[{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" Veterans - thank you for your service.\nAs we think about the sacrifices Veterans (and their families) have made for us, the team at Learn Grant Writing wanted to share a few grant opportunities for organizations serving Veterans. We will close with a few tips on how to evaluate a funding opportunity to determine if it is worth pursuing because we're aiming to be both effective and efficient with our time. But first, we wanted to share this incredible story...\n\"Back in mid-2021, I spoke with Meredith on the phone. I'm a former cop and an 11-year military veteran, and at that time I wanted to try my hand at grant writing. I was looking for someone who knew the current rules and was successful in the field. I always go to the best to learn, and that search led me to Meredith. She was also actively helping veterans then, which meant a lot to me. We had a great conversation that eventually turned to grant writing. In the end, she offered (or I asked for) a copy of her book and she patiently answered the long list of questions I had. She was gracious, humble, and honestly, I was pretty impressed — and I don't impress easily. Today, I'm the Commander of VFW Vesle Post 418 in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. My father was Commander here in 1978–79, and I don't think the building was ever repaired between his time and mine. It was in rough shape. We tried raising money, and although the veterans enjoyed the events, we didn't come close to what we needed for a new roof or other repairs. Long story short, I followed Meredith's instructions and applied for two state grants asking for $800k to repair and update the entire VFW. I got one grant approved for $240k and the other for $300k. We're now at the end of the renovations, and everything looks beautiful. Our membership is climbing fast. We're doing a lot for our community and even more for our veterans. Everything we've built shows how we rose from the ashes to where we are today. We've become a champion for veterans and a beacon for our community. Lives are being changed for the better, and our building is beautiful now. All of this started with that phone call with Meredith and her ideas. She was my first step into this process, and I'll always be grateful. Now I'm reaching out to say thank you and to ask if there's anything my veteran brothers and sisters can do for her. We yoked her strength, and we're all in this together now. It's time to give back.\" Peace,\nCommander\nEdward P. Carter III Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Disabled Veterans National Foundation Capacity Building Grants The Capacity Building Grants provide support to our nation’s veterans. These grants are awarded to organizations around the country who are addressing the mental and physical recovery of veterans in unique ways. Service dogs, equine therapy, yoga, art therapy, and recreational therapy are just a few of the innovative programs that DVNF supports. Grant Amount: Up to $25,000 Deadlines: Deadline for Letter of Intent, February (annually). Deadline for full proposals, March (annually). See website for precise deadlines- updated annually. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttps://dvnf.org/ Bob Woodruff Foundation Charitable Investments Grant Program The Bob Woodruff Foundation invests in programs that support post-9/11 impacted veterans, service members, their families, and caregivers. Proposals must fall within one (or more) of three core areas in order to be considered: 1) Education and Employment, 2) Rehabilitation and Recovery, or 3) Quality of Life. Grant Amount: Unspecified Deadlines: Check out their website for updated deadlines and funding opportunities. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttps://bobwoodrufffoundation.org/grants/ American Bar Association Legal Assistance Grant The ABA Military and Veterans Legal Center (MVLC) created the competitive ABA Veterans Legal Assistance Grant available to state and local programs, so they can increase effective legal support and better meet the legal needs of underserved veteran populations within their communities. Grant Amount: $5,000 - $40,000 Deadlines: Check out their website for updated deadlines and funding opportunities. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit with a project based in California that delivers legal services to veterans primarily in California https://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_services/milvets/grants/ Veterans Cemetery Grants The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Cemetery Grants Program was established in 1978 to complement VA's national cemeteries. The program assists states, territories, and tribal governments in providing gravesites for Veterans in those areas where NCA cannot fully satisfy their burial needs. VA can provide up to 100 percent of the development cost for an approved project. For establishment of new cemeteries, VA can provide for operating equipment as well. VA cannot pay for acquisition of land. Grant Amount: Unspecified Deadlines: Check out their website for updated deadlines.\nEligibility: Must be a state, U.S. territory, or federally recognized tribal government https://www.cem.va.gov/grants/ Fisher House Foundation Newman’s Own Awards Every day, service members, veterans, and their families rise to the challenge of maintaining a healthy lifestyle while facing the unique trials that come with having dedicated their lives in service to our nation. These families often face long deployments and separation, and many must cope with the long-term effects associated with service. Newman's Own, Fisher House Foundation, and Military Times have joined together in presenting $200,000 in grants to the most creative military quality of life improvement plans. Grant Amount: Up to $50,000 Deadlines: Applications must be submitted in April (annually). Check their website for updates on the next round and precise dates. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttps://www.fisherhouse.org/programs/newmans-own-grant/ Infinite Hero Foundation Grant Program Since its inception in 2012, Infinite Hero Foundation has awarded more than $3 million dollars in funding and support to seventeen different veteran service organizations offering innovative and effective programs or treatments for service-related mental and physical injuries. IHF invests in and partners with like-minded organizations that create cutting edge technologies, methods, practices, or products which advance the front lines of combat against the mental and/or physical challenges faced by military heroes and their families. Grant Amount: Between $25,000-$100,000 Deadlines: Letters of intent accepted between January 1st and July 1st. Full proposals due by September 15th. Check their site for updates on funding and future deadlines. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttp://infinitehero.org/grants/ Overwatch Alliance Grants Overwatch Alliance has the honor of providing cover to our nation's heroes at home. We understand their struggles and support organizations dedicated to helping them heal, wherever they are. Overwatch Alliance supports military charities healing our nation’s heroes. Overwatch Alliance awards grants to non-profit organizations with Total Annual Revenues of $500,000 or less who provide services to active military, veterans, and their families. Grant Amount: up to $15,000 Deadlines: Check out their website for updated deadlines and funding opportunities. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttp://overwatchalliance.org/applying-for-a-grant Robert Irvine Foundation Grants The Robert Irvine Foundation is a not-for-profit, 501c3 organization that honors the men and women defending our country, first responders and the many other heroes in our lives. The Foundation's mission is to support individuals and organizations committed to enriching the lives of our heroes and their families. The Robert Irvine Foundation’s primary focus is on giving-back and supporting our military personnel (active, retired, and veterans) and first responders through morale and welfare programs, in addition to financial support of properly vetted Veterans' Organizations. Grant Amount: Unspecified\nDeadlines: Rolling. Check their website for updated deadlines and funding opportunities. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttps://robertirvinefoundation.org/grants/ Heroes and Horsemanship Grant Program Parelli Foundation’s Heroes and Horsemanship Initiative is a grant program supporting non-profit therapeutic organizations serving veterans, active members of the military, first responders and their families. The Foundation has a mission to help those who protect our country by extending their access to horses and natural horsemanship education. It is well established that Equine-Assisted Therapy (EAT) has been helpful to many veterans and first responders as they deal with the extreme conditions associated with armed conflict and their careers. In addition to its regular Therapeutic Horsemanship grant cycle, the Parelli Foundation offers a special grant cycle each year to support non-profit Therapeutic Horsemanship organizations currently providing innovative and industrious ways to pair veterans, active military, first responders and/or their family members with horses using natural horsemanship methods. Grant Amount: Unspecified\nDeadlines: April (annually). Check their website or sign up for their newsletter for updated deadlines and funding opportunities. Eligibility: Must be a 501(c)3 non-profit\nhttps://parellifoundation.org/programs/therapeutic NAVSO Pay it Forward Grant NAVSO only exists because other nonprofits invested in the organization. Now, they’re paying it forward to nonprofits. Delivering quality programs to veterans and military families is tough work that takes a lot of resources. NAVSO is committed to helping your organization succeed. This grant funding is for organizations seeking funds for a program or service that directly supports veterans, service members and/or their families. Grant Amount: $5,000 check and $5,000 worth of services designed to help you win more grants Deadlines: Letters of intent accepted between January 1st and July 1st. Full proposals due by September 15th. Check their site for updates on funding and future deadlines. Eligibility: Must meet the following eligibility requirements: Represent a paid NAVSO member nonprofit organization recognized by the IRS as a 501c3 tax-exempt organization (individuals are not eligible) Must have been incorporated for more than 1 years as of December 1, 2018 https://www.navso.org/pay-it-forward-grants Writing Grants for Nonprofit Veteran Organizations Two members of the Global Grant Writers Collective®, Dr. Kim Yarnall and Robert Yarnall, founded The Mission Makers to help nonprofits, specifically Veteran organizations, find fundraising success. Robert (Bob) is a Retired Marine Corps Master Gunnery Sergeant having served 25 years. Three of their kids serve or have served as well. This passion for service guides their work today as they lead with a community-first mindset. Have a listen to our interview with them in this YouTube video. Tips for Veteran Grants! A resource we are loving right now is this guide to start a small business as a Veteran entrepreneur. In this guide, they talk about the best grants, loans, and training resources for Veteran business owners. Check the Foundation’s giving history via their 990 tax form. You can access this information through a membership with Instrumentl or the Foundation Center. We have an entire blog post covering how to strategically utilize 990s — check it out here! Be sure to calculate competitiveness. We look for opportunities with at least a 20% chance of award. Talk to the funding agency directly! Share your project and ask if they think it’s a good programmatic fit. If they are lukewarm, move on to another funding source. There are always other opportunities! First look for funding opportunities in your local community or region. You’re more likely to be successful on those pursuits than a highly competitive national competition. Remember to avoid chasing grants haphazardly by developing a Funding Strategy first. Learn More About Grant Writing If you’re ready to dive even further beyond this blog post and our YouTube channel, we have an immersive experience to support your work to champion Veterans. The Global Grant Writers Collective® The Global Grant Writers Collective® is a year-long membership that includes online instructional curriculum, community, and coaching to teach you a step-by-step system for building a flexible career in grant writing. In addition to an ever-growing community and mentorship, there are live trainings offered at least twice a month. The Collective is structured into several phases. After Phase 3 (and some homework!), you’ll receive your grant writer certificate. With your certificate and real-world experience, you can interview well for higher-paying, quality jobs. If you enjoyed the freelancing to gain experience, we show you how to work for yourself and build a vibrant grant writing consulting business in the final modules. Members of the Collective also have access to an entire community of fellow grant writers, coaching and mentorship, and bonus trainings. Bonus trainings include logic and evaluation models, resume writing, fiscal sponsorship, and more! Thank You Veterans Again, thank you Veterans for all you have done for us and to the organizations that give back on behalf of all of us. For more tips and tricks on grant funding and writing a proposal, be sure to check out our FREE Grant Writing Class! Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2025-12-11","description":"As we think about the sacrifices Veterans (and their families) have made for us on this\nday, the team at LearnGrantWriting.org wanted to share a few grant\nopportunities for organizations serving Veterans.\n","formatted_date":"December 11, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grants-for-veterans-service-1400w_hu_e1da056d684725de.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grants-for-veterans/","slug":"grants-for-veterans","summary":"As we think about the sacrifices Veterans (and their families) have made for us\non this day, we want to share a few grant opportunities for organizations serving Vets.\n","title":"Grants for Organizations Serving Veterans"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Let’s be honest—grant research can feel like an endless game of hide and seek. Sifting through never-ending databases to find the most relevant grants. Inconsistent details across different platforms. Outdated information. Sound familiar? But when you have the right tools in your corner, grant research isn’t nearly so hard. 🛠️🙌\nWe’re always on the lookout for tools that make grant writing a little less daunting and a lot more effective. We recently wrote about our favorite grant writing resources, but we wanted to shine some light on our hands-down favorite tool. Why? Because we’ve seen firsthand the incredible difference it makes for nonprofit and freelance grant writers alike. Introducing Instrumentl, our team’s most trusted grant research tool and an official partner of Learn Grant Writing. What is Instrumentl? Let’s start with the basics. Instrumentl is an all-in-one platform designed to help you find, track, and manage grants more effectively. Founded in 2015, Instrumentl has quickly grown to become one of the most popular tools for nonprofits and grant writers, helping them secure over $6.7 billion and counting. Their mission is simple: Make the process of grant seeking faster, more efficient, and less overwhelming. Whether you\u0026#39;re new to grant writing or you’ve been in the game for years, Instrumentl is designed to save you time by bringing all of your grant research and management tasks into one place. It’s like having your own personal assistant, except without the coffee runs. Learn Grant Writing has partnered with Instrumentl for years to offer our members a discounted first month of access to its tools—an easy way to save some coin while taking Instrumentl’s incredible features for a spin. Read on to learn how to access this deal. Want to Know What AI Can and Can't Do for You? How to train your AI to write better drafts\nGet The Guide Why Instrumentl? Instrumentl isn’t just another tool—it’s the tool that takes your grant writing process from “meh” to “wow.” Here’s why we think it stands head and shoulders above the rest: 🎯 Big Takeaways: Comprehensive, Easy to Use, and a Serious Time-Saver Comprehensive: Instrumentl brings together an insane amount of funding opportunities. Whether you\u0026#39;re looking for federal grants, state grants, or private funding, Instrumentl pulls from a massive database to give you the most relevant results. But it offers so much more than just a database of grants. Instrumentl combines all the tools you need to support the grant writing process—finding, researching, writing, tracking, and managing. Why spend more on multiple tools when one can handle it all? Easy to Use: Here’s the thing—grant research doesn’t need to be complicated. With Instrumentl, everything is organized, streamlined, and super easy to navigate. Whether you’re a tech whiz or a complete beginner, you’ll feel right at home. It’s intuitive, user-friendly, and designed to make your life easier. No more endless clicking and searching through clunky websites. A Time-Saver: Finding the right grants is time-consuming, and time is something we’re all short on. We love Instrumentl because it truly makes our jobs easier as grant writers. It helps you cut through the noise and find exactly what you need in record time. For example, intelligent matching features instantly highlight your most relevant opportunities, and advanced AI tools help you draft sections of your proposals in seconds. Combined with the platform’s intuitive, collaborative design, you’ll wonder how you managed without it. Instrumentl’s Top Features So, Instrumentl is the most comprehensive and easiest-to-use set of grant research and writing tools out there. How exactly can these tools benefit you? Here are the top features we can’t get enough of, broken down into a few categories:\nGrant prospecting and research An actively managed database of grants with over 22k opportunities Intelligent matching to quickly plug you into the perfect opportunities for your organization or project Funder directory with tons of helpful information to help you find the right partners, including giving patterns, preferences, 990s, and openness to funding new grantees Grant writing AI grant writing features to help you draft proposals faster In-app application forms, a game-changer for streamlining logistics and reducing confusion during the writing and submission processes Document libraries and collaboration tools to keep everything organized in one place Grant management Intuitive tracking tools to manage active proposals and measure the effectiveness of all your hard work A spend-down tracking feature that lets you manage grant budgets in one accessible place Post-award grant management tools for assigning tasks, setting team reminders, and more This list only scratches the surface of what Instrumentl offers—check out their overview page to take a closer look at its key features and use cases. What Our Members are Saying Industry-leading grant research and writing tools in one intuitive platform—what’s not to love? We could talk all day about how much we enjoy using Instrumentl, but we’d rather let Global Grant Writers Collective® members speak for themselves! Cara loves Instrumentl’s extensive prospecting tools and professional development offerings:\nJordan appreciates the platform’s intuitive design, workflows, and matching features that connect her with funders that were flying under her radar: Beth has tried all the alternatives, but nothing has beat Instrumentl, which she relies on to manage and grow her grant writing consultancy, Sunflower Grants: How to Save on Access to Instrumentl Instrumentl is the real deal—it’s the grant research tool we swear by, and we think every grant writer should give it a try. Instrumentl offers a free 14-day trial (that doesn’t require saving a credit card). Visit www.instrumentl.com/lgw to create your account and start identifying good-fit funders for your nonprofit in minutes. Their team recommends that Instrumentl newbies create an account to see the platform for themselves and evaluate whether it’d be a good fit for their organization or clients. Every free account also gets the opportunity to have a strategy consult with an Onboarding Advisor who makes sure you’re set up for success from Day 1. And to learn more, Instrumentl regularly hosts grant workshops with experts and community partners and posts the replays. These workshops can be helpful ways to get to know more about the company (and learn a new tip or two!) before trying out the tool. We’ve also published our own rundown of how to use Instrumentl’s grant database and how freelancers can ask clients to help cover the subscription cost—check it out! We truly believe Instrumentl can change how you research and write grants for the better. It empowers our members to maximize the value of their knowledge every day. Less time, less confusion, more funding, and more impact. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings ","date":"2025-04-06","description":"Instrumentl can completely change how you research, write, and manage grants. Check out the top\nfeatures and read reviews from Learn Grant Writing members.\n","formatted_date":"April 6, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.04.06_instrumentl-our-hands-down-favorite-grant-writing-tool_hu_211e79081b53a1e3.webp","permalink":"/instrumentl-features-and-reviews/","slug":"instrumentl-features-and-reviews","summary":null,"title":"Instrumentl: Our Hands-Down Favorite Grant Writing Tool"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" When you apply for a grant for your nonprofit, you’ll usually encounter a question or section that asks for letters of support. Maybe it’s your first time writing a grant proposal, and you’re having stressful flashbacks to asking for college letters of recommendation. Maybe you’re a seasoned grant writing pro who still breaks out in a sweat every time you hit this hurdle. 🎓😓 Trust us, we get it! Asking respected peers to take time out of their day and reflect on your organization and its work can certainly feel stressful. Whether you’re a grants newbie or an old pro, we’ve got an easy 7-step method to help take the stress and complexity out of asking for letters of support. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding. Access Free Trainings Quick Context: What are Letters of Support for Grant Applications? First, let’s review some quick context about letters of support. A letter of support is a written testimonial from a person or peer organization about your organization and its work. It should help back up the claims you make in your grant proposal, i.e., that you’ll be able to accomplish your plans and that they’ll have a positive impact. A letter of support gives funders a clearer sense of your organization’s connections, track record, and reputation in your community. Think of a letter of support as an endorsement or highly personal review that a buddy organization or notable local partner writes for you. 📝 Strong letters of support can be powerful assets for your proposals, especially for smaller nonprofits looking to stand out to funders. What’s the Purpose of a Letter of Support? Funders have their own missions to pursue—responsibly making the most of their funds—and need to have faith in your abilities when they award you grants. Funders ask nonprofits for letters of support so they can learn more about your reputation and whether you’re an organization that really gets things done. 🔎 Plus, letters of support can give funders additional context that helps them make award decisions. These letters can help reveal a few things: What it’s like to work with your organization Whether you have active, engaged partners in the community who believe in your work The real-world impact of your organization’s work and past projects Overall, letters of support lend you credibility, which is critically important when you’re asking a foundation or government office to entrust you with funding. What Should a Letter of Support Include? Letters of support can take many different forms, and funders may or may not provide specific guidelines for them. In general, though, letters of support should contain a few essentials to ensure they’ll effectively represent your organization in its grant proposal. These include: Clear authorship and reputability. Somewhere in the letter, your writer should make it clear who they are, their relationship to your organization, and their authority to speak about your work together. A clear endorsement of your project. Your letter writer should explicitly indicate that they support your proposed project and not just your organization in general. Indications that your project aligns with funder priorities. Whether in a few clear mentions or a longer discussion, letters should reinforce that your project plans line up with the grant’s requirements and what the funder wants to accomplish with the grant. Mentions of your track record. Your letter writer should provide a few details about their past work with your organization that help to further illustrate your track record and the alignment of the proposed project. Some nonprofits choose to provide their letter writers with “ghost letters” or prefilled templates to fill in for letters of support. We generally do not recommend this. However, whether you go this route or not, it’s still helpful to let your letter writers know about these elements and that they’ll help the letter make the best possible impact. Who Should Write Letters of Support for Your Grants? Anyone who can speak to your organization’s track record and who is in a position of authority in a relevant, reputable organization could be a strong candidate to write you a letter of support for a grant. Basically, you want someone whose words will carry some weight with the funder. These individuals could include a variety of collaborators and partners. We’ll take a closer look and list potential candidates below as we walk through the steps for requesting a letter of support for a grant. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding. Access Free Trainings How Do You Ask for Letters of Support? Our 7-Step Method Here’s the 7-step approach we teach in the Global Grant Writers Collective® on how to ask for genuine, inspirational letters of support that can nudge your application ahead of the rest. This method will help you build confidence and stay organized—a win-win as you gather valuable testimonials to make your pitch to funders. 🏆🏆 Step 1: Develop a Contact List. Start by listing any and all organizations that would benefit from or will support your proposed project. Organize them into a handy contact list. We recommend tackling this step early, ideally before you host your grant kick-off meeting. We provide a spreadsheet template in our online Grant Writing Training, but it’s something you can easily reproduce. At a minimum, your spreadsheet should include: Organization Name Contact Name Phone Email Columns for tracking if the letter has been sent and received Letters of Support Spreadsheet You can download a free spreadsheet template here. Remember to go File \u003e Make a Copy or File \u003e Download \u003e Excel. Google Sheet Who Should You Ask for Letters of Support for Grants? 🌎 Seek support from as many disciplines and perspectives as you can. Casting a wide net can’t hurt! Try to build a list of 15-20 organizations. For instance, when we seek letters of support for federal EPA grants, we collect them from neighborhood groups, environmental organizations like the Nature Conservancy, housing authorities, development organizations, professional associations, and other nonprofits. By casting a net that wide, you can accomplish two things: 1) demonstrate broad support among unlikely collaborators (i.e., environmental groups and land developers), and 2) basically get 15 more pages of narrative content to help you produce a rich, credible proposal! To get started, consider this list of typical organizations and individuals who nonprofits ask to write letters of support: Partner organizations that you currently work with or have in the past Constituents or clients who can attest to your on-the-ground impact Local government officials, spanning the full range from leaders of relevant local offices to your state’s congressional committee (for major federal grants) Other community leaders and influential stakeholders Current or previous funders, including foundations and major donors Local businesses that have publicly supported your work What if I’m in a Rural Community and Don’t Have Many Connections? Good question, but don’t limit yourself right off the bat! No matter how small or isolated your community is, there are many organizations and neighboring communities that care about your project’s success. You can definitely identify 15 to 20 other organizations that would want to see you succeed, but you just may need to get creative. Consider these options when you feel stumped: State departments focused on health and social services, the environment, and transportation Cultural organizations like museums, heritage centers, or art councils Neighboring communities Professional associations like AARP and their Livability program Job or skills training organizations and programs Regional and state colleges and educational programs And if you’re writing a grant for a tribal community, consider a letter from your Village Corporation, Regional Corporation, and other regional organizations, for example, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change. Access Free Class Step 2: Prep Your Request for Letters of Support. Next, you’ll want to provide instructions on how to submit a letter of support to your nonprofit. Make it as easy as possible for your generous letter writers, and you’re likely to see more and better responses! We also provide a template for letter requests in the Global Grant Writers Collective®, but here’s a quick summary: An overview of your organization and the name of the grant you’re pursuing A 1-2 sentence description of your proposed project A request for a letter of support from the organization you are inviting to respond Clear instructions for the letter writers, including: Use official organization letterhead. Address letters to whoever the grant guidelines specify (or your organization’s highest in command). Write a brief description of their organization as it applies to the project. Provide a statement explicitly confirming their support and, if applicable, information on how they will support the project during implementation. Describe any past collaborations between your organizations. A deadline for returning completed letters—we recommend 10-14 calendar days. This structure provides a comfortable outline as a starting point while still allowing plenty of room in the \u0026quot;sandbox.” This will give letter writers the flexibility to add creative and personal anecdotes that will lend extra weight and richness to their endorsements. Format your outlines as easy Google or Word Docs for your letter writers’ convenience. Step 3: Assign Ownership of Contacts for Requesting Letters. During the grant kick-off meeting, decide who will request which letters. Generally, you want to match whoever has a personal or professional relationship within your organization with the other organization you’re seeking a letter from. For example, getting letters of support from people in senior roles requires some tact, and in many instances, the best way to get the letter is if the person highest in your organization (or as appropriate) requests it. After deciding who will request which letter, update your spreadsheet with ownership details and provide your team with the information outlined in Step 2. Next, let everyone know the best way to share your requests. The outline document and your team’s explanations to your contacts should be concise. Remember, people tend to ignore or shy away from long emails. We’ve found the smoothest experience to be a quick phone call to the letter writer followed by a 2-3 sentence email that includes the outline document. Step 4: Send Your Requests. Send your requests for letters of support! Have your team update your central spreadsheet when they request a letter. We much prefer this outline approach to providing pre-written or “ghost letters.” You’ll ultimately receive far more compelling, heartfelt, freeform letters than you’d produce with a template. Their authenticity will shine through—and funders will feel it, too! ✨ That said, some of your contacts may need a bit of a nudge… Step 5: Provide Letter Templates if Needed. Sometimes an organizational representative will ask that you ‘ghost’ or prepare them a letter that only requires their signature. This generally doesn’t happen with more than one or two letters. Be prepared to write a templated letter that covers all the essentials discussed above. However, still try to highlight specific areas where they can add personalized content, like past collaborations. Every little bit of personalization will help. Step 6: Immediately Save and Organize Your Letters of Support. Immediately save letters in your project folder as you receive them, and mark them as received in your central spreadsheet. Nothing is worse than losing track of a letter (or worse, forgetting to include it!), because your inbox swallowed it. Step 7: Compile All Your Letters of Support. Once all letters have been received, compile them into a single tidy document. Consider including an attachment cover sheet that lists all organizations that provided letters. This helps the reviewer locate a specific letter and gives them a general overview of what to expect. Next Steps A stellar letter of support for a grant can accomplish a lot at once—satisfying funder requirements, making a positive impression, lending your organization credibility, and reinforcing your relationships with key partners. By taking a proactive, organized approach, you can remove much of the stress from the process of requesting letters of support. Before you know it, you’ll have an overflowing stack of shining testimonials about why your organization is such an excellent choice for funding. Serious about becoming a professional nonprofit or freelance grant writer? Learn about our comprehensive online grant writing training course. Or, if you want to learn more about letters of support or any other common grant attachment, we encourage you to take our free grant writing course, download our free audiobook on the grant writing process, or keep exploring with these additional resources: How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips Grant Writing Tips for Nonprofits: 10 Ways to Start Strong Best AI Grant Writing Tools: 15+ Top Resources \u0026amp; Our Take 7 Superpowers of a Potential Grant Writer: How to Know Grant Writing Is for You Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding. Access Free Trainings ","date":"2025-02-17","description":"Letters of support for grants lend your nonprofit credibility and make you an easier choice for\nfunding! Learn how to request stellar letters with this guide.