Does Personal Investment Hurt Fundraising?

A wooden bridge leading to an forested area, representing how personal investment should be a bridge, not a business model. — Credit: Asap PANG on Unsplash

Welcome back to Ask a Nonprofit Expert, NPQ’s advice column for nonprofit readers, by civic leaders who have built thriving, equitable organizations.

As always, this series offers Leading Edge members the opportunity to submit tough challenges anonymously and get personalized advice. In this column, we’ll publish answers to common questions to strengthen our entire community’s capacity.

In today’s issue, seasoned nonprofit fundraising executive Rochelle Jerry answers a reader’s question about the impact of personal investments on fundraising.

Stuck on a problem? Submit your question here.

Dear Ask a Nonprofit Expert,

I’m a founder of a small nonprofit who is still the executive director and board president after 10 years.

We recently moved into our own space, which increased our expenses by $6,000 to $7,000 a month—my decision, because the right space opened up and I had a recent personal windfall and told the board I could handle it.

Since then (it’s been about six months), we have yet to up our game on fundraising, grantmaking, and program fees to fill the gap, so I am personally spending between $3,000 and $8,000 a month until we get our fundraising up to speed.

Does my personal investment hurt my grant and fundraising chances? Will funders consider that a sign of weakness?

Sincerely,

Personal Investor

Dear Personal Investor,

I’ve seen this before—many times, in fact. What you’re describing is not unheard of in the nonprofit sector. Founder energy is one of the most powerful forces driving new missions into the world. It can also be one of the riskiest.

Many organizations, especially those built from lived experience, passion, and necessity, begin with little more than a vision, a problem to solve, and a leader willing to do whatever it takes. In these early stages, the founder is often the strategist, the fundraiser, the operations team, and the financial backstop all at once. And while that determination can carry an organization surprisingly far, it eventually collides with a critical question: Does personal financial investment help or hurt the mission in the eyes of funders? The short answer: Personal investment doesn’t hurt fundraising—unsustainability does.

To understand the nuance, it’s helpful to look at the lived experience of a founder who built her organization without early philanthropic support.

A Real-World Case Study: Girl Talk Inc.

In a recent conversation, Sonya Cooke, founder and CEO of Girl Talk Inc. in Indianapolis, IN, described what it meant to launch and sustain a mission with no dedicated fundraising engine behind it.

“When I founded Girl Talk in 2015, I was driven by a deep passion to create a nonjudgmental space where girls could openly share their experiences. I wanted them to have the tools, resources, and support they needed to thrive—personally and professionally.”

Personal investment doesn’t hurt fundraising—unsustainability does.

Girl Talk operated for years without formal funding. Outside of small early awards, the organization did not receive a significant grant until 2022.

How did she keep the organization moving through that long stretch?

“I worked full-time in a stable nine-to-five role, and my husband supported the work as well. That combination of personal investment and family support allowed Girl Talk to keep moving until funding eventually grew,” Cooke said.

This reality reflects the experience of countless grassroots organizations. The founder’s personal and family investment sustains the mission long before funders take notice.

What Personal Investment Signals to Funders

Personal investment itself is not a weakness. In fact, it can communicate:

Commitment
Credibility
Belief in the mission
Willingness to share early risk

But this is only helpful when personal investment is temporary and strategic.

A founder who fills every gap unintentionally teaches the board that the gaps aren’t urgent.

Where it becomes a liability is when it replaces formal fundraising instead of supporting it. Funders begin to ask:

Is the organization dependent on one person?
What happens if the founder steps back?
Does the board understand its role?
Is there a sustainable plan beyond personal sacrifice?

These are governance and sustainability questions—not judgments about the founder’s dedication.

The Real Risk: Weak Fiscal Management and an Underperforming Board

Cooke shared with me one of the most persistent challenges founders face, “One of the ongoing challenges is finding volunteers and board members who fully understand that fundraising isn’t optional—it’s essential to operating a healthy, sustainable, and successful organization.”

A founder who fills every gap unintentionally teaches the board that the gaps aren’t urgent.

When the founder is the safety net:

Boards delay stepping up
Fundraising becomes optional
The organization appears overly dependent on one person

It’s not the founder’s money that limits fundraising; it’s the lack of shared responsibility and structure.

Sustainability Comes from Systems, Not Sacrifice

Funders ultimately look for three things:

A realistic fiscal plan
One that does not rely on unpredictable personal subsidies, but rather diversified revenue, sound financial projections, and responsible expense management.
A fundraising strategy that extends beyond the founder
This means an engaged board, consistent donor cultivation, corporate partnerships, grant pipelines, and, when appropriate, earned income streams.
Strong relationship building
Trust, transparency, and consistent communication help donors understand the organization’s mission, impact, and future trajectory.

Girl Talk is an example of what happens when the systems catch up to the passion. Once the organization formalized its processes, clarified its programming, and strengthened its community relationships, funders began to invest more significantly—and more reliably.

So, Does Personal Investment Hurt Fundraising?

No. Personal investment alone does not hurt fundraising. But a lack of sustainable planning does.

A founder covering early gaps is not the issue. A founder continuing to cover long-term gaps is.

Founders are often the backbone of a mission. But they cannot be the full infrastructure.

The shift funders want to see is the same shift Sonya emphasized: “While personal investment helped sustain us early on, organizations must eventually build clear processes and strategies that diversify funding. Fundraising must be shared, expected, and supported across leadership.”

Personal investment paired with strong fiscal management, transparent reporting, diversified revenue, and a culture of shared fundraising responsibility signals strength, not instability.

A Final Thought for Founders

Founders are often the backbone of a mission. But they cannot be the full infrastructure. Personal investment should be a bridge—not a business model.

As Girl Talk demonstrates, sustainability grows from: