

These are the 3 focus areas I work on with all of my clients to help them raise more major gifts faster and become better leaders without burning out.

Big Ask Blueprint

A smarter strategy to raise more in just 1-2 hours a week

  • Time Design – In our 1:1 call the first week you join, we’ll audit your calendar and redesign it around high-leverage actions that move the needle—no more back-to-back meetings with barely any time left for actual fundraising.

  • Performance KPIs – Together we’ll define personalized KPIs tailored to your strengths and goals—so you exceed targets without overextending yourself.

  • Quarterly Power Planning – Build a 90-day roadmap for your top 10 asks with my proven templates and strategies—so you stay focused, confident, and ahead of the curve.

Invisible Millions Method

Simple way to raise 10x more without asking donors to reach into their wallets

  • Courageous Conversations – Elevate your donor meetings by asking better questions that reveal deeper motivations—and eliminate the guessing game.

  • Wealth Psychology – Understand how the wealthy think and give—from tax strategy to values-based philanthropy—so you align your ask with what matters most to them.

  • Magnetic Messaging – Learn how to communicate your mission with clarity and conviction so donors feel inspired to give their best gifts now, not “someday.”

Bold Leader Framework

Become the type of leader million-dollar donors want to follow

  • Mindset Mastery – Say goodbye to self-doubt and second-guessing. Build a bold, focused inner game that helps you lead with confidence—no matter what’s happening around you.

  • Courage-in-Action – Get direct. Get clear. Get powerful. We’ll help you speak up for your vision, make hard calls, and stop procrastinating the real work.

  • Philanthropic Leadership – Learn how to become a true advisor to your donors, activate your board, and coach your team to raise more—with less stress and more joy.

Results are Typical

These are not cherry-picked highlights. These are realistic, everyday experiences inside CourageLab 2.0.

YOUR INVESTMENT

$1500/mo.

For up to 3 team members

Minimum 6-month commitment, then month-to-month

Real wins from everyday nonprofit leaders like you.

Sheena Grosshans, Director of Key Relationships

TWLOHA

Raised $250,000 inside CourageLab

November 2024 - May 2025 

Before CourageLab, fundraising felt reactive, gate-kept, and a little uncertain. I had strong experience, relationships, and instincts from past jobs, but I was building a whole new major gifts program from scratch, within a culture that was still rooted in scarcity and fear. I was raising steady mid-level and occasional major gifts, but struggled with planning, organization, and articulating a clear growth strategy.

I appreciated Julie’s candor, faith, and values. I wanted to feel like someone was philosophically in my corner when it came to how I approach fundraising. I wanted to sharpen my skills, grow in confidence with bigger asks, and develop a thoughtful, shareable, and scalable framework for my team.

Julie’s ability to simplify and clearly name what so many fundraisers feel but don’t always know how to articulate—especially through the Generosity Code and the ask process.

Julie helped me break it all down: what to say, when to say it, and how to root it in vision and impact. AND how to do it all boldly, courageously, and kindly. AND Julie taught in a way that I could pass along to my team. Julie’s courage, generosity, tangible examples, and encouragement made it all feel doable.

Working with Julie helped me step into major gift conversations with confidence and clarity, launch a whole new 5K location (born from a major donor dinner!), onboard my team to a giving philosophy rooted in abundance and courage, fire and rebuild our board to be more action- and fundraising-focused, and realign our entire strategy around our generosity code.

We raised over $250,000 directly connected to the strategies we built together in CourageLab.

  • I made the case to refocus my role on major gifts and shifted grant writing to a contractor.

  • We launched a new 5K event in Northern California that netted $30K, developed new partnerships with two hospital systems, and got our Between the Bells program into a local high school—impacting over 2,500 students.

  • We recruited and onboarded 3 new board members with a fundraising focus.

  • Now we have a qualification process, with clear ideas of who is the primary contact on each account, and are transitioning to using daily KPIs and relationship/ask trackers to drive strategy across the board.

For Only

$1500/month

Minimum 6-month commitment, then month-to-month.

CourageLab 2.0 includes training and coaching for up to 3 team members.

Anyone is able to join solo; you do not have to have a team to join and get the most out of this program.

Planning on hiring in the next 6 months?

New team members can join anytime during the program at no additional cost. (This will be the best training you could ever give them.)

Hey, I’m Julie.

Hey, I’m Julie.

We desperately need a Courage Revolution. So I started one. 

Between my clients’ wins and my own fundraising, I’ve helped teams raise $63 million (and counting).

