Happy early International Grant Professionals Day!

What is this professional holiday you ask? The Grant Professionals Association launched #IGPD four years ago and states that “International Grant Professionals Day and Week is the annual celebration to recognize and show appreciation to all grant professionals.” DH Leonard Consulting is pleased to have been a partner for #IGPD each of the four years with some of our fabulous colleagues and businesses that operate the tools that many of us rely on.

A few years ago, I challenged everyone to think about how you as a grant professional think about celebrating the success of your grant teams. It should be an ongoing focus for you as a grant professional whether an employee or a consultant. Are you wondering how others are Celebrating Success in a Grant Team? Catch up on that post here.

As we stop to think what #lifeasagrantwriter looks like, and maybe pause to chuckle at a few of -isms about “You Know You Are a Grant Writer When…” from Bethany Turner, GPC, what is your biggest professional achievement from the past year?

Air High Fives

Did you:

• Receive your Grant Professional Certified? Congrats!
• Exceed your grant revenue goal for the year? Awesome!
• Enhance the relationship with a long-term grantmaker that meant an increase in your funding this year? Rockstar!
• Did you get the opportunity to be a speaker at the National Conference for GPA or at one of the regional conferences for a GPA Chapter? Stellar!
• Balance your self-care throughout the year, not just outside of the weeks with tight deadlines? Namaste!

Whatever your accomplishments – whether on the list or not, air high fives to each of you for being awesome grant professionals! We are cheering for each of you and excited to celebrate with you on Friday!

This year as we get ready to celebrate International Grant Professionals Day (March 9, 2018), I am excited to be brainstorming ways that I personally can thank my awesome team for the work they do (shh, no spoiler alerts here!), the grant teams at our client’s for the work they do, and how to increase visibility of this day in the larger professional community.

It isn’t as easy to *see* our work as grant professionals. That is part of why the #grantswork hashtag was started last year. It is a great way to encourage us as grant professionals to highlight the amazing impact of grant funding and the work that we do. So if you are wondering how to celebrate the day yourself, whether your colleagues recognize you with a special lunch or other recognition, take a moment to share your #grantswork stories and pat yourself on the back for the impact you are creating through your work as a grant professional. You can check out the #grantswork stories that our team has shared over the past two years here.

How do you plan to celebrate International Grant Professionals Day? We’d love to hear/see! Share your pictures and stories with us in the comments section on the website, via our social media pages, or by using the hashtag #IGPD.

Thank you for all YOU do to make #grantswork change our communities!