Non-profits are often hampered by the “non” part.  Not by an aversion to taking in money, but often by an aversion to innovate and embrace change.

Today Seth Godin has (once again) written a terrific post about innovation and change, The problem with non.

Did you start or join this non-profit because of the non part? I doubt it. It’s because you want to make change. The way the world is just isn’t right or good enough for you… there’s an emergency or an injustice or an opportunity and you want to make change.

The problem, as Seth points out, is that many non-profit organizations resist making changes internally — in marketing, fundraising, and other core activities.

How ironic.  They are out to change the world, and they don’t want to change themselves.

If you spend any time reading marketing blogs, you’ll find thousands of case studies of small (and large)  innovative businesses that are shaking things up and making things happen. And not enough of these stories are about non-profits. If your non-profit isn’t acting with as much energy and guts as it takes to get funded in Silicon Valley or featured on Digg, then you’re failing in your duty to make change.

This is great advice — non-profits, NGOs, community development works, and other activists should think like entrepreneurs. Innovation has to permeate an organization in both its programs, staffing and policies.  A lot of our inspiration for how to do things at ISDSI comes from the for-profit world (Patagonia is a huge inspiration on a number of levels).

So if you’re in a non-profit, are a volunteer or otherwise engaged in trying to change to world, first, read Seth, and then start thinking like an entrepreneur.