The Accidental Nonprofiteer

Building Systems That Serve Your Mission (Not the Other Way Around)

You never planned to run a nonprofit. But here you are, trying to change the world with whatever tools you can get your hands on.

Maybe something happened in your life—a diagnosis, a loss, a moment when you realized nobody else was going to solve the problem you were facing. Maybe you started small, thinking you'd help a few people, and suddenly you're managing volunteers, writing grants, and trying to figure out why your email list keeps bouncing.

You're not alone. And you're not behind.

What happens when someone who never studied nonprofit management builds an organization that serves thousands?

In The Accidental Nonprofiteer, Kenny Kane shares the hard-won lessons from a decade of turning a small cancer advocacy organization into a thriving community—from catastrophic email marketing failures to building sustainable revenue streams, from managing passionate volunteers with conflicting visions to creating automation that preserves human connection.

This isn't theory from business school. These are battle-tested insights from someone who learned by doing, who built solutions for real problems, and who discovered that the best systems serve human needs rather than administrative convenience.

Inside, you'll discover:

The Pharmacy Principle - Why customer service is the foundation of everything else (and how a 15-year-old's approach to prescription refills scales to organizational strategy)

The Inbox Awakening - How we got banned from Constant Contact in two hours—and what we learned about building trust through communication

Automation Without Alienation - The most successful automation nobody knew existed (and why the best systems are invisible)

Revenue Without Selling Your Soul - From $2 margins on CafePress to the $25 membership sweet spot that changed everything

Rowing in the Same Direction - Managing passionate volunteers when everyone has their own vision of what should happen next

The Long Game - What sustainable really means when you're trying to change the world

"This is the nonprofit book I wish had existed when I was figuring it out."

Whether you're running a local mutual aid group, starting an advocacy organization, or trying to scale a grassroots movement, this book offers practical frameworks for building systems that actually serve your mission—and the people who need it most.

Perfect for:

  • Advocates who became accidental executives

  • Healthcare workers starting patient support organizations

  • Parents who launched nonprofits after family crises

  • Community organizers scaling beyond their kitchen tables

  • Anyone asking "How did I become responsible for all this?"

Get your copy today

Available soon on Kindle

Paperback coming soon

About Kenny Kane

Kenny stumbled into nonprofit leadership in 2010 as an intern who just needed college credit. Over the next decade, he helped build the systems and infrastructure that grew I'm Too Young For This! Cancer Foundation (later Stupid Cancer) from a founder's personal contact list into a thriving community serving thousands of young adults facing cancer.

He learned customer service at a small-town pharmacy, discovered the hard way that most email marketing advice doesn't work for mission-driven organizations, and figured out how to build technology that serves people rather than processes.

Kenny now lives in Austin, Texas, where he continues to help organizations build systems that scale with their mission rather than despite it.