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It may sound corny, but we feel a certain sense of mission when it comes to nonprofits. We’ve started them, directed them, raised funds for them, consulted for them, volunteered for them, given money to them, and written about them. We’ve worked with nonprofits in one way or another for more years than we care to remember.

Why have we continued to work for nonprofit organizations? Yes, we care about others and want to see the world become a better place – our values are important to us. But, to be honest, that’s not the only reason we’ve worked for nonprofit organizations for so many years. We believe the reason is that we can’t think of anything more interesting or more challenging to do.

Starting a new program is exciting. Getting your first grant is thrilling. Working with the multifaceted personalities that come together on a board of directors is fascinating. Learning a new skill because no one else is there to do it is fun. Seeing the faces of satisfied clients, walking along a restored lakeshore, hearing the applause of audiences – all are gratifying.

That’s why we do it.

About This Book

When we refer to nonprofit organizations, unless we say otherwise, we’re talking about organizations that have been recognized as 501(c)(3) nonprofits and are considered public charities by the IRS.

We try to cover the gamut in this book – everything you need to know to start and manage a charitable organization, from applying for your tax exemption to raising money to pay for your programs. We include supplemental information at Dummies.com, including forms to help you create a budget, examples of grant proposals, and links to websites where you can find more help.

We also attempt to give you a bird’s-eye view of the economy’s nonprofit sector. When you look at financial resources, for example, nonprofits are much like the rest of the world: Most of the wealth is held by relatively few nonprofit organizations, a certain number of them are in the middle, and many, many more struggle to make ends meet.

We try to be honest about the difficulties you’ll sometimes face. You probably won’t be able to achieve everything you set out to accomplish, and you’ll always wish you had more resources to do more things. Still, we can’t imagine doing anything else. Maybe you’ll feel the same way after you jump into the nonprofit world.

As you’re reading, you may note that some web addresses break across two lines of text. If you’re reading this book in print and want to visit one of these web pages, simply key in the web address exactly as it’s noted in the text, pretending the line break doesn’t exist. If you’re reading this as an e-book, you’ve got it easy – just click the web address to be taken directly to the web page.

Foolish Assumptions

When writing this book, we made some assumptions about who may be interested in reading it. Here are some of the readers we imagined:

❯❯ You have an idea that will help solve a problem in your community, and you believe that starting a nonprofit organization is the best way to put your idea into action.

❯❯ You serve on a board of directors and wonder what you’re supposed to be doing.

❯❯ You work for a nonprofit and need some ideas about fundraising, managing your organization, or working with your board of directors.

❯❯ You’re simply curious about the nonprofit sector and want to find out more about it.

If you’re one of these people, we’re confident that this book will answer your questions and give you the information you’re seeking.

Icons Used in This Book

We use the following icons throughout the book to flag particularly important or helpful information.

The Remember icon emphasizes important information that you should be ready to put into practice.

You may not need this technical stuff today (and can skip over it), but – who knows? It may be invaluable tomorrow.

This icon is posted next to little hints and suggestions gleaned from our experience over the years.

Warnings are just what you think they may be. We alert you to information that can help you avoid problematic situations.

Beyond the Book

In addition to the material in the print or e-book you’re reading right now, this product also comes with some access-anywhere goodies on the web. Check out the free Cheat Sheet for a list of steps that are necessary for securing nonprofit status from the IRS, a rundown of the roles and responsibilities of people who sit on the board of directors for a nonprofit organization, and ideas for raising money for your nonprofit organization. To get this Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and type Nonprofit Kit For Dummies Cheat Sheet in the Search box.

You can also go to www.dummies.com/go/nonprofitkitfd5e for samples, forms, and lists of helpful websites. We mention many of these files within the chapters; we also include a file of web resources for most chapters. All digital files are labeled with the chapter number and the order in which the element appears in the chapter. For instance, the first digital file in Chapter 2 is labeled File 0201. For a complete list of digital files, turn to Appendix B at the back of the book.

Where to Go from Here

If you’re new to the nonprofit world, we suggest beginning with Chapter 1, where you find fundamental information to get you moving in the right direction. If you’re familiar with nonprofits already but want to better understand your responsibilities as a board member, you can find the answers you need in Chapter 6. If you’re a new board member and want to understand the organization’s finances when spreadsheets are passed out at board meetings, we provide guidance about both making a budget and understanding financial statements in Chapter 11. If you need help to publicize and market your programs, we offer some suggestions in Chapter 12.

If you’re like many nonprofit workers or volunteers, you want to know how to get money for your organization. Chapters 13 through 18 cover this topic, so they’re good places to begin.

Whether you are new to the nonprofit world or a seasoned professional, we think you’ll find helpful and valuable information in this book to get you started or continue your good work.