\n","formatted_date":"February 17, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.02.17_letters-of-support-for-grants_hu_4e8f8b0c5b2e7169.webp","permalink":"/blog/letters-of-support-for-grants/","slug":"letters-of-support-for-grants","summary":null,"title":"How to Ask for Letters of Support for Grants: 7 Steps \u0026 FAQ"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Writing a grant proposal is like following a recipe to make an impressive new dish. Many ingredients come together in precise ways with small personal twists throughout that make it your own. Let’s say you understand your “ingredients,” like your plans, mission, data, financials, and overarching grant narrative. What next? Remember, a successful recipe is a lot more than just a combination of ingredients. The tools you use to turn them into a finished meal are critically important, too. Ever tried to mix a tough dough by hand? Or perfectly cut a vegetable into super-thin slices without the right knife or a mandoline? It takes forever, and you probably won’t be thrilled with the results! 😖 Just like how a chef relies on high-quality kitchen tools to save time and make her recipe a reality, grant writers depend on various resources—templates, databases, research tools, and more—to craft grant proposals worth funding. 🧑‍🍳✏️ The right tools will help you save a ton of time and seamlessly turn your ingredients into a compelling proposal. We’ve rounded up a sampling of the very best grant writing resources and tools to help you streamline the steps of grant writing, strengthen your proposals, and increase your chances of winning. Many of them are completely free! Top Grant Writing Resources: Categories The Global Grant Writers Collective® Helpful Grant Writing YouTube Channels Resources for Finding \u0026 Researching Grants Best AI Grant Writing Tools to Consider Free Grant Writing Guides \u0026 Templates Tools to Build a Grant Writing Business Top Grant Writing Training Courses Best Books about Grant Writing 🦄 Who are we? We’re Learn Grant Writing, the number one resource for grant writers and home of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. We’ve fostered a community of grant writing pros—our members have raised over $1 billion and counting for nonprofits of all sizes! The Best Grant Writing Resource: The Global Grant Writers Collective® Want to take your grant writing skills to the next level to secure more funding for your organization? Interested in starting a lucrative freelance grant writing business and building a freer, more flexible career? The Global Grant Writers Collective® can help. The Collective is the only program of its kind that provides everything you need to become a grant writing master: Comprehensive training on up-to-date grant writing best practices Certification as a Professional Grant Writer and Funding Strategist in just 45 days (and 91.2 CFRE-eligible credit hours!) Extensive libraries of resources and downloadables One-on-one coaching and fast support An active community of fellow grant writers to help you brainstorm solutions, learn new tricks, and celebrate wins Our hundreds of members (600+) have won over $1 billion in grant funding. Those who’ve joined the Collective to start new careers generally start freelancing full-time in 9 months or less. Whether you’re an in-house grant writer, another nonprofit professional, an existing grant consultant, or a complete grants newcomer, the Global Grant Writers Collective® can take your skills to the next level. 🦄 Learn more about the Collective, or take a look at our members’ success stories to see the results for yourself. 🦄 🤔 Not sure if a full training program and community is the right choice yet? No worries! We’ve got tons of other free training resources and guides that can help. Check out the Resources tab of our website or follow along to see the rest of our offerings. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Top Resources for Finding and Researching Grants When you master the craft of finding and prioritizing the perfect grant opportunities, you’ll skyrocket your wins and grant writing efficiency! But research know-how is only half of the equation—your tools play a massive role, too. We’ve gathered a few of our favorite grant research resources that will set you up for success: Instrumentl Instrumentl is a leading grant database, and it’s among our team’s favorites (and an official partner of Learn Grant Writing). Instrumentl’s database of grant opportunities is easy-to-use, comprehensive, and chock full of helpful features and additional resources, like intelligent matching to highlight the very best grants for your organization, Form 990s, and foundation profiles to help you learn more about funders, deadline and reporting tools, document library features, and more. Instrumentl is also leading the way with forthcoming AI tools to help grant seekers find, research, draft, and manage their grants more efficiently than ever. Try a free trial of Instrumentl’s full suite of tools, and if you like what you see, use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month of membership! Candid Candid is a well-known legacy provider in the grant space. It includes several platforms you’ve likely heard of or used before as a nonprofit professional, including GuideStar and Foundation Directory. Foundation Directory, in particular, is a valuable asset for any grant seeker. With over 225,000 funder profiles and grant research tools, it may be an ideal addition to your toolkit. Candid also includes a wide range of nonprofit training and data resources. Explore their site and check out this sample Foundation Directory search to get an idea of what they offer. GrantStation GrantStation is another leading grant database and research resource for nonprofits, schools, and government offices. It rounds up diverse grants from foundations, corporations, faith-based funders, state and federal governments, and more to provide comprehensive coverage for grant seekers. Where GrantStation really stands out is the additional strategy resources it provides. The platform includes helpful guides, frameworks, and other resources to help nonprofits develop smarter Funding Strategies, ensuring each grant received fits into a coherent and easy-to-manage strategic plan. Check out GrantStation and their full breakdown of membership benefits to learn more. Grants.gov Grants.gov is the official location for all federal grants and federal grant-seeking resources. If you plan on pursuing a federal grant soon (or hope to), you must get familiar with this platform. Grants.gov is a comprehensive database with exhaustive search features, tons of additional training resources, libraries of forms and template documents, and unique Workspace tools that allow teams to easily collaborate on federal grants. While it’s not the easiest to use of all the grant research resources in this list, learning how to navigate its tools pays off. It’s also completely free, although your organization will need to apply to receive access to the platform. Want a quick rundown of how grants.gov works? Here’s our video guide:\nRead our Complete List: Best Grant Databases Reviewed Free Grant Writing Guides and Templates Looking for quick, easy, and free grant writing resources? We’ve got you covered. Here are a few top grant writing blogs, newsletters, and templates. Use them to get quick answers, learn new tricks, and save time putting together supplemental documents for your proposals. The Learn Grant Writing Blog For free guides, explainers, and career tips, look no further than the Learn Grant Writing blog. We regularly publish new articles on various subjects for nonprofit professionals, grant writing freelancers, and anyone interested in learning more about the world of nonprofit funding. Check out a few of our favorite recent guides: Grant Writing Tips for Nonprofits: 10 Ways to Start Strong What Are Federal Grants? A Complete Guide to Understanding and Winning Them How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Grant Writer? What to Expect Best AI Grant Writing Tools: 15+ Top Resources \u0026amp; Our Take Fundable and Findable Newsletter Our Global Grant Writers Collective® members love Kevin Brown’s Fundable \u0026amp; Findable newsletter. He covers grant writing best practices, trends, and other insights, all with the mission of helping small nonprofits break the “starvation cycle” of limited funding and capacity to win more of it. Plus, as a free weekly newsletter, you can’t beat the convenience of having it delivered straight to your inbox! The Science of Scientific Writing If you write proposals for scientific projects, you have slightly different needs regarding writing and research best practices. “The Science of Scientific Writing” by George Gopen and Judith Swan is considered a classic grant writing resource for its straightforward explanations of what makes effective, compelling scientific writing. Not for all grant seekers, but an invaluable trove of best practices for those who work in scientific fields! Free Grant Budget Template Aside from our training courses for grant writers, we also offer a range of free templates to help you tackle those pesky financial sections of your grant proposals with ease. Here’s our free grant budget templates Free Funding Research Matrix Successful sustained grant writing relies on prioritization—find many grant opportunities that could work, then trim down to your top options worth considering. This funding matrix is our favorite free grant writing resource because it can make a massive difference in the ultimate efficiency and outcomes of all your hard work. Check it out here Free Grant Kickoff Agenda Grant kick-off meetings align your team on the grant you’re pursuing and what you need for it, from whom, and by when. We find that they’re essential for staying organized and keeping the proposal running smoothly. Our free sample agenda can help you learn what makes a successful meeting. Letters of Support Spreadsheet Most grants will ask you for letters of support—learn more about them and how to collect them with our complete guide. But as you gather them, you must keep them organized. Use our tracker template to stay on top of who you asked for a letter and whether you’ve received it. Top Grant Writing Training Courses It’s hard to jump into grant writing without some preliminary knowledge and experience under your belt. Training can help anyone write more winning proposals, from complete newcomers to old grant writing pros looking to hone specific skills. We’ve rounded up our picks for the best grant writing training courses, but here’s a short list of some of our favorites and more specialized options. Learn Grant Writing’s Free Introductory Course If you’re new to grant writing—either because you’re exploring it as a career or your nonprofit boss just asked you to apply for a grant—you probably have a few questions. You’re also probably not interested in making a big investment in training just yet. We’ve got you. Our free grant writing class walks you through a 7-step process for preparing your grant project, budgeting, writing, and more, covering everything you’ll need to know to approach your very first proposal with confidence. Check out our free introductory grant writing course here, and let us know how it goes! Pen to Polished Course There’s no way around the fact that grant writing requires a lot of, well, writing. If you aren’t a born Shakespeare (join the club 😓), you might feel less than confident in your writing skills. Remember, though, that writing is just that—a set of skills you can practice and hone. If you want to brush up on your writing skills and learn how to craft smoother, more compelling, and all-around stronger grant narratives, check out our course for grant writers: From Pen to Polished. The complete course includes 9 modules that cover the basics of writing for grants, the pillars of compelling storytelling, real-life examples, and more. If you’re not sure yet if a full course makes sense for you, no worries! We’ve got a free introductory webinar that explains the course and provides some quick tips to get you started. Nonprofitready.org Our members in the Global Grant Writers Collective® love nonprofitready.org, a platform that offers free online training courses on all kinds of nonprofit topics, including grant writing. To get started, simply create a free account and explore the site’s grant writing classes. If you decide to take one or more, remember that this grant writing resource offers a free certificate (which is eligible for CFRE continuing education credits!). OneCause Webinars OneCause, a nonprofit technology provider, regularly offers top-notch (and free) webinars on nonprofit topics. While their primary area of expertise is fundraising event planning, they frequently offer webinars related to grant writing and nonprofit funding. For example, at the time of writing, an upcoming webinar looks perfect for grant seekers: Grant Masterclass - Proven Strategies for Discovery, Research, and Winning Proposals. Best of all, for nonprofit professionals, OneCause webinars typically qualify for CFRE continuing education credit hours! DH Leonard Consulting DH Leonard Consulting and Grant Writing Services specializes in all things grant writing, particularly training and providing resources for grant writing to nonprofits. This firm offers a dynamic roster of training opportunities and exercises, from a lunch and learn seminar series to grant readiness challenges to full services for researching and writing grants. Explore their full training schedule or contact the firm to discuss your organization’s needs. MyFedTrainer If you plan to pursue your first federal grant anytime soon (or just down the line), specialized training will likely be a good idea. MyFedTrainer offers grant writing resources and courses specifically to help nonprofits navigate the challenges of federal grant-seeking. Their courses cover the full range of skills needed to thrive in the competitive federal grant space, from writing and research to finance, administration, and compliance. MyFedTrainer provides live courses, consulting services, webinars, and other on-demand grant writing resources. Grant Writers Seminars and Workshops LLC Do you need to pursue academic or scientific grants? Feeling out of your depth? Grant Writers Seminars and Workshops LLC can help. This firm specializes in providing training resources, seminars, and workshops for complex academic and science grants. They also offer handy workbooks that prepare your organization to compete for particularly competitive grants from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the USDA, and other federal agencies and high-profile grantmaking organizations. Various Online eLearning Platforms If you don’t need intensive in-person training or specialized webinars (or you’re just looking to make a smaller investment), don’t forget about the several reputable eLearning platforms available. Experts and working professionals create and sell video courses on websites like Udemy and Coursera. These courses are extremely varied, and they come in at all price levels—and quality levels. If you go with a grant writing resource or training course from one of these platforms, be sure to take your time comparing your options, reading reviews, and sampling the course content. Thompson Grants For new grant seekers, it can be easy to overlook the challenges and learning curves of grant management—at your own peril! Reporting and compliance are critically important for maintaining your grant and winning more in the future. Thompson Grants is a consulting agency and training provider that focuses primarily on federal grant-seeking and grant management. They offer a wide range of training resources, online modules, research tools, and outsourced services for grant management. Read our Complete List: Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Every Learner Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Helpful Grant Writing YouTube Channels More of a visual learner? How-to and explainer guides are popular on YouTube for a reason—they’re easier to consume and often much faster than reading an article or working through course content. Here are a few recommendations for grant writing resources on YouTube: Learn Grant Writing’s YouTube Channel For an active, timely, and expert-led YouTube channel all about grant writing, we’ve got you covered! The Learn Grant Writing YouTube channel is chock full of helpful guides, our takes on the big grant news of the day, and real-life stories from grant writers who’ve navigated challenges to build thriving careers. Want a sample of our content? Here’s one of our most popular videos, Grant Writing Success: 7 Hacks for Winning Proposals: Check out our channel and subscribe to stay updated on the latest video resources from our team!\nAmber Melanie Smith Our Global Grant Writers Collective® members highly recommend Amber Melanie Smith’s YouTube Channel. Amber’s content focuses largely on guides, tips, and interviews for professionals in new and growing nonprofits. She frequently covers grant topics—here’s her full grant playlist. Various Federal Agency YouTube Channels Looking for more specialized video content and grant writing resources for pursuing federal grants? Try heading straight to the source! Government agencies and institutes want to disburse funding to worthy projects, so they often produce helpful content on their websites and other channels (including YouTube) to help nonprofits better understand their funding requirements, management processes, and more. Here’s an example: a YouTube channel from the National Institutes of Health focused specifically on their funding programs and tips for grant seekers. Best AI Grant Writing Tools to Consider AI is shaking up all kinds of industries and skill sets, and grant writing is no exception!\nWe’ve written extensively about the AI revolution in grant writing on our blog, including an FAQ guide to AI for grant writing and a roundup of the top AI tools for grant writers. Here’s a quick recap of a few of our favorite AI grant writing tools: Grantable Grantable was among the first AI grant writing assistants out there. Its goal is to serve as an all-in-one solution for drafting grant proposals. It’s easy to use, intuitively designed, and one of the few AI platforms available that’s specifically designed (and algorithmically trained) for grant writers and their needs. Perplexity Perplexity is an AI-driven search engine that focuses on pulling insights and data from the most reputable sources. Grant writers find it most useful for research, and it can potentially save you a ton of time when gathering background information and fleshing out the logical arguments of your proposals. ChatGPT and Other Generative AI Platforms You’ve almost certainly heard of ChatGPT and similar platforms like Claude and Google Gemini. While we don’t recommend over-relying on these all-purpose generative AI tools for your grant proposals (they make a lot of mistakes and do so very confidently), they’re still incredibly helpful for certain limited use cases. Use them to get feedback on your writing, ask for phrasing suggestions, crunch numbers, and more—just always double-check their work. Jenni.ai Jenni.ai is an “intelligent research assistant” that could be the perfect addition to your toolkit of grant writing resources if you work in a technical or scientific field. The platform emphasizes its citation features and can work with documents you upload. Like other entries in this list, Jenni.ai stands out first and foremost as a research tool. Coefficient We love Coefficient, which perfectly tackles an ideal use case for AI—reporting and analyzing data. Coefficient essentially connects your tools to create intuitive, real-time reports, visualizations, and analyses. While its complexity might not be necessary for all organizations or grant scenarios, it could be a perfect tool for organizations that must distill a lot of data into digestible reports for grant writing. Gamma Instead of focusing on data, Gamma uses AI to tell stories and create sleek presentations. Grant writers know all about creating slide decks and visual aids for grant kickoff meetings, progress check-ins, and more. Gamma makes it easy to add your subject matter, generate a polished slideshow, and put the finishing touches in a fraction of the usual time. When using AI for grant writing, remember that no technology is perfect. We recommend brushing up on the basics of using AI to write grants—including what you can realistically expect of this tech and the potential risks that it brings. Check out our guide here. Read our Complete List: Best AI Grant Writing Tools Other Top Tools and Training to Build a Grant Writing Business or Workflow What if you’re looking for more tactical advice and grant resources to either build your own consulting business or improve your nonprofit’s grant workflow? This category of our favorite tools, vendors, and platforms can help. Global Grant Writers Collective® We couldn’t help shouting out the Global Grant Writers Collective® one more time—the Collective, its training materials, and resource libraries are all ideal for grant writers looking to start freelance careers or lucrative side hustles. The complete year-long program guides you through the process of earning while you learn, with the goal of securing your first $15,000 in paid grant writing work. We also teach firsthand tips for switching to freelance work, finding your first clients, landing a dream job using your new skills, and more—whatever your personal goals for learning grant writing, we can help. We’ll even get you certified as a Professional Grant Writer and Funding Strategist to help you stand out to clients. We’ve helped tons of other grant writers turn their skills and passion for driving impact into more meaningful professional lives. Check out our success stories, and learn more about the Collective to see if it’s the right fit for you! Wondering if grant writing could be a smart freelancing direction for you? You might like these guides:\nHow To Change Careers \u0026amp; Thrive: Simple 7-Step Framework Finding Your Career Fit: Why Grant Writing Could Be Your Next Big Move! Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video Management Concepts Management Concepts is a workforce development firm (HR, training, and management) that specializes in helping federal government offices and organizations that work with the federal government. It offers a wide range of training resources that could transform your grant writing and management efforts into a streamlined, impact-driving machine. For example, check out their full roster of training courses and events for federal grant recipients. While a bit more on the advanced and technical sides of things, the topics Management Concepts’ training resources cover are essential for organizations that want to successfully tap into major government funding sources (and stay fully compliant to snag that next grant!). Studioworks Here’s a brand new platform that shows a ton of promise, and we’re excited for our community of freelancers to try it out. Studioworks is a set of digital tools that essentially give you all the most crucial back-office necessities for your freelancing business in one tidy package. Studioworks offers accounting, management, invoicing, and payment features designed specifically for small creative and boutique agencies (like grant writers!) to help them tackle all the business essentials without committing to multiple complicated platforms. What’s not to love? Additional Logistics and Productivity Tools We Love Check out our other top picks for productivity, design, writing, and other grant writing resources that can help you level up your grant outputs: Asana - An affordable, easy-to-use project management platform ideal for grant writers and their teams to stay organized and on schedule. Trello - Another favorite project management tool that uses intuitive Kanban-style cards to make progressing through your workflows that much more satisfying. Google Workspace - The gold standard for cloud-based productivity tools, including Docs, Slides, Gmail, Drive, and more (which work seamlessly with one another). Loom - A free AI-powered tool that makes it easy to record video messages and automate transcriptions and reminders from meetings—a game-changer for busy grant writers who gather input from many team members. Grammarly - Everyone’s favorite spellcheck tool, now with innovative AI features that help you improve your writing, style, and tone. Canva - The easiest-to-use online visual design tool out there, with free and paid versions that make it easy to create professional, polished, branded graphics and presentations for your organization or freelance business. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Best Books about Grant Writing Maybe you’d prefer to take the old-fashioned route and curl up with a book instead of logging into an online course to access your grant writing resources and training materials. Thankfully, there are tons of high-quality books out there that can help you learn the essentials or dive deep into specialized grant writing topics. How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn by our founder, Meredith Noble, is a bestselling grant writing guide for a reason—it’s practical, succinct, and just plain fun to read. Now in its 2nd edition, this book covers everything a new grant writer will need to hit the ground running, including: Our 7-step system for writing a grant application How to find and prioritize grant opportunities How to manage your time when applying for grants How to gather letters of support, prepare a grant budget, and more Plus, we include some hard-won lessons from the grant writing world, like how to keep community front and center in your proposals and tackle imposter syndrome when it rears its ugly head. Learn more about our ultimate grant writing guide, or listen for free! Subscribe to receive email updates, and we’ll send you the 1st edition of How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn in audiobook format completely free. Free Audio Book We have turned the book into a podcast that makes it easy to listen to on-the-go. Get instant access after you provide your email below.\nGet Free Audio Book Writing to Win Federal Grants: A Must-Have for Your Fundraising Toolbox Writing to Win Federal Grants: A Must-Have for Your Fundraising Toolbox By Cheryl K. Lester \u0026amp; Karen L. Cassidy is a well-known guide full of expert guidance for federal grant seeking. It’s no secret that large federal grants are tricky to apply for and win. A trusted reference could be an invaluable resource for grant seekers looking to bolster their skills in this competitive space. This book includes all the essentials you’ll need, including tips on finding opportunities that give you the best chances, real-world examples, and workbook-style sections designed to help you grow your confidence along the way. Successful Grant Writing for Health and Human Service Professionals Successful Grant Writing for Health and Human Service Professionals, Fifth Edition By Laura N. Gitlin Ph.D., Ann Kolanowski Ph.D., and Kevin J. Lyons Ph.D. is a well-regarded and frequently updated guide to all things grant seekers for those in the health and human services spaces. Although perhaps most immediately useful for pre- and post-doctoral students, this book is chock-full of wisdom that can benefit any grant seeker looking for specialized guidance. It covers trends, Professional Spotlights with advice from expert grant writers, many examples, tips for effectively conveying your proposals’ innovations, and more. Grant Writing For Dummies Grant Writing for Dummies by Beverly A. Browning may be a surprising addition to this list, but you can’t overlook how many grant writers it’s helped over the years. Most importantly, it’s written by one of the most prominent experts in the field! Beverly Browning has been a professional grant writer, consultant, and author for over five decades, and she distills her expertise into this comprehensive, easy-to-follow guide for anyone to learn the essential skills of grant writing. This guide also includes extensive examples, applications of key concepts, and explanations of pro writing techniques that can help your proposals stand out. Wrapping Up As you continue (or start!) your grant writing journey, we hope this list of all our favorite and most trusted resources will help. Between the training courses, free templates, video resources, productivity tools, and AI platforms, something has hopefully caught your eye! Learn Grant Writing is here to help, too. Check out all our resources, including free tools and introductory courses, a full training program, and a community of grant writing peers ready to help—we’ve got something for every skill level and budget. If you’re just getting started, we highly recommend our free grant writing course. Or, if you’re just looking to keep learning, try these additional resources: Grant Writing 101: What is It \u0026amp; How Do You Get Started? How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips 7 Superpowers of a Potential Grant Writer: How to Know Grant Writing Is for You Reviews: The Top 12 Best Grant Databases for Finding Funding Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings ","date":"2025-02-17","description":"The best grant writing resources will help you level up your skills, write better proposals, and\nsecure more funding. We’ve rounded up all our favorites here.\n","formatted_date":"February 17, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.02.20_best-grant-writing-resources_hu_10967cc6ad0a5899.webp","permalink":"/blog/best-grant-writing-resources/","slug":"best-grant-writing-resources","summary":null,"title":"The Top 40+ Grant Writing Resources \u0026 Tools (Free \u0026 Paid)"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Let’s talk about imposter syndrome—that nagging feeling that any moment now, someone will point a finger and yell, “Fraud!” Sound familiar? If you’ve ever felt like you don’t belong in the room or you’re not “good enough,” you’re in good company. Imposter syndrome shows up a lot, especially among new grant writers just breaking into the field. Picture this: You’re excited to dive into grant writing, but then that pesky little voice chimes in, “You don’t know enough to get paid for this. Who would even hire you?” Or you’re scared your potential employer is going to ask, “How many grants have you won up till now?” When you’ve not yet hit submit on your first one!!! 