Synthesis — Resource 11
Working the Framework Across Your Portfolio
This resource brings everything together. Apply the CDRF Status Check to three donors in your portfolio and identify where you are in each relationship. This is the tool you’ll return to most — not a one-time exercise, but a regular practice.
How to use this resource
Choose three donors — ideally at different stages in your portfolio. Work through the Status Check for each one, capturing your answers in your own notes. Then use the portfolio-level questions to identify your highest-leverage next actions. Return to this resource at the start of each quarter, or whenever a relationship feels stuck.
Your Three Donors
Donor 1 name or initials
Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine.
Donor 2 name or initials
Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine.
Donor 3 name or initials
Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine.
Status Checks
Where is each relationship?
Work through the Status Check for each donor. Rate each CDRF phase: Not started, In progress, or Strong. Add notes on what’s working and what’s missing.
Donor 1
Note their CDRF phase
Awareness
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Interest
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Connection
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Partnership
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Investment
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Highest-leverage next action
Capture your answer in your own notes — what’s the single most important move for this relationship right now?
Five Paths note — how is my path affecting how I show up with this donor?
Capture your answer in your own notes — be honest, is your path helping or getting in the way here?
Donor 2
Note their CDRF phase
Awareness
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Interest
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Connection
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Partnership
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Investment
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Highest-leverage next action
Capture your answer in your own notes — what’s the single most important move for this relationship right now?
Five Paths note — how is my path affecting how I show up with this donor?
Capture your answer in your own notes — be honest, is your path helping or getting in the way here?
Donor 3
Note their CDRF phase
Awareness
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Interest
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Connection
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Partnership
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Investment
Rate this phase in your own notes: not started, in progress, or strong.
Capture evidence or notes for this phase in your own notes.
Highest-leverage next action
Capture your answer in your own notes — what’s the single most important move for this relationship right now?
Five Paths note — how is my path affecting how I show up with this donor?
Capture your answer in your own notes — be honest, is your path helping or getting in the way here?
Priority view
Where to focus your energy
Review your three Status Checks. For each donor, note where the relationship stands and what the highest-leverage next action is.
Capture your priority view in your own notes \u2014 for each of the three donors, note their current phase and their highest-leverage next action.
Portfolio-level questions
Which donor is closest to a natural next move — and what is it?
Capture your answer in your own notes.
Where are you most at risk of staying stuck? What’s getting in the way?
Capture your answer in your own notes.
Where is your Five Paths profile most likely to be shaping — or limiting — your approach?
Capture your answer in your own notes — think across all three donors.
What would it look like to apply the Sage in your next contact with each of these donors?
Capture your answer in your own notes — self-aware, intentional, curious, not on autopilot.
The contacts context
The minimum-contacts expectation (~5 per day) is the rhythm within which this relational work happens. What matters is that your most important contacts are purposeful: you know where you are in the relationship, and you know what it needs next. The Status Check is how you stay oriented.
Resource 11 complete
You’ve applied the Collaborative Donor Relationships Framework to your own portfolio. Return to this Status Check whenever you need to reorient — the framework isn’t a destination, it’s a practice. One more resource: Resource 12 connects this whole series back to your own work.