Good comes from bad

Yay! The coolest thing happened today! I was communicating a hard decision when I got some unexpected support for our fledgling company.

I've been tutoring a great student at the Memphis Literacy Council now for many months. She's committed and at a pretty advanced level. Unfortunately, I don't have adequate time to prepare lessons and it is only getting worse with wanting to work on the business every spare minute. So, I'd decided to take a hiatus from tutoring and was telling the program advisor my decision when she inquired about the non-profit idea I am working on. I hesitated telling her because I was in a hurry...a common dilemma I create for myself. Well, for whatever reason, I decided to forgo the urge to run and instead began telling her about Community Collaboration Services. The woman LIT UP and started talking excitedly about how this is exactly what Memphis needs and that this is exactly what funding organizations are looking for. Turns out that the MLC just joined a coalition led by Mid-South Reads to work together on addressing the literacy issues in Memphis. They are defining the space each organization will work in and working together on some funding opportunities.

She also went on to explain that local funding sources are demanding not only that you work with other organizations in your space, but also that you can show progress and measurable results. She gave me materials from a workshop she attended on 5/1, which was put on by the Non-Profit Alliance...which looks like it might be a good company to work with on our goals. We also discussed several of the other organizations on my "must socialize idea with" list.

We closed our discussion with an assessment of Memphis. She took the words out of my mouth by saying that this city is unnecessarily hard on itself AND it always looking for another city to emulate, versus just taking pride in what's already here. We agreed that highlighting the progress would be a huge step forward. According to her, we have some unbelievably giving people, both financially and of their time. Her enthusiasm and support were infectious and I left her office flying high, anxious to get home and tell Cameron.

Add to that, during the car ride I heard the re-broadcast of Drake and Zeke from the morning. They were talking about how Memphians are flooding the city council with emails and phone calls because they are just sick and tired of the way Memphis is run. I really hope so...and maybe Drake and Zeke could be an ally! Listening to their rhetoric I could already hear myself on their show pitching collaboration......

We're 99% Incorporated!

In my last post about Earth Day, I lamented about how there are so many organizations working to affect positive change in Memphis, yet they don't appear to be working together. I suggested that someone should help them to do this. Well, Cameron and I have decided that someone should be us! In reality, I may have talked Cameron into a little, but I think he's starting to really own the idea as much as I am.

We've been hashing the idea around, making mind maps and loads of lists. Lists of what's in the idea and what's not. Who the audience is and what benefits they reap. What jobs are needed to make the idea a reality. Who we might approach for funding. The different kinds of organizations we want to help. All kinds of stuff. With each iteration, the idea gets a little bigger and more complex. That's both a good and bad thing.

Today, however, we took a really big step. We filed our Articles of Incorporation with the state of TN. This is also called a Charter. Doesn't seem like such a big deal...you can even file online (though the website isn't very intuitive), but a lot of research went into filing out a one page document! Turns out you can really mess up your application for tax-exempt status (which doesn't come until later) if you don't put in certain provisions. Talk about stressful! It would be great if they had some kind of live help feature, because winging it and consulting books along with the Google God does not feel comfortable on something this important. It only cost us $100, but once the filing is accepted, we're a legit corporation!

Now it really feels like the pressure is on. There is a lot to do before you even start executing on an idea. You have to draft bylaws, decide on/elect a board of directors, hold your first meeting, write your business plan with projected financials and then request 501 (c) (3) status from the IRS. It's only one form but multiple sources say it takes several hours and you should plan to consult an attorney. Why are we going 501 (c) (3) you ask? Because we plan to solicit grants as a primary revenue source and almost all grant applications require that you be a 501 (c) (3) to qualify. While we wait to hear back on our application, which can take a few months, we can try to find another non-profit to be our financial sponsor, which would allow us to apply for and receive grants in the interim.

So what's the idea? Well, I've leave you with a teaser as I need to head to bed. Here's our draft mission statement. Refinement ideas are welcome! I know it lacks details...that'll come in the underlying tactics...but do tell me if it doesn't make sense to you.

Community Collaboration Services improves neighborhoods, communities, and cities by providing a platform of tools and expertise to enable, measure and publish progress against community-defined issues. We foster resident awareness of community challenges, collaboration amongst organizations and individuals addressing those challenges and focused volunteerism to support progress.