😭😭 Well, spoiler alert: That voice is a liar. Your experiences (yes, the ones you already have) can make you an incredible grant writer. It’s a skill you can build quickly—and it’s a journey, not a destination. Many people don’t know that grant writing is an incredible field that you don’t ever “master” because there’s always new levels - think of a real life game of mario bros!! Even the Pros Feel It Take Meredith, our CEO. At 23, she was hired as a full-time grant writer for an engineering firm. She had written exactly two grants before landing the gig. When her first project was helping an Alaskan Native tribe secure funding for a clinic (something they’ve tried and failed at for 10 years), she thought, What can I do that these real adults couldn’t? But instead of letting imposter syndrome win, she rolled up her sleeves and got to work. She put together a Funding Strategy and tackled a $5 million project, grant by grant. Her first win? A Housing and Urban Development grant! Not every attempt was successful, but she eventually secured the funding. Now, every time she drives by that clinic, she’s reminded of what happens when you push past fear and take uncomfortable action. Confidence Comes After Action Here’s a truth bomb: You don’t need confidence before you take action. Confidence comes after doing the thing that scares you. It’s like leveling up in a video game. At first, you’re a little minicorn (baby unicorn) trying to figure things out. But with each project, you gain skills, win battles, and eventually transform into a full-blown grant writing unicorn. 🦄🦄 Another way to build confidence is to equip yourself with knowledge. That’s why we built a free grant writing minicourse for you. This way, you have some knowledge to share with prospective employers, and you get a taste of the real meal of what we cover in the Global Grant Writers Collective®. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class The Journey Through the “Valley of Despair” If you’ve ever felt the sudden panic of realizing how much you don’t know, you’re not alone. This is the Dunning-Kruger effect in action. You start out confident, cruising through the basics of grant writing, maybe even landing a client or acing a funding strategy. Then—BAM—it hits you. The sheer depth of what you still have to learn feels overwhelming. Welcome to the Valley of Despair. 😔😔 It’s uncomfortable, and it’s where most people quit. But this is also where growth happens. This is when you need community, coaching, and a healthy dose of self-development to keep you going. From “Soonicorn” to Unicorn The cool part? The “teenage phase” of imposter syndrome doesn’t last forever. With real-world experience and exposure—like tackling your first paid project or raising your rates—you start to regain confidence. This is the soonicorn stage. You’re flying, but still a little wobbly. Stick with it, and you’ll hit unicorn status faster than you think. Our Top Tip for Crushing Imposter Syndrome Want to rewrite your story? Grab a piece of paper.\nWrite down your big goal. Maybe it’s, “I’m running a thriving grant writing consultancy,” or, “I landed a nonprofit job that lets me work from home twice a week.” Write it again. And again. Aim for 30 times. Pay attention to the pesky thoughts that creep in. Thoughts like, “Who am I to dream this big?” or, “No one will hire me without tons of experience.” Flip the page and jot those limiting beliefs down. Now, rewrite them as incremental, believable upgrades. For example: Old belief: “I’m not experienced enough.” New belief: “I’ve figured out new things before; I can do it again.” Old belief: “I’ll never make this much money.” New belief: “If others can build a six-figure business, I can too.” What you have here is only a tip of the iceberg. In the Global Grant Writers Collective®, upgrading your belief system is a core value, and we have a section dedicated to it amongst our plethora of grant writing resources. Mindset Over Mechanics Still talking about how to beat imposter syndrome, grant writing is 20% about the nuts and bolts and 80% about your mindset. If your mind isn’t on your side, no amount of technical skill will matter. That’s why being part of a supportive community, like the Global Grant Writers Collective®, is a game-changer. In the Collective, you don’t just learn to write grants—you transform into a person who believes in your own potential. As Jasmine, one of our members, put it: “I was terrified at first. But the community was so inspiring and supportive. Someone even offered me a subcontracting opportunity that pulled me out of the Valley of Despair!” Final Thoughts - Give Yourself the Gift of Belief Imposter syndrome is a part of every growth story—it’s a sign you’re stepping outside your comfort zone and chasing something bigger. Remember, confidence doesn’t come first; it comes after you take action. By reframing your beliefs, leaning into your community, and taking those small, courageous steps, you’ll grow from a hesitant “minicorn” to a full-fledged grant writing unicorn. Grant writing isn’t just about securing funds; it’s about becoming the kind of person who believes in their ability to make a real impact. And the best part? You don’t have to go it alone. If you’re serious about beating imposter syndrome, building your skills, and joining a network of supportive, inspiring peers, the Global Grant Writers Collective® is here for you. It’s more than an educational program—it’s a transformation experience that will help you rewrite your story, upgrade your mindset, and create a fulfilling grant writing career. Take the leap as we launch into 2025 and start your journey with us today. You’re one step away from building the confidence, community, and career you’ve been dreaming about. Let’s make it happen together—because unicorns don’t fly solo! Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video ","date":"2025-01-29","description":"Struggling with imposter syndrome in grant writing? Learn practical tips to boost confidence,\novercome self-doubt, and write winning proposals with ease!\n","formatted_date":"January 29, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.01.29_how-to-beat-imposter-syndrome-in-grant-writing_hu_b7a764e3330aebce.webp","permalink":"/blog/how-to-beat-imposter-syndrome-in-grant-writing/","slug":"how-to-beat-imposter-syndrome-in-grant-writing","summary":null,"title":"How to Beat Imposter Syndrome in Grant Writing"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Federal grants are a treasure trove of opportunity for nonprofits, businesses, and organizations looking to make a big impact. Unlike state or foundation grants, these come straight from Uncle Sam and often support large-scale programs in public policy, health, education, and more. The catch? They come with a side of paperwork and a bit more elbow grease! But don’t worry—this guide will break down everything you need to know about federal grants, from who offers them to how you can land one for your organization. What Exactly Are Federal Grants? Federal grants are financial awards given by the national government to fund initiatives that align with its goals. These are often administered through powerhouse agencies like the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) or the National Science Foundation (NSF). Whether it\u0026#39;s boosting renewable energy efforts or improving access to healthcare in rural areas, federal grants focus on the big picture. More of a visual learner? Check out coach Haleigh’s video on federal grants below.\nBusting the “Too Hard” Myth Let’s address a common misconception: many people think federal grants are impossible to win. The truth? They’re not inherently harder than state or foundation grants—they just require more time, detail, and organization. Think of them as a marathon, not a sprint. The extra effort is worth it when you’re chasing potentially millions in funding. Even our founder, Meredith Noble, has a soft spot for federal grants. Why? Because once you understand the process, they become a reliable and lucrative funding source. With our free grant writing course, you can discover if grant writing fits you as a career. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class The Major Players in Federal Grant Funding If you want to win federal grants, it helps to know who’s handing out the cash. Here are five key agencies to keep on your radar: Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Focus: Homelessness, affordable housing, and community development. Perfect for: Organizations tackling housing instability. Department of Energy (DOE) Focus: Renewable energy, climate change tech, and energy efficiency. Perfect for: Innovators passionate about saving the planet. U.S. Department of Education (ED) Focus: Teacher training, student support, and educational equity. Perfect for: Programs aimed at improving education outcomes. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Focus: Rural development, food security, and agricultural innovation. Perfect for: Organizations working on rural or food-related projects. Department of Justice (DOJ) Focus: Public safety, criminal justice reform, and victim services. Perfect for: Groups addressing justice and community safety. There are plenty of other agencies, but these five provide a great starting point for your federal grant search. Types of Federal Grants: Not All Dollars Are the Same Federal grants come in several flavors. Here’s a quick rundown:\nBlock Grants Think of these as flexible funding for states and local governments to use within specific categories, like health or housing. Discretionary Grants These are competitive, so your proposal needs to shine. It’s a “best idea wins” situation, so bring your A-game. Mandatory Grants If you meet the criteria, you’re in. These are more predictable, like scholarships based on GPA. Formula Grants Funding is based on predetermined criteria like population or income levels. If you qualify, you get the funds. Cooperative Agreements Unlike regular grants, these involve close collaboration with the government agency funding your project. Knowing the type of grant you’re applying for can save you time and help you focus your efforts. If you’re feeling lost in the types of federal funding, you can check out coach Haleigh’s video on navigating federal grants, what you need to know. Where to Find Federal Grant Opportunities Federal grants are often listed on Grants.gov, the ultimate one-stop-shop for funding opportunities. But navigating the site can feel like wandering through a maze of acronyms—NOFO, HUD, USDA—it’s overwhelming, even for seasoned professionals. Grants.gov has a really high ceiling of usability, but the complexity level is just as high. Grants.gov isn\u0026#39;t for the faint of heart, it’s a bit clunky and overwhelming, like most things government related. But, with a few tricks, you’ll be navigating it like a pro in no time. Pro Tips for Grants.gov Use search filters to narrow your options by category (e.g., housing, education, renewable energy). Read NOFOs (Notices of Funding Opportunities) carefully—they contain all the details you need to know. Don’t forget individual agency websites! Sometimes, they post opportunities not listed on Grants.gov. Before you apply, make sure your organization is set up with a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and registered on SAM.gov (System for Award Management). This is a non-negotiable step for federal grants. Check out other bonus tips and the four things you should never do when applying for federal grants in coach Haleigh’s video here. Free Grant Budget Template If preparing a grant budget scares you, those days are about to be over! Download the free grant budget template below and take our free grant writing class to learn how to use it.\nFree Template Collaborate for Success: Don’t Go It Alone! Federal grants are a team sport. Bringing in partners or subcontractors can make all the difference in your application’s success. Whether it’s hiring a budget expert, a program evaluator, or another grant writer, teaming up helps lighten the workload and increases your chances of winning. At the Global Grant Writers Collective, we teach grant writers how to collaborate, boosting their odds of success while making the process more manageable. Bringing on other grant writers with specialized knowledge is a good way to boost your chances of winning. We also provide you with effective grant writing resources and templates, so you don’t have to start from scratch. How Much Should You Charge for Federal Grant Writing? A frequent question from grant writers is, “How much should I charge for federal grants?” Spoiler: it’s more than you think! One of our members, Fizer, thought charging over $5,000 was crazy. We encouraged her to set her minimum at $16,000 for complex healthcare and education grants. Within 30 minutes of sending her proposal, it was signed. She now charges a minimum of $22,000—plus a few thousand more for support services like editing and gathering attachments. Remember, federal grants are labor-intensive, and your expertise is valuable. Don’t undervalue your skills or time. Federal grants can be a fantastic opportunity, but they do require some strategy. By knowing where to look, using the right resources, and collaborating with experts, you can navigate the process and land the funding you need to make a global impact. Fortunately, with the current advent of AI, you don’t have to rack your brain and spend prolonged hours on federal grants like before. Learn to leverage AI with our simplified AI toolkit! Why Federal Grants Are Worth It Federal grants might seem intimidating, but they offer some of the most significant funding opportunities out there. Yes, they require effort and strategy, but the payoff is enormous—not just in dollars, but in the impact you can make. With the right approach and resources, you can demystify the process and start landing federal grants that take your organization’s mission to the next level. Your Next Steps: Join the Global Grant Writers Collective® If you’re ready to dive into the world of federal grants but feel like you need a guide, the Global Grant Writers Collective® has your back. We offer comprehensive training, coaching, and resources to help you succeed. Here’s how we can help inside the Collective:\nExpert curriculum: Jump into our federal grant training. Leverage content with our curriculum on what grants to pursue and you’ll get a roadmap for what federal grants will yield the highest likelihood of success. Expert Resources: Download templates like our federal grants budget template and much more. Professional Coaching: Learn how to write winning proposals, price your services, and collaborate effectively. Federal grants might feel like an ocean, but with the right map and community, you’ll be reeling in the big fish in no time. Don’t let the maze of acronyms or the fear of complexity hold you back! Get our AI Toolkit today and take the first step toward turning federal grant opportunities into real-world impact. ","date":"2025-01-29","description":"Discover everything about federal grants in this ultimate guide! Learn what they are, how to qualify, and strategies to win funding for your organization.\n","formatted_date":"January 29, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.01.29_what-are-federal-grants_hu_22887c7d1d009540.webp","permalink":"/blog/what-are-federal-grants/","slug":"what-are-federal-grants","summary":null,"title":"What Are Federal Grants? A Complete Guide to Understanding and Winning Them"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Thinking about switching careers but can’t stomach the thought of pulling all-nighters, racking up debt, and spending your days in stiff, boring business attire? (Seriously, who invented those anyway?) Good news: You don’t need to suffer through all that to level up your life. There’s a smarter, way more fun option—grant writing! Hear me out: If you’ve been told that going back to college is the only way to change careers, you’ve been sold a big ol’ myth. Let’s bust those myths wide open and show you why grant writing could be the fresh, exciting career move you didn’t know you needed. Myth 1: A Degree is the Only Way to Start a New Career Spoiler alert: It’s not. Sure, some careers (like medicine or law) require a degree, but most don’t. Skills and experience are what really count. And guess what? You can get those without shelling out a fortune for a diploma. 🤗🤗 Boot camps, online courses, certifications, or just good ol’ on-the-job training can get you where you want to go for a fraction of the cost—and time! Grant writing is a perfect example. It’s all about developing real-world skills like writing compelling proposals and understanding what funders want. Fancy degrees? Optional. 