Don't Let Grants Stress You Out
Welcome to Day 11 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! Yesterday, we discussed how to handle tricky “unsolicited proposals not accepted” funders. Today, we focus on the internal side of things: How do you share your research results with your grant team effectively? If you send a 50-page pdf to your Executive Director and ask, “Should we apply?” you will likely be met…
Welcome to Day 10 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! Say that you are doing grant research and find a foundation that is a perfect match for your mission. But when you check the guidelines, you see the dreaded phrase: “Unsolicited proposals not accepted.” Does this mean that you should give up? Not necessarily. Today, we help you develop a clear strategy for handling…
Welcome to Day 9 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! Doing the work of grant prospect research is only half the battle. If your research results are sitting in a spreadsheet that no one looks at, your organization isn’t truly ready to grow. Today, we are auditing your research workflow. How often are you finding new opportunities, and how often are you communicating those…
Welcome to Day 8 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! Finding the right funding isn’t about luck—it’s about having the right grant research tools in your arsenal. If you find yourself “chasing the money” or stumbling upon deadlines at the last minute, your research toolbox might need an upgrade. Today, we are auditing your tools to ensure you have a proactive grant prospecting strategy. …
Welcome to Day 7 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! One of the most common mistakes in nonprofit financial planning is assuming that your budget and your grant calendar are the same thing. Although they are closely linked, they serve two very different purposes in your grant-seeking strategy. What Is a Program Budget? Your budget is your financial roadmap. It tells you exactly how much…
Welcome to Day 6 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! You’ve assessed your organization, checked your registrations, centralized your passwords, audited your attachments, and identified your team. That checklist represents a lot of heavy lifting for one week. Day 1: Take the GRASP Tool Day 2: Centralize Government Registrations Day 3: Centralize Application Passwords Day 4: Check Your Grant Attachments Day 5: Assess &…
Welcome to Day 5 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! When you think of grant writing, do you picture a solo writer huddled over a keyboard at midnight? If so, now is the time to change that mental image. Successful grant management isn’t a solo sport—it’s a team effort. Day 5 is about identifying your stakeholders and ensuring that everyone knows their role…
Welcome to Day 4 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! You’ve written a compelling narrative and built a perfect budget—but is your attachment package ready? Many grant applications are disqualified before they are even read because a required document was missing or outdated. Today’s challenge is to build your Master Folder of Grant Attachments. The Essential Checklist of Grant Attachments Most funders…
Welcome to Day 3 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! We want to avoid this scenario: A grant deadline is two hours away, and the only person with the login credentials for the foundation portal is on vacation (or worse, left the organization six months ago). Institutional memory is a cornerstone of grant readiness. Day 3 will help you ensure that your team has secure,…
Welcome to Day 2 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge! Nothing is more frustrating than spending weeks creating a perfect narrative, only to have your submission rejected because of an expired registration. In the world of federal and state grant seeking, technical preparation and eligibility are just as important as your program’s impact. Today, we help you focus on centralizing and updating your government grant…