There’s no money in nonprofit

Heard this👆🏽 a lot as I’ve been connecting with people about The Business of Nonprofits.

From teams about pay rates.
From boards approving budgets.
From founders navigating the current shifts.

I am not a fundraiser, but this converstation gets me revved up. I'm curious because, sure, I see major changes in 2025 but from where I sit, I see loads of money moving toward nonprofit and social enterprise.

The funds may not be coming from the same sources, but that does NOT mean there isn’t money.

Your money is probably just going somewhere else. (Ouch, I know.)

I asked a friend at a local foundation about this because they move millions each quarter. As she nodded her head as we shared our frustration about how the nonprofit system tricks orgs into thinking they constantly need to prove themselves to secure funding and to keep operational spending way down.

Play our game, do the dance, ask the good questions, get the "right" money.

And this token mantra—that there’s no money in nonprofits—is an outcome of this broken value system, propped up by your burnout and compliance.

We agreed that we are long overdue for a mindset shift: funders mutually need you, too.

Money needs to move to the right projects, and funders need to demonstrate they know how to place money where impact counts (and with reciepts). They need to prove real value, and often need to quickly partner money with a mission.

Founders and EDs have more power in your court than you think.

She also confirmed what I was seeing, that those big private funders - they’re always looking for mission-driven organizations that:

-know what they stand for
-aren’t afraid to ask for what they need
-and have the organizational structure to sustain significant funding.

I want to hear thoughts on this because I don't see the conversation happening in public. Let’s stop with the storyline that the nonprofit ship is sinking. Instead, get clear on our needs and start structuring our organizations to fund them.

There is plenty of money in nonprofit! My mission is to help you get set up to claim funds with clarity, confidence, and perhaps a little audacity.