My question was directed to them – as I expect that they have some recommendations and might be kind enough to share them. Those sources of wisdom might be blogs, might be “The five rules of outstanding leadership” sites, and might be something else entirely – particular books, essays, a lecture series archived online, a speech at a recent TED conference, etc.

Perhaps a useful rephrasing of my question would be “What resource do you (the philanthropist) find most likely to help the nonprofit leaders that you support be more effective?”

As someone just offered the helm of a nonprofit, I found it very useful to hear the perspective from the folks on the other side of the room exactly what they find exciting about philanthropy, and what kind of people they look for in the organizations they choose to invest in.

We can heal the planet, cure hunger, eliminate violence, and conquer the political and rhetorical divisions that seem insurmountable . . . only if enough of us are moving in harmony towards those ends. Fostering more effective philanthropy and thereby empowering more efficient nonprofit action and advocacy – is the only way it is going to happen.

This blog seems to attract a number of the most thoughtful strategists in modern philanthropy – so here’s a question: What are your favorite online sources of wisdom that you regularly share with the non-profits you work with? A Google search for “effective non profit leadership list” returns more than 12 million hits, so I’d love some help separating the wheat from the chaff . . .