Today’s article is part of our series on grant writing, one area in which Tiny Frog Strategies works with organizations to get from where they are to where they want to be.

So here’s the problem: you need money for the ongoing core activities of your organization, things like paying staff, paying rent and buying toilet paper. Grant funders want to give money to activities that connect directly with your beneficiaries, like an innovative meal program or a new initiative with a local artist. You aren’t opposed to being innovative, but first you need to make sure there is toilet paper in the washroom.

Welcome to the ultimate catch 22 of being a nonprofit. The bad news is that this tension has been around for a while and is probably not going to be fixed any time soon. The good news is that your organization isn’t the only one who feels frustrated and others have managed to buy toilet paper AND try out new ways of doing things.

So let’s talk about how to deal with this problem.
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