Grant Writer’s Blog

Productivity Is An Inside Job: Measuring Personal Happiness As A Means To Success

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Measuring Personal Happiness As A Means To Success

Over more than 25 years of researching, prioritizing, writing, developing objectives, creating evaluation plans, and tangling with logic models, I never spent much time measuring a crucial aspect of work that affects all those tasks and more—my happiness. I am not saying that I expected every day to be a Disney cartoon of winsome talking animals that burst into song and happy endings. The singing…

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Grant Pros: What is Your Why?

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Grant Pros: What is Your Why?

For a long time, I struggled with my work as a grant professional. Don’t get me wrong. I loved tackling a challenging federal grant proposal. And I loved it even more when we got an award letter. Managing federal grants was my jam – I loved putting my organizational skills to work and totally geeked out about a well-put-together 3-ring binder.   So, what was…

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The Competitive Advantage and Head Start of Pre-planning for Large Grants

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The Competitive Advantage and Head Start of Pre-planning

Imagine you are standing on the starting line of a running race. The race official says when my arm drops and the gun goes off, you all get to start. Then they point at you and say, BUT, before I do that, YOU get to start NOW before the rest of the field. After you get over the surprise of the unexpected head start, off…

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How to Rebound from a Grant Writing Rejection

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How to Rebound from a Grant Writing Rejection

Having raised more than $101 million “the hard way” through 90% private foundation and individual fundraising over the last 20+ years, I have experienced my share of rejections.  What I mean is that this total represents dozens, if not hundreds, of proposals with request amounts ranging between $10,000 and $200,000 for every $1million+ ask. Why so many? The truth is, it’s a competitive process, and…

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Key Takeaways for the GWBC Session as a Seasoned Grant Professional

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Key Takeaways for the GWBC Session as a Seasoned Grant Professional

Recently, I attended MyFedTrainer’s Grant Writing Boot Camp (GWBC) hosted by our team’s founder and President, Diane H. Leonard, GPC, RST. Having written many federal grants in the past, I was excited to hear insights from another seasoned grant professional. There was helpful new information provided, as well as important reminders to remember when working on federal grant applications. Some of those takeaways are below:…

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Don’t Let “Perfect” Be the Enemy Of Good Grant Writing

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perfect

Once upon a time, in a cubicle far, far away, I saw an announcement for a senior grant writing position at a national organization. At first glance, it seemed like a dream job. Then, I read further. Under the qualifications heading, it stated that they were looking for a grant writer who never made a mistake—that perfection was the goal for every grant submitted. What…

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Dear Private Funders, Take a Cue from the Feds, Pretty Please

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Dear Private Funders, Take a Cue from the Feds, Pretty Please

I do not claim to have all the answers, but after two decades of grant writing, I know a thing or two about how funders operate. And like most grant professionals, I have thoughts and feelings on how this world of philanthropy can improve.   No matter what you think about the United States government these days, one thing I hope we can all agree…

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High Energy Motivation for Grant Writers

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High Energy Motivation for Grant Writers

Have you ever heard a Jock Jams song (Jock Jams were compilation albums released between 1995 and 1999)?    Maybe a single song like “I Like to Move It?”  Jock Jams – I Like to Move it   Or the very popular Mega Mix? Jock Jams MegaMix   These are songs that are sure to inspire and fire up the players at a sporting event…

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What Can a Grant Professional Do to Further DEI? A lot, actually…

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What Can a Grant Professional Do to Further DEI?

I took the helm as President of the Grant Professionals Association on January 1, 2020. Our membership was climbing. Our annual conference was selling out often. The educational offerings provided by the organization were growing, too, in terms of the number and type of courses as well as the level of content. I was looking forward to an incredible year, ready to build relationships with…

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Educating Up to Streamline the Grant Writing Process

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Educating Up to Streamline the Grant Writing Process

Most people fall into grant writing almost by chance. Maybe someone recognized your writing skills and voila! You were “voluntold.” Perhaps you were coordinating a community program or project for a nonprofit or local government and needed a way to sustain those important efforts. Either way, those writing skills drew you in. It makes sense, given the most common way to describe the process is…

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