# Todd Hiestand — Letters from the Front Porch > Full text of Todd Hiestand's public letters (blog posts). See https://toddhiestand.com/llms.txt for the site overview. ## When polish is free, effort is the signal *August 27, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/when-polish-is-free-effort-is-the-signal-2026-08-27* On May 9th of this year, I took my first photo of a bird. It was a joke and a bit of a camera flex for a friend who was really into birds and always takes photos of cool birds with his phone. It was a way to jokingly say “my big camera is better than your iPhone haha.” Next thing I know, I’m walking in the woods getting chigger bites on my legs in Texas, hiking in the 1 billion percent humidity in Nebraska, wandering the shores of Orange County, and trying not to get lost in the woods all over my home state of Oregon — all for birds. I am absolutely in love with birds. All I want to do is go look for birds. I’ve realized birding is basically Pokémon for adults, and I am an addict. **In fact, It’s hard to tell whether birding is my new ADHD hyper-fixation or if birds are my entire personality now.** One of the things I love most about birds is that they are masters of sending signals, and for most birds, those signals aren’t cheap. Take, for example, the Bowerbird, found in Australia. The male builds an elaborate structure from all kinds of materials—bones, twigs, and human junk like bottle caps and other bits of trash. He builds it for one reason: to attract a female mate who shops around, visiting bower after bower and comparing before she chooses. The better the structure, or bower, that he builds, the more likely he is to attract a mate. This building is all effort, a signal to the lady birds that he’s worth choosing. The bowerbird’s building is a costly signal that’s impossible to fake. In the new human world we find ourselves in, where polish can be easily achieved with some research and a good prompt, it’s hard to know who’s behind the message, the campaign, the post. People are asking more and more, “Was this made by a human?” and “Is someone actually home?” **Therefore, in this world where polish is free, effort becomes the signal.** The signal that someone is home, that there is a human behind the message, that we haven’t optimized the humanity out of our work. As nonprofits, we can use countless effort signals to prove we’re here, still worth connecting with, and ready to welcome someone into our home. **A few examples:** - A handwritten note - A phone call - A short, personal, unpolished video - A quick email that references a real-life story - An in-person meeting - A small group Zoom gathering - A dinner meeting - A home party - Generally being the kind of person that shows up Some of these things can be faked, but for now, their counterfeit AI counterparts are easy to spot. AI handwriting is too clean. AI videos still look too polished. Data can be scraped and turned into an email. But as AI keeps getting better, our signals need to be clearer and clearer. As we inhabit the four spaces of nonprofit engagement — the sidewalk, front porch, living room, kitchen table — what effort signals show we care? That we’re home. That we haven’t lost touch with our humanity? Oh, by the way, it’s not just my ADHD — it’s my entire personality now. Next time you see me, talk to me about birds, and you’ll see. p.s. That California Scrub-Jay on my wrist is brand new today; how about that for a costly effort signal? :) p.p.s. Yes, the bird I took a photo of on May 9th was indeed a California Scrub-Jay. p.p.p.s. [Here's that photo](https://www.instagram.com/p/DYLWOMxP-K7/) --- ## The elevator pitch is dead (or at least misplaced) *August 18, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/the-elevator-pitch-is-dead-or-at-least-misplaced-2026-08-18* > “Tell me what you do for me in 7 words or less” — Steve Jobs Rumor has it, and I’ve confirmed this story with someone who worked there, that if you worked at Apple while Steve Jobs was CEO and you rode in an elevator with him, he would ask you to tell him what you do for him in 7 words or less. And, if you weren’t able to answer in the permissible number of words, you risked getting fired. Aside from being a great way to scare the absolute crap out of your employees — and encourage a healthy lifestyle of using the stairs — Steve Jobs’ tactic was brilliant, at least in theory, if not necessarily in practice. **In my book, The Welcoming Nonprofit, I argue that the Elevator Pitch is dead.** As a reminder, the elevator pitch is a 30-60 second summary that explains what you do and what your business/nonprofit is. Of course, the name of this pitch comes from how long an elevator ride takes. But the elevator pitch is just too much information, too soon to serve as a helpful introduction to your work and who you are. And besides, no one really likes elevators anyway. Steve Jobs was onto something. 