Speaking Engagement

Speaking Engagement

The Cost of No

We measure opens, clicks, conversions, volunteers, mentors, gifts. We almost never measure what it costs someone to decline.

Dave Hail's avatar
Dave Hail
Jul 28, 2026
∙ Paid

Max Leisten left a SaaS career to build Protopia, a platform that routes student questions to alumni who might answer them. He built it alongside Duke rather than selling to Duke, and the design decision I keep thinking about has nothing to do with the AI.

This post is for paid subscribers

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
Dave Hail's avatar
A guest post by
Dave Hail
I write about fundraising, storytelling, and the systems behind meaningful work. I help organizations build stronger donor relationships and more effective engagement. Clarity first. Everything else follows.
Subscribe to Dave
© 2026 Ryan Catherwood · Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start your SubstackGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture