Jerold Panas, fundraising’s most prolific author, died on July 14, with wife Felicity by his side. Mr. Panas prepared this excerpt for GuideStar a month prior to his passing.

Is there a fundraising type? A combination, say, of Elon Musk and Angeline Jolie that is outgoing, people-oriented, well organized, and goal oriented?

A young fundraiser in a new job recently told me that he has been calling donors to introduce himself. “They don’t want to talk to me,” he said sadly. “They want to talk to program staff or the executive director.”

I wanted to encourage him, but there was a sliver of truth in his discouragement. It is more gratifying for a donor to get the attention of a frontline worker or a leader than the development staff. On the other hand, throughout my fundraising career I have solicited many five- and six-figure gifts as the sole representative for the organization.

Even if you fundraise perfectly, not knowing this could leave you unemployed in one year.