7 words is a lot better way to introduce yourself, especially to someone you are meeting for the first time. While the Elevator Pitch can be a valuable tool, it is often implemented in the wrong [social space](https://toddhiestand.com/the-book#four-spaces). The Sidewalk Statement is my fix—a great tool for introductions and first meetings. It is a one-sentence statement that takes 5-7 seconds to share. This is a much more generous approach than holding someone hostage on a virtual elevator for 30-60 seconds. Here, you share a clear, straightforward explanation of what you do, then let people decide whether they want to continue the conversation. Unlike the Elevator Pitch, a Sidewalk Statement might only last a few seconds. Yet, it offers enough clarity to spark curiosity. And most importantly, it doesn’t require someone to be stuck with you in a claustrophobic metal box while you stop at each floor because some random kid or immature adult pushed every button on the panel. In fact, few people want a 30-second pitch about your work when you just meet them. I could also easily argue that few people want to be pitched at a first meeting. You should not think of this statement as a hook, a way to reel people in so you can convert them into recurring donors or future board members. There is a time and place for that; it’s just not on the sidewalk at a first meeting. Instead, the Sidewalk Statement should serve more as a filter. It should be interesting enough to make the right people lean in and ask more questions, and clear enough to let the wrong people politely move on. Both outcomes should be seen as a win. **There are two ways to craft your Sidewalk Statement:** 1) **The Identity Approach:** We are a nonprofit that [fill in the blank]. *Example: “We are a nonprofit that connects families in New York City with safe, affordable housing.”* 2) **The Action Approach:** We [verb] [who/what] [for what impact]. *Example: "We revive rivers to sustain wildlife and people”* A few more thoughts as you consider crafting a Sidewalk Statement: - **Keep it short:** obviously, I’ve said this already. But it’s worth repeating. In my book, I say use 15 words or fewer. But I am becoming convinced that the best Sidewalk Statements are 7 words or less. - **Use plain, conversational language:** no acronyms, insider talk, PhD-level verbiage, no boardroom jargon. Just plain, normal people words. - **It’s a filter, not a hook:** A lot of marketing experts will tell you to craft something memorable, something that grabs attention. That advice is usually right. Even on the sidewalk, you should not be boring. That said, the goal of the Sidewalk Statement is clarity. A hook reels someone in; a filter lets people sort things out for themselves. A great Sidewalk Statement gives someone just enough information to decide: Is this something I care about? If the answer is yes, they’ll keep engaging. If the answer is no, they’ll move on gracefully. Making space for both responses is an act of hospitality. Btw, I wrote a whole chapter on The Sidewalk and another whole chapter on crafting a Sidewalk Statement [in my book The Welcoming Nonprofit](https://amzn.to/4wWVSEb). If you need help making your personal or organizational Sidewalk Statement, [let’s chat](https://toddhiestand.com/contact). --- ## The cost of convenience in the age of AI *August 10, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/the-cost-of-convenience-in-the-age-of-ai-2026-08-10* ### "People don't drive around with their windows down anymore, and it shows." ### This is my latest profound hot take, which might not actually be that profound, but hear me out. Back in the "late 1900s," I drove around with my windows down a lot more than I do today. While my car had air conditioning, it was pretty terrible and ineffective. I have fond memories of my teenage self driving around town with the windows down — hearing the sounds, smelling the smells, and experiencing the earthly reality of 1900s life. This meant anything from freshly cut grass to way too much exhaust. Cars were definitely not as efficient as they are today. There is something freeing about driving around, windows down, on a cool summer evening, wind blowing through the vehicle and my hair. Yes, I had hair in the 90s — long, flowing locks, actually. I oddly have a sense of loss about this, and sometimes I drive around with the windows down for nostalgia's sake. I do love the air conditioning in my current vehicle. I especially love it on summer days in the Pacific Northwest where we are ravaged with wildfires, and I can put my windows up, turn on my AC, and be protected from the smell of wildfire smoke. But, wildfires aside, I think we have slowly lost something with the advent of good air conditioning in our vehicles. I'm not saying we shouldn't use it; I'm just saying, when we adopt new technology with all its advantages, we tend to lose something. It happens slowly, and sometimes we don't even realize it until it's long gone. When it comes to air conditioning, we trade the experience of the culture, the town, the environment around us for a comfortable ride. This isn't a bad thing. But if we aren't careful or thoughtful, we won't notice how these improvements are also changing the ways we experience the world. **This, of course, brings me to AI.