Like a lot of my clients, I spent my early years spreading myself thin and making myself sick. Fortunately, I found an incredible mentor at United Way where I eventually became a top 1% fundraiser by leveraging major gifts. 

That’s how I learned the true meaning of generosity and courage. And it’s how I cultivated the focus on the most effective fundraising strategy of all: individual giving. 

Today, I help ambitious nonprofit leaders grow their courage muscles, go all-in on major gifts, and dare to ask for more.

If you’re ready to scale your fundraising efforts for your nonprofit organization, I want to help you. 

Courage is the catalyst for change in today’s world.

Ready to multiply yours?

TYPICAL FUNDRAISING

  • Do everything yourself 

  • 60-80 hour workweek 

  • Board is unhelpful 

  • Credit card gift and checks 

  • Guessing games and assumptions about why folks can’t or won’t give

  • Hit goals, but at a high personal cost (high level of day to day stress) 

  • Feel like that one 6-figure gift was mostly luck 

  • Doing too much; not clear on what to prioritize 

  • Worry about how to keep donors you have and bring in new donors 

  • Accept the crumbs no questions asked

THE COURAGELAB 2.0 METHOD

  • Ask for help and actually receive it without feeling bad 

  • Reasonable workweek hours

  • Vacation without checking email

  • Board brings in new donors 

  • 10x giving with Non-liquid assets

  • Know you’re the donor’s favorite nonprofit and where you stand 

  • Hit goals and feel a sense of ease 

  • Understand success and think long-term about strategy 

  • Clear on top priorities and create a weekly calendar that reflects that for each team member 

  • Balance stewardship and attract new donors as a team 

  • Challenge donors to match their talk with their walk and negotiate when appropriate without apology

  • Major gifts revenue growth is your top priority.

    You aren’t chasing piddly restricted grants that tie your hands behind your back. You are ready for unrestricted revenue from individuals to help you achieve your goals.

  • You have a big vision for impact, and you need to raise a lot more funding this year.

    You’re not confused about why you’re raising money. You know the vision for impact and you’re done with program waitlists and not being able to hire the folks you need.

  • You want to make bigger, bolder asks.

    You’re done leaving money on the table with your current supporters and are ready to build a pipeline of new major donors. You are hungry for a clear strategy to get your current donors to give their best gifts.

  • You’re ready to engage your board in fundraising.

    You need 100% board giving and ambassadors on your board making referrals in order to achieve your next level of impact. It’s no longer a “we’ll do that later” thing.

This is for you only if this sounds like you:

SOUND LIKE YOU?
GET INSIDE COURAGELAB™️ 2.0 AND START CONNECTING WITH YOUR PEOPLE.

Take a deeper look inside the CourageLab 2.0 Course

Modules 1-6 are essential, must-watch trainings

Modules 7-14 are bonuses you can go through at your own pace in the next 6 months 

Module 1: Building a Culture of Generosity

  • Learn the 5 keys to building a culture of generosity in your nonprofit

  • Mindset training to help you get an attitude of abundance

  • Donor Survey Email Template

  • The Generosity Code to unlock a culture of generosity on your board and staff 

Module 2: The Vital Few

  • Redefine fundraising as a form of leadership

  • Prep for the ask to ensure you aren’t leaving money on the table

  • Learn how to prioritize donors and determine your ask amount

  • Donor Engagement Monthly Tracker to help you stay on top of comms (plus a bank of ideas for “excuses” to reach out)

Module 3: Having Courage in Donor Conversations

  • Learn how to handle rejection (no vs. not right now)

  • Donor Research Guide and Template to help you better cultivate relationships and develop a more purposeful engagement strategy with your top donors

Module 4: Making the Ask With Audacity

  • Powerful Questions Cheat Sheet for potential and new donors and board members to build connection, get buy-in, and and inspire generous action

  • Pitch Framework that breaks down the formula of a clear, powerful, action-oriented ask

  • Meeting Guide to keep you on track toward your goal and gracefully get to the point

  • Donor Follow-Up Checklist and Email Toolkit with copy-pastable, personalizable emails to ask for the meeting, follow-up with gratitude, and close the gift

  • Learn how to use their passion, relationship, commitment—not just giving history—to determine and plan your future asks in the Fiscal Year Projections Spreadsheet

Module 5: Eleveate Your Mindset

  • Develop the attitudes and strategies of successful fundraisers and earn the 3 essentials to becoming a world-class major gifts fundraiser.

Module 6: Engaging Board Members in Fundraising

  • Develop a plan of action that plays to your strengths, maximizes your existing relationships, and gets board members playing a more active role in fundraising.

  • Create a 5-star experience for your board members by asking for feedback and having conversations.

  • Empower your board to engage with your existing and potential donors to expand your impact.

Module 7: Donor Engagement

  • Keep your donors engagedand in the loop with the Quarterly Update Guide template for executive directors.

Module 8: Upgrade Your Major Donors

  • Part 1

  • Part 2 

Module 9: Advanced Major Gifts – 6-Figure Gifts Bootcamp

  • Understand wealth and non-liquid assets so you can make strategic asks and receive gifts from a donor’s wealth, not just their (limited) available cash.

  • Then learn, practice, and use the 6-part Pitch Framework proven to close gifts with a clear and compelling invitation to donors to help fuel your mission.

Module 10: New Major Donors

  • Sexy Email Template

  • New Donor Journey

  • New Major Donor Strategies

Module 11: Strategy & Fiscal Year Planning

  • Fiscal Year Planning Projections

  • Bold major gifts strategy

  • CourageLab Framework: The 9 Things You Need to Ask for More and Raise Major Gifts

Module 12: End of Year Strategies

  • End of Year Major Gifts Strategy Workshop

  • You’ll also learn the 3 steps to closing $10k+ gifts by Dec. 31

Module 13: Running a Strong Development Team

  • Development Director JD

  • Disqualification Process Template

  • Development Department Agenda template

Module 14: Events

  • Events That Don’t Suck: The Ultimate Playbook to Donor Gatherings & Acquisition

  • Case Study: I hosted an event in my home and here’s how it went

It’s not just about money. It’s about Impact.

In your community. In your relationships. In your life.

Will raised multiple 6-figure gifts in the first 2 months of working with Julie

This was after a grueling capital campaign. The annual budget was $2.5M.

“Our team needed stronger confidence in major gifts. We needed the tools to go out, build relationships, and make bigger asks.

We were reaching our goals, but it was a constant cycle of urgency and scarcity mindset. I wanted a more sustainable way of working, and we needed a coach to show us how to do that.

Within the first couple of months of working together, we raised several hundred thousand. We had several successful six-figure asks. We continue to work with Julie and are now preparing for several seven-figure asks this year, which is really exciting. We are sitting on a stronger foundation and our team has grown.
Anyone considering working with Julie, personally reach out to me and I will convince them to work with her. Julie is a game-changer.”

– Will Zweigart, CEO of Flatbush Cats
 

Questions? Meet Answers.

  • If you’re starting from zero and don’t yet have individual donors, CourageLab 2.0 is not for you. Check out one of my trainings instead.

    If you have some individual donors, want to double your individual giving, and are ready to make major gifts your top priority, this is for you.

    Please note: CourageLab 2.0 was made with fierce go-getters in mind. Coming to this with a beginner’s mindset is encouraged. Coming to this with excuses is not. 

    If you’re on the fence, PLEASE start with one of my trainings and listen to my podcast to get up to speed on the foundations of major gifts and get a sense of my style.

  • Both. When you sign up, you’ll get:

    • Immediate access to my training vault and curriculum

    • Live twice-monthly coaching and Q&A calls

    • Private Slack community where you’ll receive support and accountability Monday - Thursday during business hours.

    • You’ll get a ton of individual attention and learn a lot from your peers’ questions. And you’ll be held accountable to have at least one donor conversation or touchpoint each week. You no longer have to white-knuckle this all alone. It will change everything.

  • Most major gift programs overwhelm you with information that, let’s be honest, makes you fall asleep. This is not that. We move fast and get results quickly through customized 1:1 support and a proven, recession-proof major gift strategy that’s easy to implement and run with on your own for the rest of your career.

    Plus, you’ll develop other leadership skills and gain knowledge by tapping into the community around you—a community full of peers as ambitious, courageous, kind, and passionate as you are.

    This is 6 months of deep support for you and your team.

  • Yes! I work with CEOs and their teams 1:1 to help them raise more 6 and 7-figure gifts in record time without burnout. We work together for 6 months and I’m on retainer. There usually aren’t any openings, so you’ve actually hit the secret menu, but you are welcome to apply to work with me 1:1 here: Million Dollar VIP Leadership Program

  • CourageLab 2.0 is an intimate group and I only open doors once a month for a couple of days. Everyone gets 1:1 feedback, coaching and support. There are limited spots available every 30 days or so. Get on the waitlist to be notified when doors open: Join the waitlist

  • Yes. In addition to the major gifts strategy one-pager, you will learn the keys of building a culture of generosity. Because your culture is your strategy. And you need the confidence, skillset, and habits to build a plan that works for your strengths and organization.

