“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” – William Arthur Ward
Isn’t that the truth?? This quote hits me very hard and reminds me that cultivating funder relationships is the essential ingredient for successful grant programs. As a grantor and a grantee, we share the same objective of creating, implementing, and managing a project that will make a difference in this world. Conversely, being grateful is not just receiving the grant funds – it means to able to start, build relationships, change lives, make history, track your progress, and most of all sharing that progress with others—I repeat sharing your grant project progress with your team, and most importantly with the funder.
During this thankful season of 2017, we are sharing why grants professionals always have to be gratified:
- Grateful for Funders because;
- They chose to fund areas that matter to them and organizations that has a strategic vision.
- They believe in giving back to the communities.
- They believe in creating a change in the world.
- Grateful for the Team because;
- It leads collaboration into building lifelong relationships.
- It encourages and holds each other accountable.
- It represents a collection of work approved at various steps.
- Grateful to be a Grant Writer or a Grant Professional because;
- The program vision gets its life on paper and tells a story to the funder.
- It empowers us to keep writing even when we get the rejections.
- It helps us see the world through many lenses.
- Grateful to the World of Grants because;
- It ensures accountability, transparency, and sustainability.
- It requires us to communicate effectively with the grantor’s by:
- Progress Reports
- Phone Calls/Thank You Notes/Emails
- Website Articles/Newsletters
- Annual/Audit ReportsSite-Visits
- It gives us the opportunity to make a change in the world we live in.
At DH Leonard Leonard Consulting & Grant Writing Services, we are grateful for all you do for your organization and your grant programs. We are thankful that you are part of this team where we find, write, repeat.