Plan it. Fund Grow it.: R.A.T.E.S. TM Framework for building and sustaining impact non-profits for-profit startups

Are you running a world-changing mission, or just an expensive hobby? If you have the passion to build a non-profit or a for-profit startup but find your back-office held together by little more than prayer and a shoebox of receipts, you are not alone. Meet Brother Terrence, the man who made life-altering potato salad but failed to build a business because passion-without a plan-is just a recipe for burnout. In Plan it. Fund it. Grow it., you will discover the R.A.T.E.S. framework: a professional, battle-tested methodology designed to transform your vision into a self-sustaining institution. Through a blend of humorous parables and high-level corporate strategy drawn from experience at giants like AT&T and Charles Schwab, this guide demystifies the mechanics of success. You will learn how to build foundational response-ability, master the technical rigors of grant writing, create transparent account-ability that donors trust, and implement data-driven evaluation that proves your impact to the world. Whether you are a social entrepreneur or a faith-based leader navigating the 'ministry gap, ' this book moves you past the initial startup hype and into the architect's chair. Stop playing around with your mission and start building the systems that will ensure your work outlasts your own energy. It is time to stop dreaming and start building. Your legacy is waiting-but only if you have the infrastructure to support it.