  • Oh look, a rare sighting of a busy nonprofit fundraiser. (Sarcasm font.)

    Listen, I've been in your shoes—at one point in my early fundraising career, I was literally doing 17 jobs. If what you were doing was working, you wouldn't be reading this. Something’s gotta give.

    If you have reasons (excuses) why you can't do this program, then don't. This isn't for me. It's for you.

    This is for folks who are DONE with the status quo and determined to level up. This is one of the most time efficient ways to get better at major gifts and invest in yourself.

    As far as time commitment?

    The calls are twice a month. The course access allows you to move at your pace and pick and choose where you'd like to start. The Slack support is perfect for on-the-go, ad-hoc questions and challenges you’d otherwise have no support for.

    This program supports you and your team in getting on the same page so you’re faster, more efficient, and more impactful in your fundraising efforts. In that way, CourageLab 2.0 SAVES you time—a precious resource in your community when time = money.

    There is no good time to invest in your training. There will always be something. You may be able to put off CourageLab 2.0. Can your community wait any longer?

  • Results. I’m the real deal. People who show up to every call typically 4x their investment in 8 weeks or less and double or triple their individual giving in 2 years. Long-term clients from 2018 and 2019 have doubled their individual giving and grown 50-100% in revenue each year. You will have a proven method to inspire unrestricted 5- and 6-figure gifts forever.

  • Yes, if you’ve subscribed to my podcast, are on my mailing list, and get my philosophy and track record, then you can book a call here. If you have someone making this decision with you, please include them on the call.

  • Heck yes! Is there any other way to party? Your membership includes training and support for up to 3 team members from your organization who are involved in major gifts or will be in the near future. (In other words, they’re actively building relationships and corresponding with donors.) This work is personal, and each team member will need to participate fully.

    Don’t have a team yet, but plan on hiring soon? You’re also welcome to join and your new team members will be able to join at no additional cost any time throughout the program. What an incredible way to help onboard and train new staff.

  • Julie works in the U.S. in the PST time zone, but has folks join from all over. If you are hungry for major gifts training, have individual donors who you sense could give more and you’re ready to make bolder asks, this program could be for you. All live calls are scheduled to best accommodate those in the continental U.S.

  • Your success in CourageLab 2.0 depends on your commitment to action. While all past CourageLab members have earned their investment back multiplied, I cannot guarantee outcomes because I don’t control your team’s efforts. For that reason, no refunds will be offered if you are unhappy with the program or your results.

    CourageLab 2.0 is a minimum 6-month commitment, then month-to-month after. If you leave and want to rejoin, it's another 6-month commitment.

Stefan got a $10K gift from a volunteer, after just one email.

Results are typical.

CourageLab.

Results are typical. CourageLab.

Stefan shares how he implemented the donor communications system in CourageLab that created incredible results and got a $10K gift from a new donor within 3 weeks of CourageLab. Stefan had not been trained
in major gifs prior to CourageLab.

Monica exceeded her goal of $100K, after just one month.

Results are typical.

CourageLab.

Results are typical. CourageLab.

During CourageLab, she led her team in a new way and let go of distractions. She also raised $10K in one phone call from someone she thought would say no, her first $100K gift from another donor and asked for $250K and got close to double that instead!

Get bold. Get brave. Get the money.

Investment

$1500/mo.

FOR UP TO 3 TEAM MEMBERS

Minimum 6-month commitment, then month-to-month

It’s about developing sustainable habits.

Not doing All The Things. You’ll lay the foundation of all the habits you need to tune out the noise, delegate, and have the conversations that serve your mission.

It’s about keeping your word to the people you serve—and yourself. 

Most nonprofit leaders are motivated by external factors rather than internal ones. But to become the leader your mission needs, you need to be able to keep your word to yourself. This breeds self-trust. Your confidence soars. And that’s what’s going to help you get ready for even bigger things in the not-too-distant future

It’s about becoming a courageous leader and person.

You won’t be the same person in 6 months. You’ll be better. You’ll be even more you.

CourageLab™️ is not just about fundraising…

This is a room you want to be in.

Not only will you AT LEAST double your investment in CourageLab 2.0, you’ll also walk away with serious personal wins. Like these…

One last thing…

One last thing…

This work is Personal.

This work is Personal.

You’re fulfilling your passion, and pursuing the path that’s less traveled by your peers. You set out to achieve a mission - one that’s personal. The journey of scaling your fundraising efforts through major gifts is going to challenge you to your core.

Enter only if your heart's in it, because courage calls for nothing less than your full attention.

Still deciding if I’m the right fundraising coach for you?