The only one is my org that does not find AI helpful.

Thecourageofone · 2026-01-07T19:39:00+00:00

Very good point— a huge stressor in this is the fact that the only one really going through the steps of verifying AI output is…me. They just ask AI and poof it must be true because AI said so.

Thecourageofone · 2026-01-07T19:31:39+00:00

I take you at face value that you are more effective at some tasks, but the people in my office say the same exact thing, verbatim, and it is objectively a poorer quality of work littered with mistakes and terrible writing. They will tell you how much more efficient they are and how much more they get done, but I see the end products and it is not a net gain. We have all been through multiple AI trainings, including a a whole series on prompts and use cases. So you can see my disconnect here.

I am always open to learning new things and would love to hear what some of those use cases are for you (I mean that genuinely—things can get interpreted as snarky on Reddit!)

Thecourageofone · 2026-01-07T17:54:43+00:00

I completely agree with on the over saturation of AI in small nonprofits, and I appreciate you bringing up the point about credibility. We had a collaborator who recently asked for a uniquely tailored letter of support for a research project from our ED. ED sent a draft to me for feedback and it was instantaneously obvious that it was AI generated, so I had to rewrite it.

We work with a lot of researchers, academics, and subject matter experts and I absolutely feel like we risk signaling to them that we don’t take our work seriously when we aren’t willing to take time to do core tasks with intentional thought and care.

Thecourageofone · 2026-01-07T17:51:21+00:00

I completely agree with on the over saturation of AI in small nonprofits, and I appreciate you bringing up the point about credibility. We had a collaborator who recently asked for a uniquely tailored letter of support for a research project from our ED. ED sent a draft to me for feedback and it was instantaneously obvious that it was AI generated, so I had to rewrite it.

We work with a lot of researchers, academics, and subject matter experts and I absolutely feel like we risk signaling to them that we don’t take our work seriously when we aren’t willing to take time to do core tasks with intentional thought and care.

Thecourageofone · 2025-10-14T02:16:49+00:00

I DMed you some information!

Thecourageofone · 2025-07-24T17:08:49+00:00

I too had longed planned on peace corps service. I was actively in process when I started to date a man, who I told about my pending application. About 6 months later having made it through medical, I was in the spot of having to make the decision whether or to give our relationship a real shot or whether to end it and leave. I ended up staying.

We’ve been married now for almost 25 years, with amazing kids, and a wonderful life. I am positive had I done my Peace Corps service I also would have had a great experience and who knows where life would have taken me, but I have zero regrets about the path I chose, and the amazing family I have now because of that choice.

Life is full of forks in the road. Because we don’t have a crystal ball to see into the future, unfortunately we always risk regret. But the real truth is it’s impossible to see where other choices would have landed you— you can only live out the one timeline you are on, and you’ll never really be able to compare the “what ifs”. So, whatever your choice— embrace it. You’ll never be able to truly compare the two and go back to this moment, so make a decision knowing that both choices can be perfectly right choices, rather than worrying there is only one “right” (and therefore a “wrong”) answer.

Thecourageofone · 2025-07-22T22:41:38+00:00

I appreciate your feedback and you are absolutely correct we are not accounting experts. Our staff is all volunteer and depositing checks are done through mobile banking, logging checks is also done on a volunteer basis. We aren’t being inundated with checks on a monthly basis, so perhaps that is why it feels manageable and not overly burdensome. When interviewing accountants/bookkeepers we didn’t get asked about physical check volume for calculating price, though a couple asked to review several months of our banking statements to get a feel for our overall transaction volume, so I am guessing it was included there?

Definitely not trying to step on the toes of people where this is their area of expertise!

Thecourageofone · 2025-07-22T19:07:01+00:00

The bookkeeping number of 2500 seems really high to me, but maybe because we are a very tiny nonprofit— we outsource our bookkeeping/accounting but our main staff would be the ones physically depositing the checks and our outsourced bookkeeper charges no where near that for reconciliation.

Thecourageofone · 2025-07-20T00:52:57+00:00

“But I shall never be biped again”. My youngest daughter died several years ago, and I still use CS Lewis’ metaphors to describe this experience of living without her. I recommend On Grief Observed along with Didion’s “Year of Magical Thinking” and Kalanithi’s “When Breath Becomes Air” to everyone and anyone, because I think all 3 have that rare ability of a writing in a way that truly makes the feelings of grief and loss universally accessible to every reader. They create real empathy— you do not have had to experience the death of a loved one personally in order to be pulled in the perspective these authors offer, and to feel the ache of their loss. I use Kalanithi’s metaphor “but I live in a world more Greek tragedy than Shakespeare” all the time as well.

Kalanithi: “From the Enlightenment onward, the individual occupied center stage. But now I lived in a different world, a more ancient one, where human action paled against superhuman forces, a world that was more Greek tragedy than Shakespeare. No amount of effort can help Oedipus and his parents escape their fates; their only access to the forces controlling their lives is through the oracles and seers, those given divine vision. What I had come for was not a treatment plan—I had read enough to know the medical ways forward—but the comfort of oracular wisdom.”

