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Chisholm Law Firm Chisholm Law Firm helps established individuals start & grow nonprofits that impact the world. We als
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Chisholm Law Firm LLC is a law firm representing clients nationwide that have business, real estate, and non-profit matters based in Florida.

10/09/2026

One thing I have learned from working with nonprofit founders is that passion is common.

Structure is not.

There are a lot of people with beautiful ideas.

Far fewer build the systems that allow those ideas to survive.

That's why I talk so much about boards, fundraising, legal protection, programs and systems.

The mission gets people's attention.

The structure gives the mission somewhere to live.

10/09/2026

Would you rather have:

100 people who tell you your nonprofit is a great idea

OR

10 people who donate, volunteer, introduce you to donors and actually help?

I'll take the 10.

Support isn't measured by how many people applaud the vision.

It's measured by how many people participate in it.

10/08/2026

I think founders sometimes underestimate how powerful a simple calendar can be.

Not your meeting calendar.
Your organizational calendar.

January: donor campaign.
February: board fundraising check-in.
March: grant cycle.
April: volunteer recruitment.

And so on.

Then next year, you aren't sitting at your desk asking:

"What are we supposed to be doing right now?"

You improve what already exists.

That is one of the differences between constantly starting over and actually building an organization.

10/08/2026

Quick question for nonprofit founders:

If you suddenly had to step away from your nonprofit for 30 days, what would stop working?

Fundraising?
Programs?
Social media?
Donor communication?
Everything?

Whatever your answer is probably tells you where you need a system.

The goal isn't to make yourself unnecessary.

It's to make sure the mission doesn't collapse every time you get sick, take a vacation, or have a family emergency.

10/08/2026

A strong board should bring more than names to put on paperwork.

I want people who will participate.
People who will make introductions.
People who will advocate for the mission.
People who will help raise money.
People who will ask hard questions.
People who will show up.

A nonprofit board isn't supposed to be an audience watching the founder build the organization.

They are supposed to help build it.

10/08/2026

One of the biggest differences I see between an idea and an organization is repetition.

An idea says:
"We're going to hold a fundraiser."

An organization says:
"Here is our annual fundraising calendar."

An idea says:
"We need volunteers."

An organization says:
"Here is how we recruit, train and manage volunteers."

An idea says:
"We should apply for grants."

An organization says:
"We apply for 10 grants every month and track the results."

Build things you can repeat.

That's how the mission stops depending entirely on you.

10/08/2026

Imagine your nonprofit becomes wildly successful.

You raise millions.
Your name becomes recognized.
The organization grows beyond anything you expected.

Now imagine realizing you never properly protected the organization's name.

Success can make the things you skipped in the beginning much more expensive to deal with later.

I don't believe founders need to spend money recklessly.

But "What is the cheapest way to do this?" shouldn't be the only question.

Sometimes the better question is:

"What will I wish I had done correctly if this actually succeeds?"

10/07/2026

If I were starting a nonprofit today with a limited budget, I would spend money differently than many founders do.

I wouldn't try to make everything look impressive.

I wouldn't rush to rent an office.
I wouldn't spend thousands on merchandise.
I wouldn't build a huge team.

I would spend first on the things that are difficult or expensive to fix later.

The legal foundation.
The right organizational structure.
Good financial systems.
A clear program.
A fundraising plan.

You can upgrade the T-shirts later.

10/07/2026

My family does Taekwondo, and there is something I appreciate about learning a skill this way.

You don't become good because someone explains the move perfectly.

You practice.
You mess it up.
You get corrected.
You practice again.

Business and leadership have worked much the same way for me.

Sometimes people wait for confidence before doing something new.

But confidence often comes AFTER you've done the uncomfortable thing enough times to realize you can handle it.

You don't have to feel ready for every next level.

Sometimes you become ready by starting.

10/07/2026

Two nonprofits can raise completely different amounts of money even if they do equally important work.

Why?

One may have a fundraising system.
The other has fundraising events.

Those aren't the same thing.

A system says:

Every month we make donor asks.
Every month we submit grant applications.
Every board member has a give/get commitment.
Every donor gets follow-up.
Every campaign has a calendar.
Every result gets measured.

Fundraising becomes much less mysterious when you stop treating it like something you occasionally do and start treating it like a process you consistently run.

Address

37 North Orange Avenue, Suite 500
Orlando, FL
32801

Telephone

+14073295299

Website

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