Thinking of starting your own non-profit organization? Ben Mangan  came up with these 7 questions you should be able to answer before starting one.  This very same list of questions can easily be used for business ventures as well. Thanks for letting me share this wonderful list, Ben! 1) What problem(s) are you aiming to solve, for whom, and in which places? 2) Why does this problem matter to society, and why has it not been solved effectively by markets, civil society or government? 3) What are the causes of this problem? Root causes? The systems involved? Indirect causes? 4) What has society learned about trying to solve this problem? What have we learned about what works and what does not? What research is available that describes these efforts? 5) How will your approach build upon these learnings? 6) What other organizations, governments and other entities currently work to solve this problem? Where are the gaps in their effectiveness? 7) Are you certain that the people you aim to help wouldn't be better off if you just gave them a pro rata share of the money you'll raise, so they have resources to solve their problems in their own ways? …see more