👍🏾👍🏾 Myth 2: College Guarantees Job Security Ha! If only. A degree isn’t some magical shield against layoffs or unemployment. (Looking at you, AI and automation 😂😂) In fact, the job market is moving so fast that traditional education can’t keep up. Grant writing, on the other hand, is future-proof. Nonprofits, startups, and social enterprises always need funding. When you know how to bring in the money, you’re basically a superhero. Plus, it’s a skill that adapts with you—no expensive “updates” required. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Myth 3: Older Adults Can’t Compete Without a Degree Newsflash: Age is an asset. Your experience, perspective, and wisdom are superpowers—don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Grant writing is especially friendly to career changers with a few (or more) candles on their birthday cake. Your past experiences, no matter the field, give you a unique edge when crafting grant proposals and understanding what funders want. Older adults bring depth and context to the table—and clients love that. Myth 4: New Degrees = More Money Let’s do some quick math: Degrees cost a ton of money. Then there’s the time investment. And when you finally land a job, the salary bump? It’s not always what you expect. The math just doesn’t math anymore. Enter grant writing. Your income potential doesn’t depend on the letters after your name but on how much value you bring. Take our friend Loretta, for instance. With a Masters degree in environmental studies, she was barely making $16/hour in retail. Fast forward: she learned grant writing, started freelancing, and now runs her own consulting business. She’s crushing six figures and working with clients she actually likes. 💪💪 Myth 5: College is More Respected Than Alternative Education Let’s stop pretending college is the only legit way to learn. These days, boot camps, online programs, and certifications are turning out pros who are just as (if not more!) skilled than their traditionally educated peers. In grant writing, no one cares where you went to school. They care about one thing: can you bring in the cash? And with a little training, you’ll be able to deliver the goods, build a reputation, and earn respect the old-fashioned way—by being awesome at your job. In the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we’ve created comprehensive grant writing resources and templates to empower you. The DREAM Framework: Reinventing Your Career Without College Debt Meredith, our CEO, developed a simple and incredible formula you can use to upgrade your grant writing game in 2025. It’s called the DREAM Framework—a simple, powerful roadmap to help you reinvent your career and build a life you love. Let’s show you how it works:\nD: Design Your Vision Before you dive headfirst into a career change, take a step back. Ask yourself: How do I want my life to look? Not just the career stuff—think about your perfect day, where you’re living, what you’re doing, and who you’re with. Visualization is more than just daydreaming—it’s about getting crystal clear on what you’re aiming for. Try this: create a vision board in Canva or write out a detailed narrative. Then, put it somewhere you’ll see it every day. (Seriously, this is non-negotiable. Everyone in the Global Grant Writers Collective® does it, and it works.) Seeing your dream life regularly reminds you what you’re working toward—and trust me, clarity is the first step toward action. R: Relationship Building They say your network is your net worth, and it’s true. One of the biggest perks of fancy programs like MBAs is the connections you make. But guess what? You don’t need an MBA to build a powerful network anymore. You can find like-minded communities online for just about any interest or industry. And when it comes to creating your dream career, relationships are everything—peers, mentors, clients, you name it. Here’s a tip: follow what we call the “organic networking framework” It’s all about building genuine, meaningful connections. Focus on learning from others and offering value in return. The right people will naturally gravitate toward you, and your dream life will start to feel a lot closer. E: Earn and Learn Why quit your job and dive into a brand-new career blindfolded? There’s a better way: the earn-and-learn method. Start earning money while testing out your new career. It’s all about de-risking the leap. Take Francine, for example. She dipped her toes into grant writing while keeping her day job. Within three months, she made $5,000 on the side. Now? She’s crossed $100,000, and her career is full of wild, unexpected opportunities—like a paid trip to Bordeaux to write grants for Napa Valley wineries. (Yes, really.) Watch this training to learn more about how the earn-and-learn method works. Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video A: Ambition and Gratitude Mindset This step is a game-changer. To build your dream career, you need to balance two things: ambition (the drive to go after your goals) and gratitude (appreciating what you already have). Here’s the truth: you’ll never make more money than you believe you’re worth. Your mindset shapes your outcomes, and often, we carry limiting beliefs about our value. (Trust me, I’ve been there too.) Let’s flip those beliefs. Try a daily “belief upgrade.” Take an old belief that’s holding you back and rewrite it into something empowering. For example: Old belief: “I have to work ridiculously hard to deserve nice things.” Upgraded belief: “I’m inherently worthy of success and abundance.” Do this daily, and watch how it shifts your perspective—and your results.\nM: Momentum Building Finally, let’s talk about momentum. Big changes don’t happen overnight. Like building muscle, creating a new career requires consistency. Doing 20 push-ups once won’t get you far, but doing 20 every day? That’s how you make real progress. With enough grant writing resources to feed you for a year, our collective literally transforms you into a fundraising juggernaut! Commit to one year of focused effort on your new path. That’s it. One year of trying, learning, and showing up—no matter how messy or imperfect it feels. The universe rewards commitment, and you’ll be amazed at the transformation a year can bring. In fact, over 50% of members in the Global Grant Writers Collective® stick around for three years because they’ve built unstoppable momentum. Ask yourself: Can I make a one-year commitment to myself? Ditch the MBA Dreams—Write Your Own Success Story Listen, you don’t need sleepless nights, debt, or stiff business clothes to make a big career move. Grant writing lets you skip the stress and jump straight to the good stuff: financial independence, meaningful work, and the freedom to build a life you love. Joel’s story says it all. Joel wanted better pay than his journalism 9-5. Going back to school with three kids at home was out of the question. After applying for 100s of jobs without success he joined the Collective to start side-hustling as a grant writer. In six months he’d made enough money to quit his job. By the end of the year he doubled his previous take-home pay to support his 3-kiddos. In year two, he’s projecting $220k in revenue for his business, supporting a team of grant writers and a $120k in take home pay. Cherry on top he had time to finish and publish his novel after nine years of not having the time. Oh, and did I mention? When you hit $100K in revenue in our program, you get a custom hoodie. Yes, we celebrate your wins in style. So, why not give it a shot? Forget the MBA. Choose a career that’s smart, fun, and lets you make a real impact. Grant writing might just be your golden ticket to a sparkling new chapter. 🎉 Your Next Move Here’s the bottom line: your life can look completely different a year from now if you follow these steps. Get clear on what you want, find someone who’s already done it to guide you, and take consistent, imperfect action. Oh, and bet on yourself. Because the truth is, you’re worth the investment!\nIf you’re still thinking about that higher education route, no shade—we’ve got PhDs, MBAs, and everything in between in the Global Grant Writers Collective®. But for a fraction of the cost (we’re talking 9% of an MBA), you can build the career—and life—you’ve been dreaming about. So, what’s stopping you? Let’s make it happen today. Check this out to discover how grant writing can work as a career for you. ","date":"2025-01-29","description":"Discover why a grant writing program beats an MBA! Gain practical skills, secure funding, and make\nan impact—without the hefty price tag or years in school\n","formatted_date":"January 29, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.01.29_why-a-grant-writing-program-is-better-than-an-mba_hu_899048bea288c601.webp","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-better-than-mba/","slug":"grant-writing-better-than-mba","summary":null,"title":"Why a Grant Writing Program is Better Than an MBA"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" When you need something done that you don’t have the time or expertise to do, you call on a professional.\nSure, you could take the time to patch together a fix to the leaking pipes in your house instead of hiring a plumber. This might save you some money, but you’ll have spent valuable time making the repairs (which might not even work in the long run, so you’ll face the same problem again soon). 🪠😩 For nonprofits, hiring a professional grant writer falls into this same category of valuable investments in professional expertise. Bringing in a professional grant writer saves you time and often dramatically increases your chances of winning funding. Plus, for many nonprofits, professional help means they now have the capacity to apply for grants they would have otherwise passed up completely. ⭐ Understanding how to pay a grant writer and their average fees will set you up for more productive partnerships and successful grant proposals. However, the process can definitely be confusing to newcomers, so you probably have a few questions. This guide will cover them all, plus our takes and recommendations from years of writing and winning grants. Here’s what we’ll answer: How much does it cost to hire a grant writer? How are grant writers typically paid? Can I pay a grant writer on commission? The no-no’s of paying a grant writer What’s included in the cost of a grant writer? How do you know you found a good grant writer? 🦄 Who are we? We’re Learn Grant Writing, the number one resource for grant writers and home of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. We’ve fostered a community of grant writing pros—our members have raised over $1 billion and counting for nonprofits of all sizes! Learn more about what it’s like to work with one of our grant writers, or read on to snag our pro tips and recommendations below. How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Grant Writer? Let’s answer your biggest question first: How much will you need to pay to hire a grant writer to help your organization apply for funding opportunities? The cost of professional grant writing services varies from writer to writer and based on your needs. We’ll discuss all the nuances that can impact costs below. Here are the ballpark estimates we use here in the Global Grant Writing Collective:\nAffordable/Fair Pricing Tier Premium Pricing Tier Funding Strategy $900-$2,500 $2,500-$8,000 Letters of Interest/ Straightforward Grants $300-$1,200 $1,500-$3,000 Moderate Difficulty Grants $1,200-$3,5000 $3,500-$6,500 Federal Grants $3,500-$5,500 $7,000-$25,000+ Hourly Rates $50-$75/hour $100-$150/hour For reference, relatively straightforward foundation grants can take around 20-40 hours of work from a grant writer, while heavy-duty federal grants can take upwards of 60 hours (at least). Another helpful point of comparison for your organization may be the typical cost of hiring a full-time grant writer. In-house nonprofit grant writers today make an average base salary of around $63,000/year. Many nonprofits build relationships with freelance grant writers that turn into formal employment down the line once they’ve built a strong funding pipeline together. Check out our video walkthrough for a closer look at these ballpark figures and how we think about grant writing pricing: 🦄 Our Take: Going with the Cheapest Option Often Isn’t Worth It. Note the pricing tiers above: “Affordable/Fair” and “Premium.”\nWe don’t recommend using grant writing services that market themselves as economy options or especially cheap. As with any professional service, you ultimately get what you pay for. Plus, as we’ll see below, high-quality grant writing services bring you so much more value than just the proposals themselves. If you can’t afford to hire a grant writer right now, we strongly believe that investing in grant writing training for yourself or your team will be a much better long-term choice. There are tons of accessible training options, and we’ve got a free course to get you started, too. Minimize risk and build long-term value by building your skills at your own pace! Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings How Are Grant Writers Typically Paid? Ok, so you know roughly what costs to expect from hiring a grant writer for projects of different sizes. How do you actually pay them? What fee structures do they use, and why? Grant writers are typically paid at an hourly rate for their work or with a flat fee for an entire project. You may encounter a few common variations on the flat fee structure:\nYou pay 50% of the fee upfront and 50% upon completion of the project Grant writers send monthly invoices for the percentage of work completed on the agreed project, allowing you to pay as you go. You pay the entire cost upon project completion. Grant writing consultants may prefer one of these models, or you may have the flexibility to choose the right structure that meets both your needs. 🤔 Wait, Can I Pay a Grant Writer on Commission? You might wonder if you can pay a freelance grant writer on commission or from the grant itself. This is a common question, so you’re not alone. The short answer is no, you cannot.\nThis was common practice in the past, but it’s fallen out of favor.\n🚫 The No-No’s of Paying a Grant Writer Building grant writing fees into the proposal, paying a writer a percentage of the funding won, or any other version of a commission-based pay structure is a no-no. Why? First, professional grant writing associations have unanimously deemed this practice unethical. It is not only unfair to the grant writer, but it can actually get your organization in deep trouble with your funders. Whether from a government office or a family foundation, grants are meant to fund future expenses as outlined in your grant budget, not past expenses. Since grant writing takes place months before a grant award, this expense is not allowable. If funders see that you’ve paid a grant writer using awarded funds, you could be required to pay back all awarded funds and possibly penalties and interest. After all, a grant proposal is effectively a contract with the funder that your organization will do what is laid out in it. Straightforward, upfront fee structures that compensate grant writers before funders make award decisions are safer, more ethical, and help your organization build a better reputation. 🦄 Our Take: Flat Fees Are Your Best Option. So, commission-based fees are out of the picture. Between hourly rates and flat fees for grant writing services, which is better? We’d argue that flat fees are your best choice. Hourly rates for grant writing can lead to unpredictable total costs. A grant proposal can easily take longer than first estimated—these projects have many moving pieces, after all. Overages can lead to conflicts and budget issues, and while this doesn’t happen every time, it’s something to be aware of. Flat fees give everyone clearer shared expectations from the start.