Nonprofit fundraising consultant + speaker
Meet the fundraising consultant Oprah can vouch for.
Rachel has spent decades in nonprofit fundraising – founding an org from scratch, raising millions, and building a career helping fundraisers across the country do the same.
How $500 & a credit card turned into a career in nonprofit fundraising consulting
From $500 and a credit card to the Oprah Show
When she was just 26, Rachel Muir founded Girlstart, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering girls in math, science, engineering and technology – starting in the living room of her apartment with $500 and a credit card. Several years later she had raised over $10 million and been featured on Oprah, CNN, and the Today Show.
Her business cards didn’t say CEO or Executive Director. They read: Fearless Leader.
A winner of Oprah Winfrey's Use Your Life Award, Rachel is a three-time finalist for Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Award, was named "Outstanding Fundraising Executive of the Year" by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and one of Fast Company's "Fast 50 Champions of Innovation." She's been featured in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Fundraising Success Magazine, Advancing Philanthropy, Fast Company, Glamour, and Texas Monthly.
What she's been doing since
Her career as a fundraising consultant spans managing major gift portfolios for some of the country's largest non-profits, running some of the country's largest nonprofits, an online fundraising consulting practice for a major software company, and delivering years of keynotes, board retreats, and custom trainings for organizations of every size. She has served on numerous boards and has the T-shirts and scars to prove it.
Rachel would one day like to have Michelle Obama's arms, Kristin Wiig's sense of humor, and the nerve to say some of the absolutely astounding things that come out of Amy Schumer's mouth.
The philosophy behind the work
-
Rachel built her first fundraising plan from scratch.
Rachel built her first fundraising plan with her own money, her own donors, and no roadmap.
Everything she teaches comes from firsthand, in-the-trenches experience—so you learn what actually works from someone who’s done it, not someone who’s just read about fundraising or “best practices.”
-
Sessions end with a clear next step, always.
Rachel is constitutionally incapable of padding a training with theory you'll forget by Tuesday.
You’ll walk away with every tool, trick, tip and template you needed yesterday.
-
Fundraising should be fun, not painful.
The best fundraisers Rachel knows aren't fearless – they just have enough support to keep going.
That's what she gives every person she works with.
See how Rachel can help you raise more.
Get exactly what you need. Right now.
Want to retain your donors? Build or optimize a major gifts program? Rally your team around a campaign? Get your board members fundraising?
Rachel has worked every side of the Rubik’s Cube that is the nonprofit world. She sees what others miss—and knows how to help you.