** It's a little bit like air conditioning in cars. It's a great improvement, something that moves society forward, but if we don't pay attention, we might not realize what we're trading its convenience for. So yes, adopt AI, obviously. I am not arguing against it. But as we do, let's stay aware of what we might be trading away in the process. In all this efficiency, automation, and outsourced thinking — what are the things we are trading away? I wrote about this last week on a LinkedIn post, and it bears repeating: I know I've been harping on AI-generated slop lately, and I do not mean to be one of those (West) Coastal Elites who think that anything generated by AI is somehow bad. I think there is something important to be said about making writing and publishing accessible to those who aren't able to do so otherwise. But recently I read this article in The Atlantic, ["The End of Reading is Here"](https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/reading-crisis-postliterate-age/687618/) by Rose Horowitch, and it put words to a lot of what I've been thinking and feeling. I thought these lines were spot on: > "Writing is hard. Orwell likened the experience to a "long bout of some painful illness." AI promises a simple remedy. The trouble is that writing is not merely the act of transcribing fully formed thoughts—if it were, it wouldn't be hard. Writing is the way people figure out what they think, and how to convey those thoughts to someone who doesn't already share them." And then this one... > "The skill of deep thinking will likely become rarer and rarer in a world where much of the population uses AI to avoid writing. It will also become more and more important." I am not saying we should never use AI to generate content. We just need to be mindful of what happens as we do. --- ## The Four Posts You Meet on LinkedIn *August 4, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/the-four-posts-you-meet-on-linkedin-2026-08-04* LinkedIn just added its fun and totally not controversial at all "Seems like AI slop" button. This is fun timing for me. For the last 3 weeks, I have been collecting posts off of the platform and analyzing them, trying to figure out what's going on. Why? Because something about how a lot of us are writing on LinkedIn these days is nagging at me. At first I thought I was just pissed off that we were all using AI to write. You know the tells — the em dashes, the short sentences with short paragraphs, the oddly round numbered statistics, and super generic stories. But then I realized, it's not just the pure AI-written posts that bother me. Sure, they are pure "slop," but we all know they are. No, the ones that have been frustrating me the most are the ones where someone writes a beautiful story, a heartfelt message, or a super personal narrative — but then AI absolutely neuters it. That's when I realized that I really don't care about em dashes — I actually kind of love them still — but what I'm starving for is authenticity. All that to say, after analyzing (yes, with AI) the content of 57 semi-random posts on LinkedIn, I have created a rubric for helping me understand what's happening on this here platform. I — along with my handy-dandy AI assistant and a few em dashes — have identified at least four types of posts I have seen on LinkedIn. **Low Substance / High Pretense** These are the posts where it's low content, low meaning, and it's incredibly obvious it was written with AI. These are so low effort that it's almost laughable (We are laughing, right?). If you read these out loud to your kids, they would roll their eyes and say it's super not cool — or whatever kids are saying these days. No one knows why these are posted, or frankly, what in the world they really even mean. These posts are what that slop button is reserved for. **Low Substance / Low Pretense** Now, these posts aren't bad. They are just usually low-effort, low-thought posts. They make a good point... they are just... forgettable. We see them and think, "I guess... but why did you use AI to write and post this — or even post this at all?" Feel free to keep posting these; most of us will likely keep ignoring them. **High Substance / High Pretense** These are the posts with genuinely meaningful and obviously true stories about real people — but written with an AI prompt and some polish. These posts are where we try to "humanize" AI-produced content. These posts are well-intentioned — but in the end they land flat because a potentially beautiful story gets unintentionally neutered of its emotion and meaning. It's like dressing up for your wedding day in a corporate suit. The substance doesn't match the presentation. **High Substance / Low Pretense** Every once in a while, when all is right with the world, I come across a genuinely human post. It's not technically efficient; it's filled with extra words AI would never use, and fairly unvarnished. It's deeply meaningful and deeply human. These are the posts that, written in a plain voice, are a breath of fresh air on this platform. More of these please. So what's my point? I think I want to come back to my personal OG villain: efficiency. It is faster to have a conversation with AI about a story or topic, feed it some details, and have it write a draft and then try to humanize it. Some of us aren't great writers, so it makes the writing process a lot easier. I get it, I genuinely do. But easier doesn't always make it better. Steinbeck wrote in East of Eden, "now that you don't have to be perfect, you can be good." I think that's what I am getting at. I'm not trying to be the AI police here. But I genuinely would rather read a heartfelt post that was a little extra wordy and a little less technically perfect than one written by AI with all the humanity stripped away. So many of us have beautiful stories to tell. Let's tell them with authenticity and depth. Feel free to use em dashes and maybe even slip in an "it's not x, it's y" clause. Because at the end of the day, the issue isn't style, or em dashes, or weird AI writing styles. I can prompt AI to write without those things, and it can still lack substance and be full of pretense. If it means you don't post as often, I think that's okay. --- ## Oh, the Places I'll Go *August 3, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/oh-the-places-i-ll-go-2026-08-03* “Oh, the places you’ll go.” You know it’s really hard to predict where you’ll be in 10 years, and with the way the world is changing, it’s getting harder to predict where you’ll be in 6 months. But after 6 years of launching and leading Liminal alongside Bill Cummings, it’s very bittersweet to announce that Friday, July 31st, was my last day at [Liminal](https://meetliminal.com). I’m extremely grateful to leave the company in good hands. Bill and I share two sides of the same brain, and he has an absolutely incredible team behind him as he leads Liminal into the future. As for what's next, I have a deep passion for serving the nonprofit sector, and I plan to continue to find ways to serve this community as we navigate the monumental changes that have come and continue to rush at us. As I like to say, these unprecedented times have birthed even more unprecedented times. It’s pretty much endless unprecedented times, “Inception” these days. I am excited to continue speaking and expanding on the thoughts in my book, The Welcoming Nonprofit. I am more convinced than ever that it is an important onramp to the conversation we need in our sector. In fact, I’m currently in the midst of planning and writing a follow-up book that connects the Four Spaces to challenges that AI has brought and will continue to bring. The reality is, in an age where a prompt and a mail merge can manufacture connection, true, honest-to-goodness belonging and connection are going to be harder to create than ever. It is my mission to make that connection accessible, possible, and real. Thanks for checking out my new website, and be sure to subscribe to my mini-substack, “Letters from the Front Porch,” to keep up to date on my latest thoughts and updates. --- ## How do nonprofits stay strategically personal in the age of efficiency? *July 23, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/how-do-nonprofits-stay-strategically-personal-in-the-age-of-efficiency-2026-07-23* Every nonprofit conference I have gone to recently, nonprofits are being told to adopt AI. The message is similar across different segments of our industry: move faster, automate, do more with less. The general tone is, "you guys, there are so many ways to use AI to automate your workflows to raise so much money." But, as someone who uses AI quite a bit, and encourages our clients to do so, I have a concern. That concern is this: in the race to be efficient, we'll lose one of the core elements that makes people give and belong: the human relationship. Honestly, that's the conversation I'm interested in having the most right now. The conversation isn't only, "how do we use AI in our nonprofit." If that's your question, just ask the AI of your choice and it'll give you a great list. But what I am mostly interested in is this question: "How do we stay strategically personal in an age that's pushing everyone toward the impersonal?" --- ## Where Does AI Belong in Nonprofit Communications *July 23, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/where-does-ai-belong-in-nonprofit-communications-2026-07-23* I said it last week in my talk at the AFP Orange County Chapter meeting, and I'm becoming more convinced that the conversation I'm particularly invested in having these days is how we make real, authentic connection when everyone and everything is so optimized for efficiency and speed. My book's framework outlines four relational spaces for people find belonging and engagement in your nonprofit organization: the Sidewalk, the Front Porch, the Living Room, and the Kitchen Table. I actually think AI can help in each space, and some definitely more than others. What I'm thinking through is how, in each space of meaningful belonging, we can use AI when it's helpful and then go fully analog when it isn't. I don't think there are hard rules, but I do think there are some guidelines we can build around these four spaces and our use of AI. The "personal" emails I get from spammers are so obviously written by AI that they make me cringe and throw my laptop through a window. I keep wondering whether there are nonprofits out there making the same mistake with their donors and communities, only with higher stakes. I don't see it happening a lot yet, which is is great, but there is real danger in blindly adopting AI without asking where it actually belongs and gets implemented. I would love to hear how you or your organization are thoughtfully implementing AI, and the other ways you're finding to maintain human connection in the midst of this massive shift. --- ## You Write What You Read. *July 23, 2026 · https://toddhiestand.com/posts/you-write-what-you-read-2026-07-23* I have been thinking a lot about writing these days and I think the question people are asking more and more is, "did a person write this or is this just some more AI-generated slop." We know AI is changing writing, but I also think that AI is changing reading. It's said that good writers read. It's becoming apparent to me that reading books written by people, both fiction and nonfiction, is going to become all the more important. The more we read AI-generated content, the more we're going to naturally start sounding like it and even our own written words will begin to sound like AI, because that's all we read. If all we do is put AI words into our brains, it's what will start to come out. So basically, this is my encouragement to you to pick up a book written by a human author and read it.