\nIn the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we teach grant writers to bill monthly by the percentage of work completed on the project. For nonprofits, this means they agree on a fixed fee upfront and then receive invoices as work is completed, paying as they go. We’ve found this structure to strike the right balance of predictable, fair, and easy for both nonprofits and grant writers. Connect with a Certified Grant Writer Today Too busy to write grants on your own? Can’t hire an in-house grant writer? Our community of 500+ grant writing unicorns has got you covered. Get Connected What’s Included in the Cost of a Grant Writer? Grant writers can help your organization develop a full range of grant materials, including:\nLetters of intent Grant proposals for opportunities at all scales and for different types of funders More thorough proposals and plans for complex federal grant applications Funding Strategies, 12-month roadmaps of the best grants to pursue that yield the highest likelihood of success Professional grant writers may offer broad services or specialize in one particular field like federal grant seeking. We also mentioned above that support from a grant writer gives your organization much more than just a written proposal. Within the scope of grant seeking, a grant writer also brings these skills and resources to support your project: Grant and background research Project management Communication with funders, researchers, and/or internal team members Budget development Programmatic design Additional consultation to support other grant-specific needs Remember that hiring a grant writer should also give you this full package of support. Not only will this save your team throughout the entire grant seeking process, but their services can also offer your team valuable lessons to carry forward on your own. 🦄 Our Take: Grant Writing Services are an Investment. What if you pay a grant writer to research and write a proposal for you, but you ultimately don’t win the funding? Was the investment lost? We don’t think so, and we’ve seen firsthand how an investment in expertise pays off over the long term. Grant writers bring expertise that can pay dividends down the line—in won grants, knowledge, relationships with funders, and more. For example, even if you don’t win a grant that a writer helped you apply for, that investment can (and often does) still generate value. Remember that in many sectors, funding cycles are long. You might apply one year and miss a grant, then apply and win the next year by making quick updates to the same proposal. That’s not even mentioning how a stellar grant writer can demonstrate best practices and workflows that level up your organization’s skills. Plus, if you hire a grant writer to develop a Funding Strategy for you, you’ll have a tailor-made funding playbook for the next year, saving you immense amounts of time and stress later. This long-term value is why you shouldn’t necessarily go with the cheapest options available or try to use pay structures that complicate a grant writer’s incentives. For instance, trying to pay a busy grant writer based on a percentage of awarded funds for a small grant likely won’t give either of you the best experience. Again, if you’re unsure whether you can afford professional grant writing services, you can focus instead on building your capacity and skills. Build relationships with local funders. Get some training under your belt. Grant writing courses are often a wise investment for small shops, but this tip applies across the board—anyone can benefit from becoming a savvier grant seeker. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings How Do You Know You Found a Good Grant Writer? So, hiring a grant writer is an investment—but it might still feel like a gamble.\nYou know you can’t sit down in a Las Vegas casino and ask the poker dealer if she will let you pay up from your (imagined) future winnings. You have to put up some money to get a seat at the table and the chance to win a whole lot more. In other words, your buy-in gets you the opportunity to play the game and offers the possibility of winning more money. Hiring a grant writer secures a professional with the skills and experience to develop a high-quality proposal that increases your odds of winning (and takes the heavy lifting off your plate). Still, just like your poker buy-in, hiring a grant writer doesn’t guarantee a win. A lot of factors are out of your and your grant writer’s control. However, you can give yourself the best odds by choosing the right partner in the first place. These qualities are all positives to look out for:\nProfessional training and/or certification A positive win rate and track record (with caveats—see below) Positive reviews from past clients Ethical fee structures that create shared expectations Any specializations you need, like in a particular sector or for federal grants Word of mouth or personal recommendations from peers who’ve hired them All the other qualities that bring additional value to the grant writing process (strong communication, project management skills, etc.) Of course, not every grant writer will display all of these qualities, and that’s fine. Those just starting their careers may not have many reviews but can still wow with their skills and results. To learn more about the full process of hiring a grant writer and a closer look at these qualities, check out our complete guide: How To Hire a Grant Writer. 🦄 Our Take: Understand the Nuances of Grant Writing Win Rates. Time for the caveats.\nFor better or worse, a grant writer’s win rate or track record is often the first thing prospective clients ask about. Makes sense—even knowing that a proposal doesn’t guarantee a win, you want to have reasonable confidence that you’ll stand a strong chance. However, understand that win rates are nuanced. Distilling a grant writer’s track record into a single number can obscure, distort, or oversimplify things. That number may give you an inaccurate picture of the grant writer’s abilities and worth. For example, remember that many of the reasons behind award decisions are out of your and your grant writer’s control. For example: A grant writer may research and develop a knockout proposal for a nonprofit. If they lose the grant, it could be because the proposal fell flat. But it could just as easily be because the funder had different priorities, the competition was extremely fierce, or other applicants already had relationships with the funder. This would be a loss in the writer’s track record even if the organization had a great experience or went on to repurpose the proposal and win later. On the other hand, a grant writer may encourage their clients to apply for the same small or easy grants year after year. These wins could contribute to an impressive track record, but if you’re going after bigger fish, you could be misled into thinking this writer will definitely help you transform your nonprofit with game-changing funding. ⭐ When evaluating potential grant writers, get more context than just their win rates. Learn the context and specific stories that go into it. Talk to their past clients, see examples of their work, and learn more about their specializations and relationships with funders. We Can Connect You with Hundreds of Certified Grant Writers We’re all about helping folks make a positive impact in their community. We can connect you with a talented and certified grant writer from our pool of expert-trained professionals. Review the process and look for a grant writer who fits your goals. Why does the Global Grant Writing Collective stand out? Our grant writing process starts with plenty of research and developing a savvy Funding Strategy for clients. Our certified grant writers can offer you a roadmap of the top grants that your organization has the best chances of winning if pursued over the next 12-18 months. With a custom Funding Strategy, you’ll automatically increase your return on investment from hiring one of our community members. From there, our grant writing unicorns provide each client with personalized, professional, and superior service from start to funded. As part of a professional community, they also have access to a wide network of resources and other grant writing pros to collaborate with. Learn more about our process here. Submit your request for a grant writer today and take one step closer to winning funding. If you have any questions, please email us at info@senworks.org. Connect with a Certified Grant Writer Today Too busy to write grants on your own? Can’t hire an in-house grant writer? Our community of 500+ grant writing unicorns has got you covered. Get Connected Want to learn more about grant writing best practices? Check out our blog or these recommended resources: How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips Grant Writing Tips for Nonprofits: 10 Ways to Start Strong Best AI Grant Writing Tools: 15+ Top Resources \u0026amp; Our Take 7 Superpowers of a Potential Grant Writer: How to Know Grant Writing Is for You ","date":"2025-01-13","description":"How much does a grant writer cost? Can you pay them on commission? How do you hire the right one?\nWe answer these questions and more in our complete guide.\n","formatted_date":"January 13, 2025","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2025.01.14_how-much-does-it-cost-to-hire-a-grant-writer-what-to-expect_hu_a960c1438e7eac87.webp","permalink":"/blog/cost-to-hire-a-grant-writer/","slug":"cost-to-hire-a-grant-writer","summary":null,"title":"How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Grant Writer? What to Expect"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly integral to grant writing, concerns about data privacy are at the forefront for many organizations. Balancing the efficiency of AI tools with safeguarding sensitive information is crucial. This article explores how organizations can navigate privacy considerations effectively while leveraging AI tools in grant writing. 🔒 Worried about your data's safety while using AI tools? Don't be! Use our simple, clear framework to unlock the power of AI without loosening the safeguards on your data.\nGet the Guide 1. Understanding Privacy Nuances Data privacy with AI tools isn't a one-size-fits-all issue. Much of the information included in grant applications—such as organizational history, services, and public-facing descriptions—is already available in the public domain, such as on websites or marketing materials. These types of data generally pose no privacy concerns when processed through AI tools. However, other information, such as financials, client demographics, or proprietary details, may require stricter safeguards. A nuanced approach to privacy allows organizations to maximize AI benefits without compromising sensitive information. In case you'd like to dive deeper into all things AI and grant writing, get our AI Toolkit here. We expounded everything you need to know about grant writing and AI. 2. Creating a Data Privacy Policy by Information Categories Since a tailored data privacy policy is essential, build your own data privacy policy by category of information. You can do that by breaking down the application into major sections and assessing the sensitivity of each category. Essentially, if you think of every major chunk of a grant application, these are what you have: Type Description Privacy Partners Partners, Suppliers, Vendors, etc. CHECK WITH CLIENT - no adverse effect. Preference if competitive advantage Team Founders, key team members, and resumes NO ISSUE - publicly available on Linkedin Success Metrics Track record to date i.e. sales, customers SENSITIVE - do not share - Solution: Make up #s to LLM doesn't get real. Fix or write by hand. Financials Financial performance (P\\\u0026amp;L, Balance Sheet) SENSITIVE - do not share - Solution: AI to generate budgets from scratch. Use fake #s for inputs. Fix or write by hand. Historic Funding Investors, private or government funding SENSITIVE - do not share - Solution: Use fake #s for inputs. Fix or write by hand. Want to Know What AI Can and Can't Do for You? How to train your AI to write better drafts\nGet The Guide 3. Leveraging Privacy Features in AI Tools AI tools have evolved to address privacy concerns. For example, tools like ChatGPT now allow users to toggle off data-sharing features, ensuring that their input is not used for training purposes. Many tools provide summaries and direct links to their privacy policies, which can help you stay updated on the specific ways your data is handled. Still, there's no better protection for your data than you. The best way to safely use AI tools is to educate yourself on responsible AI use, which is why we created the AI Besties Grant Writing Course. Enroll in the course to learn which tools to trust and what inputs are safe to feed the AI tool. 📚 Data privacy is important, and there's still a lot more to learn about AI. Our free guide to responsible AI use covers how to develop your own data privacy and security guidelines and keep sensitive information safe.\nGrab Your Guide Final Thoughts Privacy is a manageable concern in grant writing with AI tools when approached strategically. By categorizing data sensitivity, using appropriate privacy settings, and staying informed, organizations can leverage AI while maintaining trust and compliance. AI is not only a tool for efficiency but also an opportunity to reevaluate how data is managed, ensuring a balance between innovation and privacy. Embrace the tools, but do so thoughtfully and responsibly. As you'd expect, this is just a tip of the iceberg. We have lengthy conversations about privacy with AI tools in the Global Grant Writers Collective®. Hence, we built this toolkit on AI in grant writing to help you catch up. Join the collective today to participate in the fun! 🔥 Hot Take: The skills matter more than the tool. The key to using AI for stronger grant proposals is knowing how to use AI. That's why we created the AI Besties Grant Writing Course.\nLearn More ","date":"2024-12-10","description":"Learn what privacy with AI tools mean in grant writing. Explore privacy policies, and best\npractices to protect sensitive information in grant writing.\n","formatted_date":"December 10, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.12.10_privacy-in-grant-writing-with-ai-tools_hu_1a52cc8917124fcb.webp","permalink":"/blog/privacy-with-ai-tools/","slug":"privacy-with-ai-tools","summary":null,"title":"Privacy in Grant Writing with AI Tools"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" If you’ve ever used GPT-4, you’d probably agree that it performs many tasks with some superhuman proficiency! We’re talking about writing software like an MIT undergrad, speaking multiple languages fluently, and even generating stunning art beyond your imagination. Yet, like every tech tool, its brilliance comes with odd imperfections and limitations. For example, while GPT-4 excels in complex coding, it falters with basic task planning or navigating the nuances of writing a cohesive grant application. The reason for these inconsistencies lies in focus—or rather, the lack of it. AI doesn’t “think” the way humans do. As powerful as AI is, it needs structured guidance to break down complex tasks into manageable steps. And of course, that guidance comes from a human - you, the grant writer! To get a high-quality result, you can’t simply feed AI a single prompt and expect perfection. Instead, you must guide the AI step-by-step, building each response off of the previous one. This process is called “Chain Prompting” or “Chain of Thought” prompting. Think of it as a chain where every link strengthens the next, resulting in a cohesive and precise final output. For complex tasks like drafting a 50-page grant application, chain prompting with AI might require 100 or more sequential prompts, each forming a critical piece of the whole. Interestingly, a study also reveals chain prompting to be an essential technique for getting the most out of AI, especially for tasks requiring precision, depth, and multi-layered responses. While this article provides a good overview, there's more to chain prompting with AI! We created this resource for you to explore even further on this complex topic. 👉 Want to dive deeper into using AI the right way? Check out our free training resource on using AI to write better grant proposals, faster.\nGet The Guide When to Chain Prompts with AI in Grant Writing Having answered the question “What is chain prompting with AI?,” the next thing you’d want to know is when to apply this innovative technique to get outstanding results in your grant writing. From our research, we found that chain prompting with AI is best suited for tasks or questions that involve multiple steps or components. A great example is responding to grant questions with complex requirements, such as: “Explain the marketing plan to make the project a success.”