When I first decided to start a non profit foundation, I have to admit that not all of my motives were altruistic. It is true that I wanted to help the less fortunate. Ever since I was very little, I have had a keen sense of the injustices inflicted on the poor in the world. My parents were very moral, religious people, and they taught me the virtues of helping the less fortunate. Starting a non profit seemed like a way to live this life long dream, to dedicate my life to others and to making the world a better place.
Nonetheless, I didn't know the first thing about how to start a nonprofit organization. That is where the less than noble motives came in. You see, at least in part I was motivated by laziness. I knew that starting a business would be very difficult, and I didn't feel up to all of the innumerable challenges. I did not know how to come up with a business plan, structure financial resources, hire employees, and do all the rest. I figure that if I started a non profit, I wouldn't have to deal with any of these problems. I assumed the government would make it easy to start a non profit, that I could go there with nothing but my good will and get immediate results. Let me just say that I was sorely mistaken.
Learning how to start a non profit organization has actually been one of the most difficult tasks of my entire life, if not the most difficult. It is every bit as difficult as structuring an organization. Although there are grants available for people who want to start a non profit, there are few of them nowadays, and you need a very convincing plan to get them. Government funding has been so drastically cut back of late that non profit grants that were once easy to come by are now extremely rare indeed. The only people offering funding, in fact, are private organizations, and many of them do not have open pockets.
Nonetheless, if you are sincere in your desire to start a non profit as I was, you will eventually succeed. There are organizations set up specifically to help start non profits that will tell you everything that you need to know. They will give you infrastructure help, advise you on how to write a grant, and even help you to hire the staff that you require. It is just a matter of dedicating yourself to your goals, come what may.
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