https://www.catherinealonzo.com/

Catherine Alonzo, Phoenix, AZ (2025)

09/15/2025

Most organizations are pulling back on branding right now. That’s exactly why you shouldn’t.

This year at , we’ve seen a striking trend:
📉 Branding projects — rebrands, renames, logo updates — are down 25% compared to past years.
📈 Meanwhile, short-term marketing efforts are up 30% — focused on urgent needs like event turnout, capital campaigns, and emergency fundraising.

And I get it.
When uncertainty is high, it’s natural to double down on immediate ROI. Marketing feels like a justifiable expenditure because the payoff is visible and fast.

But here’s the paradox:
The organizations that will grow, expand, and deepen their impact over the next few years will be the ones investing in their brand now — while others pause.

Why?
Because branding is your foundation. It’s the story that shapes everything else — your campaigns, your partnerships, your fundraising. And when the landscape is turbulent, clarity and consistency matter more than ever.

The future belongs to the organizations that know who they are and can communicate it — clearly, consistently, and compellingly.

If you’ve been waiting for the “right time” to invest in your brand, this is it. And because fewer organizations are doing it right now, you might even get better access to resources, talent, and pricing.

Curious where to start?
I’ve linked Javelina’s page in the comments — we’d love to explore what’s possible for your organization’s brand and story.

🔗 https://javelina.co/

09/12/2025

As I looked at the numbers in the spreadsheet, I had this overwhelming sense of doom.

It felt like failure.

2025 has been the hardest year Javelina has had in our 15 years of business.

It’s an off-cycle year for political work, which always brings slower months. But layered on top of that, the nonprofit sector has been hit hard by the chaos caused by the federal government — projects paused, shrunk, or ended altogether.

The other day, I was reviewing our financials with my COO and accountant, and staring at numbers smaller than in past years… it was hard not to feel embarrassed.

When you compare this year to past years, it’s hard not to. The numbers are smaller. The graph dips lower. And I found myself thinking: This is bad. We’re backsliding.

But then we kept talking. We looked at other years. We talked about what’s happening across the sector.

And slowly, I started to see the numbers differently:
Not as a sign of failure, but as a sign of perseverance.

Through all the challenges, we’ve stayed aligned with our values. We’ve made hard choices to take care of our clients and our team. We’re putting in more effort than ever before — and we’re still here.

Sometimes, what feels like failure is actually a marker of success.

It’s not always about the metric or the outcome. It’s about the effort.

As long as you’re moving, learning, and staying true to what matters most, you’re succeeding — even if the metrics don’t tell the full story.

Because struggle doesn’t equal failure. It means you’re still going.

09/10/2025

I did it again.

This summer, I spent six weeks in the UK — soaking up time with family, catching up with friends I’ve missed for years, and taking in some truly beautiful moments.

The highlight reel looks incredible.
But what you don’t see in those photos?

Not pictured:
→ Working 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. most nights to stay on Arizona time.
→ Missing out on dinners and adventures while I sat on Zoom.
→ Feeling guilty when I was working… and guilty when I wasn’t.
→ Getting carsick on winding Isle of Skye roads.
→ Crying every single time I had to say goodbye to someone I love.
→ Getting sick halfway through the trip and powering through anyway.

The trip was wonderful. But it wasn’t effortless.

And it reminded me of something I need to relearn constantly:
What we see online is never the whole story.

It’s easy to assume other people are “doing it all,” but the reality is always more complex.

So if you’re ever comparing your behind-the-scenes to someone else’s highlight reel — don’t. We’re all navigating trade-offs, messiness, and imperfect choices… even when the pictures look perfect.

💬 What’s one of your “not pictured” moments from this summer?

09/08/2025

It’s the age-old question: Can people change?

Most people working in social impact believe in the possibility of change in the community around them.

But here’s a harder question:

👉 Do you believe in your own ability to change? What about your team’s?

Growth mindset is a concept developed by psychologist Carol Dweck. It’s the belief that skills and abilities aren’t fixed — they develop over time with intention, effort, learning, and support.

And it matters because our ability to exercise change in our own lives is directly related to our ability to drive impact in our communities and organizations.

Adopting a new health habit builds the discipline to grow a new leadership skill.
Forming new friendships opens the door to discovering new mentors.
Facing a fear – like spiders – equips you to tackle intimidating conversations at work.

Faith in our capacity to grow, adapt, and lead differently in here translates to a shared belief in our ability to create change out there.

Here’s my question for you:
What has enabled you to create change in your life? And how has that translated to your change leadership?

09/05/2025

If you’re not working to tackle big social problems, you’re wasting your talent.

This is the argument made in 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘈𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 by Rutger Bregman.
It was a recent read of my 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 book club, and boy, was it controversial with the group.

I don’t think we’ve ever had such a rigorous debate.

The book argues that too many people are wasting their talent on jobs that don’t matter — and that you have a responsibility to dedicate your career to solving society’s biggest problems.

