338. The Art of Perception in Fundraising - Amy Herman

Art of Perception in Fundraising - Amy Herman, We Are For Good Podcast

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Overview

Meet Amy. She's a lawyer and art historian who uses works of art to sharpen observation, analysis, and communication skills. By showing people how to look closely at art, she helps them hone their visual intelligence to recognize the most pertinent and useful information as well as recognize biases that impede decision-making. She's not here to change your biases; she's here to make you aware of them 👀

💡Learn:

The art of perception in fundraising
The Four A's of Critical Inquiry
The dangers of assumptions and biases

Today’s Guest

Amy Herman, Founder and President, The Art of Perception

“I’ve learned in my life, pausing is key.”

— Amy Herman, Founder and President, The Art of Perception

Episode Transcript

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Episode Highlights

Amy’s story and journey to where she is today (4:00)
The Art of Perception (12:00)
The Art of Perception in Fundraising (15:00)
Assumptions and Biases (23:40)
Visual Intelligence (31:30)
Four A’s of critical inquiry: Assess, Analyze, Articulate, and Adapt (33:10)
A powerful moment of philanthropy in Amy’s life (36:45)
Amy’s One Good Thing: As human beings, we have two ears and one mouth for a reason. We need to use them proportionately. (41:45)

Powerful quotes

“I’ve learned in my life, pausing is key.” -Amy

“The idea of fundraising and sharing that passion has always been at the heart of what I’m doing.” -Amy

“How does your mission impact you? What have you seen? What have you observed? What have you felt? What has changed you as a human being by virtue of being in this space?” -Becky

“When we’re asking for money, it should be person to person and mission to mission. Connectivity is so important.” -Amy

“I’m not here to change your biases. I’m here to make you aware of them.”

“When you have a personal experience with one thing, and it colors how you see other things, that is bias.” -Amy

“Biases happen when we have skin in the game. Good, bad or indifferent. You need to be aware of when you’re acting out of a bias and not looking as objectively as you should.” -Amy

“You train your own brain to see things that you didn't see before. And if you start to make a pattern of it, you'll start seeing things over and over again, that you would have never seen before.” -Amy

“If we listen more and talk less, it helps us engage with other people. Because when we listen to what's important to other people, we can respond to them more appropriately. And if we just hold our tongues and listen to what other people have to say, we will get the chance to speak.” -Amy