Don't Let Grants Stress You Out
Many agencies hire a grant consultant to start or help grow their grant portfolio. And while that may seem like a simple solution to your grant woes, a they do not magically appear and take all the work off your plate. A good working relationship requires ongoing communication, shared resources, and joint effort. So, what should you expect when you hire a grant consultant? …
As a grant writer (or grant professional, as members of our team prefer), your job is to write compelling grant applications to secure funding for your organization. It requires a unique set of skills, including researching funding opportunities, understanding the needs of your organization, crafting a convincing narrative, and navigating the application process. But what about daily habits? What are the things grant writers do…
Years ago, the Grant Professionals Association started the Conference Navigators Program as part of their annual conference. They pair regular attendees with first-timers a month or two before the conference. Conference navigators typically email first-timers before the event, sharing advice, and offering to answer any questions. I always warn to dress in layers that can overcome fluctuating room temperatures; bring comfortable shoes; participate in one…
The process of writing and submitting a large grant proposal can be daunting and stressful, but one way our team takes some of the stress out of the submission process, and increases our confidence is through the mock review process. A mock review is a process in which a group of individuals (ideally three), often including experts in the field, review and provide feedback…
Back in the aughts, I was a newly hired manager of corporate and foundation relations at a food bank with the directive to aggressively grow grant funding—by at least 25% in my first year. The agency had a strong base of family foundation support, but my job was to bring in larger grants and bring them in fast. With supportive management and coworkers, solid programs…
Where do you belong in your organization? Who do you report to? And does your boss even understand the world of grants? The answers vary with every grant professional. We bring in funding for our organization, so some agencies lump us in the finance department. We are fundraisers, so nonprofits often place us in the development department. Some metropolitan cities have grant professionals embedded…
Reviewing funder guidelines, especially large government guidelines, comes with a fair amount of pressure not to miss a key detail or misinterpret an organization’s eligibility, alignment, and overall competitiveness with the opportunity. There is the pressure to not miss out on a funding opportunity, but also the counter pressure to ensure that it is an appropriate opportunity for you to commit your resources, as well…
I’m a sucker for a quiz. From dubious quizzes about your soul mate in 1980s women’s magazines to Buzzfeed’s endless supply of “decorate your dream house, and we’ll guess your eye color,” I’m always game to give it a go and rarely seem to match up with what should be the correct answer. It’s all in fun. But some more serious-minded tests and assessments…
Y’all. Have you ever met someone, and loved what they were sharing so much, that you could just sit back and listen to their stories for hours? That is exactly how I felt when Julie Boll joined the Fundraising HayDay podcast. I knew I would love the conversation the second I learned she attended Dr. Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead training, but I didn’t know…
Funders and nonprofits – two sides to a very important coin. Sure, nonprofits would not last long without the resources provided by individual donors, foundations, corporations, and (in some cases) government agencies. But without nonprofits, the work provided for our citizenry, environment, and animals would not happen at all, or at the very least, at the scale it is. Nonprofits do so much above and…