When members of my not-for-profit organisation recently raised concerns about "deficits", I realized that many of them had a weak understanding, or no understand at all, of what a deficit is. Members also had no idea how, or even whether, deficits apply to not-for-profit organisations. There are different kinds of deficits, and they apply to different kinds of organisations in different ways. The topic deserves a clear explanation. Let's start with the comment that triggered