If you have heard of this concept before, budgets telling a story, you might have wondered, “A budget is full of numbers. How can it even tell a story?”

Think of it like this. First: As you know, of course, your budget is an incredibly important element of your proposal.

Second: A detailed budget included in your grant application is not telling a “once upon a time” type of story. 

Third: It works side-by-side with your narrative, each one describing the approach you will take to reach your goal (telling your story) in different ways. 

Fourth, the narrative’s part of the job: Using words, your narrative paints a picture of the problem or need, why and for whom you want to make the change you outline, what actions you will take to achieve the change and when, and your ultimate goal. It can ignite urgency and emotion in a reviewer. It can be fun and inspiring to write.

Fifth, the budget’s part of the job: Your budget tells the concrete, numerical story, explaining exactly how and when you will complete the needed actions. It quantifies and assigns a dollar value and fiscal time frame to all that you will do, satisfying a reviewer’s need to see forethought and practicality. It can be quite satisfying to create—it shows that the impact you propose is absolutely possible. It feels like proof.

Sixth: Together, the narrative and the budget present your comprehensive story and your case for funding. They need each other, and the approach they both describe must match precisely. Every item, or storyline, in the budget should correspond explicitly with a detail, or storyline, in the narrative. They should use the same wording to paint the picture together. When you connect them in this way, you make the reviewer’s read and interpretation straightforward.

Does that help? With this understanding, you can approach budget creation more confidently.

Also, for help with this element of proposal preparation, download our free Grant Budget Storytelling Guide, which provides concrete tips and examples that you can follow as you design and present budget stories.

We offer additional free downloads to guide you in achieving your mission, as one way we help to take the stress out of grants.

In grant writing, do you enjoy or struggle with aligning a budget’s version of your story with the narrative’s version? If you have specific questions or tips to share with others in similar situations, comment below!