694. Stop Scaling. Start Solving: What the Nonprofit Sector Gets Wrong About Growth - Eliza Blank

We Are For Good Podcast - The Podcast for Nonprofits

Meet Eliza Blank, the new CEO of The Farmlink Project 👋  We’re exploring what happens when a founder-CEO mindset collides with one of the most urgent food systems problems of our time.

Eliza bootstrapped and scaled The Sill from a single idea to 12 stores across seven markets and $25M raised. Now she's applying that same startup lens to Farmlink, which rescues and redistributes over a million pounds of food every week.

In this episode, you'll hear:

  • Why Eliza's team talks about their own obsolescence every day, and what that mindset unlocks for mission-driven orgs
  • Why growth for growth's sake is a red flag, and how Farmlink thinks about scale vs. depth instead
  • How to build a community of fanatics around a cause most people don't even know exists yet

Episode Highlights:

  • From The Sill to Farmlink: Eliza's origin story (3:22)
  • What the startup model has to teach the nonprofit sector (6:14)
  • Brand building and community as a growth strategy (9:16)
  • Scale vs. depth: why Farmlink talks about its own obsolescence (13:19)
  • The Field Fellowship: investing in the next generation of food systems leaders (16:41)
  • One Good Thing: pick a lane and compound it over a lifetime (26:01)

Resources Mentioned:

Full Episode Landing Page: https://www.weareforgood.com/episode/694


Make the most of Monthly Giving Awareness Week 💛

During Monthly Giving Awareness Week (May 11-16), Givebutter is giving back. For every new monthly donor who gives $5 or more, your nonprofit earns a $10 donation. $25,000 in matching funds are available to organizations just like yours! Get all the details and get started today here! 




//

Join the We Are For Good Community—completely free.
Join fellow changemakers, share takeaways from this working session, and keep collaborating in a space built for connection, inspiration, and real impact: www.weareforgoodcommunity.com

Say hi 👋
LinkedIn / Instagram / Facebook / YouTube / Twitter

More description

Meet Eliza Blank, the new CEO of The Farmlink Project 👋  We’re exploring what happens when a founder-CEO mindset collides with one of the most urgent food systems problems of our time.

Eliza bootstrapped and scaled The Sill from a single idea to 12 stores across seven markets and $25M raised. Now she's applying that same startup lens to Farmlink, which rescues and redistributes over a million pounds of food every week.

In this episode, you'll hear:

  • Why Eliza's team talks about their own obsolescence every day, and what that mindset unlocks for mission-driven orgs
  • Why growth for growth's sake is a red flag, and how Farmlink thinks about scale vs. depth instead
  • How to build a community of fanatics around a cause most people don't even know exists yet

Episode Highlights:

  • From The Sill to Farmlink: Eliza's origin story (3:22)
  • What the startup model has to teach the nonprofit sector (6:14)
  • Brand building and community as a growth strategy (9:16)
  • Scale vs. depth: why Farmlink talks about its own obsolescence (13:19)
  • The Field Fellowship: investing in the next generation of food systems leaders (16:41)
  • One Good Thing: pick a lane and compound it over a lifetime (26:01)

Resources Mentioned:

Full Episode Landing Page: https://www.weareforgood.com/episode/694


Make the most of Monthly Giving Awareness Week 💛

During Monthly Giving Awareness Week (May 11-16), Givebutter is giving back. For every new monthly donor who gives $5 or more, your nonprofit earns a $10 donation. $25,000 in matching funds are available to organizations just like yours! Get all the details and get started today here! 




//

Join the We Are For Good Community—completely free.
Join fellow changemakers, share takeaways from this working session, and keep collaborating in a space built for connection, inspiration, and real impact: www.weareforgoodcommunity.com

Say hi 👋
LinkedIn / Instagram / Facebook / YouTube / Twitter

2026-03-25 30 min
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