It’s a bold idea. But here’s where I struggled:
The book frames it as black and white — you’re either changing the world, or you’re not.

I don’t believe that.
Impact is fluid. It’s interconnected.

Many people leading social change build vital skills and networks in private sector jobs.

Maybe your career funds the resources that power social change elsewhere.
Maybe the business you run supports the people on the frontlines of social impact.
All of that matters.

Because here’s the truth the book overlooks:
Social change isn’t a solo sport. It’s a community endeavor.

We need people contributing in different ways, at different stages, across sectors and systems. Change doesn’t happen because one person decides to “live morally.” It happens when networks of people — donors, advocates, business leaders, organizers, board members, volunteers — come together and multiply each other’s impact.

It’s easy to feel like you’re not doing “enough.” But we move closer to a better world when we stop measuring our contribution against someone else’s path — and start recognizing how small changes can make a big difference.

💬 If this sparked something for you, we’d love to have you in the conversation.

Join us for our next 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 book club discussion — 𝘄𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵. It’s a space where changemakers, leaders, and curious minds come together to challenge ideas, swap insights, and explore bold solutions.

🔗 Link to RSVP — come add your voice.
https://tinyurl.com/3wd3yjku

09/03/2025

My YouTube trainer changed my life this week – for about the hundredth time.

Several mornings a week, I work out with my favorite YouTube trainer, Sydney.
(We’ve never met, but in my house, we’re on a first-name basis.)

She always closes the workout with a pep talk — quick, unscripted, and often surprisingly moving.

One day, right after a brutal set, she said:
“The weights you choose are based on your perceived strength.
But when you push past that? You find your true strength.”

I swear I almost dropped the dumbbells.

Because it hit me: that doesn’t just relate to fitness.
That relates to life — and definitely to creating social change.

How often do we underestimate what we’re capable of?
How often do we set goals based on the version of ourselves we think we are — not the one we’re becoming?

We assume the challenge is too heavy.
That we’re not ready.
That we should play it safe.

But we don’t grow by playing it safe.
We grow by picking up the heavier weight and seeing what happens.
Sometimes that extra rep — that extra risk — is what shows us who we actually are.

Today, do something based not on how strong you think you are, but on how strong you’re becoming.
And you can thank Sydney for what happens next. 😊

09/02/2025

Even the smartest strategies in the world won’t work if you don’t believe that they can.

We talk a lot about strategy in social change work.

But what about belief?
Not belief in the cause — belief in yourself.

Psychologist Albert Bandura called it self-efficacy: your belief in your ability to shape change and achieve outcomes.

What I love about his work is that it dismantles the myth that self-belief is something you either have or you don’t.

You're not born with self-belief.
You build it. You practice it. You grow it.

Bandura outlined different ways we can intentionally develop our self-efficacy.

One of my favorites? What he called vicarious experience.
In simpler terms: watch others achieve and mirror what they do.

When you see someone else succeed — especially someone you relate to — it shows you what’s possible for you, too.

Maybe a friend runs a half-marathon for the first time and you think: Maybe I could do that?
A colleague wins a promotion and you wonder: What if I went for it next time?
Your boss leaves to start their own venture and you imagine: What if it were me?

In our hyper-online world, it’s easy to see others’ successes and feel envy or less-than by comparison.
But Bandurra reminds us that seeing others achieve can be the first step in believing that we can do it too.

Certainly, I draw great inspiration every day from the world-changers I work alongside. I see leaders pushing new boundaries and trying new things, and I use it to fuel my belief in what I can create.

It’s one of the main reasons I am still posting stories of change on LinkedIn all these years later: So you can see others’ successes and mirror them in your own life and work.

It’s not about comparison.
It’s about expanding your sense of possibility.

Because every time you surround yourself with people doing bold things, you're training your mind to believe:
That could be me.
That will be me.

Let yourself believe it.
Then act like it.

08/28/2025

Until very recently, I thought innovation was about outcomes.

The iPhone. Obama’s historic 2008 Presidential campaign. The COVID vaccine.

But then I interviewed innovation professor Dr. Steve Diasio, I asked him what innovation looks like for the everyday changemaker.

And his answer really shifted my mindset: innovation isn’t about what you get out as much as it is about what you put in.

“Think about scenarios instead of outcomes,” he told me. “Don’t put boundaries on your ideas — no matter how crazy they are.”

And that made me think about the leaders I work with who operate on the cutting edge of social change. And Steve is right:

Innovation isn't about what they make.
It’s about how they think.

They think about ways to collaborate across their sector.
They prioritize what truly matters over what others think is important.
They fight towards their lofty goals no matter how overwhelming the barriers are.

It’s not an end result or a product, but a process that they repeat over and over. It’s baked into how they do the work every day.

Real innovation happens because they suspend judgment.
Because they ask “what if?”
Because they give themselves — and their teams — permission to explore, to be wrong, to be messy, to think out loud without fear.