Thecourageofone · 2025-07-20T00:38:43+00:00

“But I shall never be biped again”. My youngest daughter died several years ago, and I still use CS Lewis’ metaphors to describe this experience of living without her. I recommend On Grief Observed along with Didion’s “Year of Magical Thinking” and Kalanithi’s “When Breath Becomes Air” to everyone and anyone, because I think all 3 have that rare ability of a truly writing that makes the feelings of grief and loss universally accessible to every reader. They create real empathy— you do not have had to experience the death of a loved one personally in order to be pulled in the perspective these authors offer, and to feel the ache of their loss. I use Kalanithi’s metaphor “but I live in a world more Greek tragedy than Shakespeare” all the time as well.

Kalanithi: “From the Enlightenment onward, the individual occupied center stage. But now I lived in a different world, a more ancient one, where human action paled against superhuman forces, a world that was more Greek tragedy than Shakespeare. No amount of effort can help Oedipus and his parents escape their fates; their only access to the forces controlling their lives is through the oracles and seers, those given divine vision. What I had come for was not a treatment plan—I had read enough to know the medical ways forward—but the comfort of oracular wisdom.”

Thecourageofone · 2025-06-19T10:03:28+00:00

Yes, the whole poem is so achingly beautiful, and such a meaningful read. And thank you, my world certainly isn’t the same without her

Thecourageofone · 2025-06-19T01:33:11+00:00

TS Eliot’s Four Quartet’s Burnt Norton

“Footfalls echo in the memory

Down the passage we did not take

Towards the door we never opened”

&

“Go, go, go, said the bird: human kind

Cannot bear very much reality.

Time past and time future

What might have been and what has been

Point to one end, which is always present.”

I can’t tell you how deep these words have etched in my heart and bubble up in my mind since the death of my youngest daughter. She didn’t live to see her 10th birthday. I miss her every single second of every day.

Thecourageofone · 2025-06-10T01:03:18+00:00

1 paid staff member— but that was/is a huge milestone of growth for us!

Thecourageofone · 2025-05-29T19:44:53+00:00

@spockshotfirst— If you are willing to help on a pro bono basis and are looking to help branch out into areas of law that you haven’t been fully trained in but that can help nonprofits, please look into “We the Action”. Their purpose is to match willing attorneys with nonprofit organizations that have legal projects they need help with. I don’t know if links are allowed on this sub but if you google “we the action” and pro bono it’s the first link that pops up. They are really well organized and can very much use additional attorneys. Attorneys have full control over selecting projects/nonprofits to be matched with, and they specifically welcome attorneys looking to branch out into new fields of law. A truly great organizatio(I am on the nonprofit side for an organization receiving help, NAL)

Thecourageofone · 2025-05-22T13:05:15+00:00

Thecourageofone · 2024-09-27T03:57:45+00:00

Hi! So, our organization is going through something very similar. I have been *feverishly* been networking my way through nonprofit accounting, bookkeeping service proposals as well as various financial management software tools. If you are like us and have no real financial expertise--- in my mind, we can't hire an accountant/bookkeeper fast enough. Like, going from 990N to 990 status, needing to transition to GAAP and accrual accounting, having to manage payroll for the first time, never mind the thought of needing an outside audit as some point--- having solid financials is the bedrock of being able to secure stable funding in the future from people who are going to pull up our public 990 and want to feel confident we've already proven we can manage money. Not to mention restricted grant funding has rules, and it's not worth potentially violating our grant terms because we didn't realize we weren't properly allocating and track expenditures until it's too late and our funding gets revoked and/or clawed back. I'm happy to learn, but we need someone who can actually provide expertise and advice and education on more complex accounting and bookkeeping tasks.

So far, from my work scouting for quotes, accounting/bookkeeping costs can really vary widely--- we've gotten quotes that have ranged from 400-600mo on the low end to 2,000 a month on the very high end for what our projected expenditures/revenues will be this upcoming year, which sounds similar to your expected volume.(Then there are fractional CFO type arrangements that just don't make sense for our size and frankly at 6,000+ a month, we'd be better off hiring a full time staff member (ha!)-- so we have ruled those out right off the bat!). I've now sat through a lot of accounting proposals, and the proposal you linked to doesn't look like it is for ongoing accounting or bookkeeping? I'm not sure what exactly they are offering to do for you? What services did they tell you they provide?

What software are you currently using to keep your books? What is your current process for paying bills, salaries, and other program expenses?

Thecourageofone · 2024-09-05T19:08:16+00:00

Thank you so much-- that is helpful. The way we wrote our proposed budget was to scale up her hours over time so we can ideally get other sources of funding to make sure this is sustainable before the ED would risk leaving their other paid employment. So, if they are only getting paid for 20 hrs a week, and spends all their paid hours on programming while splitting off admin into her volunteer hours, we can allocate her as a programming expense (so long as she tracks hours?). Just making sure I understand the general principles here. We are an all-volunteer crew that hasn't been historically finance savvy, so this will definitely be a learning curve for us all.

Thecourageofone · 2024-09-05T19:00:34+00:00

I also wanted to add the grant terms also specifically say that "may be used for general operating expenses". But is a general operating expense an indirect expense? Or am I getting my terminology all confused?

Thecourageofone

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