It might not sound as sexy as inventing ChatGPT, but it is just as impactful over time.

And in the world of social impact — where the pressure to produce results is high — we need more space for process. Messy, open-ended, boundary-less process.

Because if we’re only chasing perfect, innovative outcomes, we miss the kind of thinking that could actually change everything.
That’s the process that gets us to real lasting impact. Thanks, Steve, for the mindset shift.

08/26/2025

When Sue Giles told her personal story of losing $13,000 because of identity theft and LLC fraud, she protected millions of Arizonans from falling victim to the same crime.

Last year, my friend Bret’s mother Sue started receiving bills in the mail for an LLC she’d never heard of.

Confused, Bret checked the Arizona Corporation Commission website and discovered that a company called Real Estate Giles LLC had been formed using her name. Without her knowledge. Without her consent.

More than $13,000 had been drained from her checking and savings accounts and transferred to a business account in the same name as the mystery LLC.

And here’s the kicker:
In Arizona at the time, you didn’t need to provide ID to start an LLC.

But to terminate one?
Required two forms of ID and a $70 fee.

It had been easier for a stranger to steal Sue’s identity and create a business in her name than it was for her to shut it down.

Bret was furious — and understandably so. He wanted change.

So I connected him with a journalist I trusted at Axios and told him:
“If you want to make real change, tell the story.”

And they did.

Axios launched an investigation and published findings that the lax rules around setting up LLCs left Arizonans vulnerable to this kind of identity theft and fraud.

As a result, earlier this year the Arizona Corporation Commission updated its policies to help deter business fraud.

Now, you need two forms of ID to open an LLC in Arizona.

That’s how change happens.

Not just through big campaigns or massive lobbying budgets — but through story. Through taking the risk to speak up. Through regular people saying: this isn’t right, and it needs to be fixed.

When we tell our stories — especially when they’re hard or vulnerable — we give others the courage, clarity, or pressure they need to act.

08/25/2025

Big questions, small budgets and uncertain times. Sound familiar?

I hear these marketing challenges all the time from changemakers and leaders:

What should I be saying right now?
Where’s the best place to invest my marketing time and dollars?
How do I do more with less?
What messaging is really resonating?

That’s why I’m hosting a live Q&A session.

I’ll kick things off with a short talk on a key marketing concept that you can apply right away, and then the rest of the time will be open for your questions.

This isn’t about a sales pitch.

It’s about serving the community — giving you the chance to ask what’s on your mind and get practical, real-time advice.

👉 RSVP link coming soon. Stay tuned — I’d love for you to join.

08/20/2025

Chances are that the way you’re measuring ROI is hamstringing your marketing efforts.

I was reminded of this while watching the Wimbledon women’s singles finals over the summer.

Iga Świątek was playing — and I noticed her outfit carried a logo I didn’t recognize.

A few days later, I spotted the same logo again on the streets of London. Then once more a week later in a shop window.

Finally I looked it up. It was On, a Swiss athletic shoe and performance sportswear brand.

Before that match, I had never heard of On.
Now? It’s on my radar. I’ve been to their website. I like their brand. I haven’t bought anything yet, but I probably will at some point.

None of that shows up in a spreadsheet over at On HQ right now.
But their marketing is working.

For changemakers, the lesson is the same:
Not every effort turns into dollars tomorrow.

Marketing is just as much about planting seeds, building recognition, and shaping the story of who you are as it is about generating a short-term financial return.

And this is where so many of us get tripped up.
We measure success only by immediate ROI: “Did this campaign bring in more dollars than we spent?”

But that misses the long game: building trust, creating recognition, sparking curiosity.
That’s the power of awareness. It’s slow. Subtle. Cumulative.

If this resonates, I dig deeper into this idea on this week’s episode of How to Change the World and talk about how to measure marketing ROI in a way that captures its holistic value.

Link here 👇
https://youtu.be/mYzC1KVCo3Y

08/18/2025

20 years ago today, I arrived in Arizona to complete my master’s at ASU. I planned to stay for two years.

In those early days, I fell for Arizona quickly. Not just for its desert sunsets or the warmth , but for the feeling that Phoenix was becoming something.

Back then, the city felt like it was still deciding what it would grow into — and in many ways, it still is. I’ve had the privilege of growing alongside it.

Like Phoenix, I was still figuring myself out. Learning who I was outside of the place I grew up. Testing ideas. Taking risks. Making mistakes. And little by little, becoming more of the person I wanted to be.

If these 20 years have taught me anything, it’s the power of possibility.

Possibility is always there, even when you can’t see it clearly – even when it feels out of reach. There was no master plan for my life here — just a willingness to see what could happen.

For changemakers, that same truth holds: the path forward isn’t always obvious.
Possibility can hide in small choices, unexpected encounters, and changes you don’t see coming.

All you have to do is stay open.

Catherine Alonzo

09/15/2025

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