\nLooks like a straightforward request, right? But answering it thoroughly involves several components such as:\nidentifying the ideal customer profile, conducting a market analysis, analyzing competitors, outlining channels, and defining strategies. Completing this request would take a grant writer several steps—and the same is true for AI. Each part of the response needs its own dedicated prompt, carefully linked to the others to ensure consistency and quality. On the other hand, straightforward questions don’t usually require chain prompting. For example:\n“Write a description of your nonprofit, including when it was founded, its location, its products, its customers, and industry trends impacting your business.” This type of task asks for straightforward, fact-based information, which most AI models can handle with a single well-crafted prompt. A good rule of thumb: If a task would take multiple people or several days to complete, it likely requires chain prompting with AI. Complex, layered tasks demand step-by-step guidance to ensure the AI produces a result that’s clear, coherent, and complete. How to Build Prompt Chains With AI in Grant Writing Building a successful prompt chain starts with breaking the answer into components. Think of these components as the sections or headings of a detailed answer. They’re like the building blocks of your response, and each one helps guide the AI toward creating a complete and coherent draft. Let’s take an example: A grant might ask, “Explain the marketing plan to make the project a success.” At first glance, this feels like a single task. But if you think about it, a solid marketing plan has several components: Ideal Customer Profile Market Analysis Competitive Analysis Industry Analysis Marketing Channels Marketing Tactics Sales Strategy Each of these sections is a separate component, and every one depends on specific questions being answered. For instance, to define your Ideal Customer Profile, the AI (or a human) needs to know: Who is your target audience? What are their key demographics, behaviors, and pain points? Similarly, your Market Analysis might require data on industry trends, potential growth opportunities, or economic conditions. And your Marketing Tactics can’t take shape until you know your customers’ preferences and the channels they use. Looking technical? We get it. That’s why we built a training showing you how to build your own custom GPT in less than 20 minutes. You can get chain prompting with AI resource and the other must-have tools as a modern grant writer in this toolkit here. Ready to Become an AI-Savvy Grant Writer? We'll transform how you work in 30 days, so you can feel confident you're using AI the right way. No more casual dabbling. It is time to go pro without the headache.\nWatch Free Training Example Prompt Chain With AI: Writing a Killer Marketing Plan Let’s walk through a real-life example of using chain prompting with AI to create a marketing plan. Think of it as solving a puzzle—one logical step at a time. Step 1: Understand the Customer Before you can market to anyone, you need to know who you’re marketing to. This is where we build an Ideal Client Profile (ICP). Think of it as a cheat sheet for understanding your audience—what they want, how they behave, and how to reach them. Prompt: I want to work on building an Ideal Client Profile for {Business Name}\u0026#39;s potential customers.\nBuild me an Ideal Client Profile I can show to a marketer that will tell them everything they need to know about getting leads for this business. The profile should include: Demographics Decision Makers Buying Behavior Pain Points Cultural and Community Insights Budget and Buying Timelines Technology and Equipment How to Reach Them This prompt sets the foundation for understanding the audience, and it’s the first “link” in the chain.\nStep 2: Understand the Market Now that you know who you’re targeting, the next question is: How big is this market? You need to determine how many ideal customers exist, how much value the market holds, and where growth opportunities lie. Prompt: I want to conduct market research for my client, {Client Name}.\nAttached is a transcript detailing the product and industry.\nHere is their Ideal Client Profile: {Ideal Client Profile}.\nAnalyze the key growth drivers of the industry and answer the following questions:\nHow many ideal customers exist in the target geographies? What is the total value in dollars for the products/services being offered in these markets? What are the projected growth rates for the next five years? What industry trends or regulatory issues could impact this market? By linking the Ideal Client Profile to the market analysis, you’re building a detailed view of the opportunity landscape. Thinking of mastering this concept? Dive into our resource to become a pro at chain prompting with AI today. Step 3: Know the Competition Once you understand the market, it’s time to look at who else is playing in the field. A Competitive Analysis helps pinpoint what competitors are doing well, where they’re vulnerable, and how you can stand out. Prompt: Perform a competitive analysis for {Client Name} to include in a business plan. Examine competitors that sell similar products or services in the same geography. Answer these questions:\nWho are the main competitors, and what differentiates their products or services? Who are the local competitors, and what makes them unique? Provide any financial information available about competitors, including product pricing. Only cite verified sources. Perform a SWOT analysis on each competitor. Analyze public reviews for their products or services. Summarize customer sentiment. Cite relevant news articles, press releases, or social media posts about their products or services. This step ensures that you’re not just responding to the market—you’re strategically positioning yourself within it. Step 4: Choose the Best Marketing Channels Now it’s time to decide how to reach your audience. Based on the Ideal Client Profile, market research, and competitive analysis, you’ll identify the top channels to focus your marketing efforts. Prompt: Using the ## Context below about {Client Name}, identify the top five marketing channels where the business will have the highest chance of engaging its ideal customers. Act like the world’s best marketer with 40 years of experience selling identical products. For each channel, provide: A short description The rationale for choosing it Detailed marketing tactics that will work best for this channel\nContext\nIdeal Client Profile: {Ideal Client Profile}\nMarket Analysis: {Market Analysis} Competitive Analysis: {Competitive Analysis} This prompt ties all the previous steps together, creating a well-informed and actionable marketing strategy.\nFinal Thoughts on Chain Prompting With AI Chain prompting is more than just a technique—it’s a strategy for unlocking the full potential of AI. By breaking complex tasks into logical, manageable steps, you ensure that every response builds on the last, leading to higher-quality outputs that rival expert-level work. Take the marketing plan example: Instead of overwhelming the AI with one massive prompt, you guided it through an AI-based chain of thoughts, from understanding the audience to selecting the best marketing channels. This structured approach not only produces better results but also mirrors how humans tackle intricate problems—with logic, focus, and creativity. So, the next time you face a big, multi-layered challenge, remember that great outcomes come from a great process. Whether drafting a grant, conducting research, or crafting a strategy, chain prompting gives you the tools to turn AI into your most reliable collaborator. So, what's your next big project? Try our AI Toolkit to dive deeper into how to build prompt chains with AI today — you might be surprised by how much smarter AI can be with the right guidance. 🔥Hot Take: The skills matter more than the tool. The key to using AI for stronger grant proposals is knowing how to use AI. That's why we created the AI Besties Grant Writing Course.\nLearn More ","date":"2024-12-10","description":"Learn how chain prompting with AI breaks down complex grant writing tasks into logical steps, and\nensures high-quality outputs.\n","formatted_date":"December 10, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.12.10_what-is-chain-prompting-in-ai-grant-writing_hu_dce29ef71ed71644.webp","permalink":"/blog/chain-prompting-with-ai/","slug":"chain-prompting-with-ai","summary":null,"title":"What is Chain Prompting in AI Grant Writing?"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" When it comes to grant writing, strategies that seem successful in the short term can quickly become unsustainable. AI tools can help you create unique grant proposals that wow grantmakers. But with thousands of grant opportunities out there, it’s not feasible to build a custom mold for each one! The solution: Building a general system for creating strong, adaptable drafts by gathering the right context for each grant, rather than crafting rigid, one-time molds. In this article, we’ll explore why building molds for every grant is impractical and how understanding the key components of each grant type can help you leverage AI to create effective, adaptable drafts. And, if you're ready to master the fundamental skills of using AI for grant writing, check out our AI Besties Grant Writing Course! This program goes over the skills you'll need to write grant proposals thoughtfully and efficiently. Curious about what AI really can—and can't—do for your grant writing processes? Read our guide on the 8 biggest AI myths to clear up common misconceptions and gain confidence.\nGet the Guide The Pitfall of Building Unique Molds for Every Grant Imagine dedicating hours to learning every detail of a specific grant; let’s say for the “Canadian Agriculture Export Program,” and then developing a mold that’s perfectly tailored to it. When an applicant comes along, all you need to do is plug their information into the mold, and you’re almost guaranteed a competitive application. This hyper-targeted approach is effective in the short term but doesn’t scale well for two main reasons: 1. Too Many Grants, Not Enough Time: With thousands of grants available, building a mold for each one would require an immense amount of time and resources. You’d need a dedicated mold for every grant program to maintain a high win rate, which is practically impossible to keep up with. 2. Clients Need Multiple Grants: Many organizations require multiple funding sources to meet their project budgets, so relying on a single grant or pre-built mold may not be enough. A funding strategy that includes various grant opportunities ensures more stability and greater chances of full funding. But without a system to manage the diversity of grants efficiently, each new grant becomes a bottleneck. Instead of relying on pre-built molds, a better approach is to focus on understanding the essential components of grant applications and how to tailor them to each new opportunity. We created an intensive course that dives deep into Grant Writing with AI. Check it out here to Boost Your Success! How to Leverage AI in Grant Writing Without Building Molds Building molds taught us an important lesson: we don’t actually need a unique template or custom AI model for every grant. What we need instead is a strategy to quickly gather relevant context. With AI tools like ChatGPT, we can streamline the drafting process without dedicating hours to building specific templates. Here’s a step-by-step approach to help you get started:\nStep 1: Create a Base Framework for Your Drafts Establish a base framework that can be adapted to different grants. This framework should include the core sections that nearly all grants require, such as: Project overview Need statement Objectives Outcomes Budget summary With these core elements, you're on your way to building a CustomGPT model for each application. 🛠️ Want help building that base framework faster? Try Winnie the Writer, our CustomGPT trained specifically to help grant writers create structured, funder-ready content in less time.\nUse Our CustomGPT Step 2: Use AI to Gather Grant-Specific Context For each new grant opportunity, use AI to summarize the grant guidelines and eligibility criteria. AI tools can quickly analyze long documents and highlight the essential details you’ll need to address in your application. By identifying the core components of each grant, you’re essentially creating a context for AI to work within without building a fixed mold. Step 3: Adapt the Framework Based on Fundee and Funder Context With your base framework and grant-specific context in hand, ask your grant writing AI tool to draft sections based on the project’s objectives and the funder’s requirements. You can use the fundee’s mission, vision, and project details as input, along with the funder’s focus areas and scoring criteria. This allows the AI to write a draft tailored to each grant’s unique requirements while maintaining the flexibility of a generalized framework. Step 4: Refine and Customize as Needed Finally, review the AI-generated draft and make any necessary adjustments to ensure it aligns with the grant’s language, tone, and specific requirements. AI can get you close to the final draft, but a quick manual review will help you catch details that require a more nuanced touch. This allows you to meet the unique needs of each application without reinventing the wheel. Even though these steps are only a tip of the “AI in grant writing” iceberg, you’ll see a significant difference in your grant writing game if you apply them. However, you can dive deeper here if you’re thinking about how to build a custom GPT in 2025. We dissected everything you need to know about grant writing and AI. Don’t miss out on it! Benefits of This Adaptable Approach By focusing on building context rather than creating rigid molds, you can respond to new grant opportunities much faster and scale your grant writing efforts without a massive investment in time or resources. This approach offers several advantages: 1. Efficiency: Building context is faster than building molds, allowing you to write high-quality applications without an exhaustive upfront effort. 2. Flexibility: Since you’re not tied to a specific mold, you can adapt to different grant types and funder requirements more easily. 3. Scalability: This approach supports a broader pipeline of grant applications, which is particularly beneficial when working with clients who need diverse funding sources. Conclusion: A Smarter, Scalable Way to Write Grants In the world of grant writing, it’s tempting to create a specific mold for every grant. But with thousands of grants available, this approach can quickly become overwhelming. Instead, by focusing on building context for each grant application using AI, you can create high-quality drafts faster and more sustainably. So next time you’re considering creating a template for a new grant, remember: it’s not about building molds for every single program—it’s about knowing how to gather the context that really matters. With this adaptable approach, you’ll be able to scale your grant writing efforts, meet diverse funding needs, and achieve better outcomes for your clients. Want to bring your grant writing to the cutting edge? Our AI toolkit is here to make it happen! Lately, AI has been a game-changer in our community—think live webinars, hands-on resources, and even a custom-built GPT designed exclusively for grant writers. We\u0026#39;re dedicated to helping you stay ahead in a fast-evolving field. Join the collective today and get in on the action! Ready to Write Winning Grants Using AI? AI is no longer for the early adopters—It's fundamentally changing how professionals work. Enroll in our course to go from casually dabbling in AI to being professionally certified in 30 days.\nLearn More Free Guide 8 Myths Keeping You From Using AI Fully Download your ultimate myth busting guide\n\u0026times; How familiar with AI are you? I'm brand new to using AI I dabble using AI I'm experienced in using AI Which situation describes you best? Little to no experience in grant writing Experienced Grant Writing Consultant In-House Grant Writer Get the 8 Myths Guide Free CustomGPT Download Access to Winnie the Grant Writer Winnie is 1 of the 4 AI Besties trained to help you with grant writing\n\u0026times; ","date":"2024-11-23","description":"Discover a smarter, scalable AI-driven approach to grant writing that boosts efficiency and win\nrates. Stop wasting time building custom molds for each grant!\n","formatted_date":"November 23, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.23_a-smarter-way-to-use-ai-in-grant-writing-dont-build-molds-for-every-grant_hu_97552ffb0bfefa3.webp","permalink":"/blog/smart-way-to-use-ai-grant-writing/","slug":"smart-way-to-use-ai-grant-writing","summary":null,"title":"A Smarter Way to Use AI in Grant Writing: Don’t Build Molds for Every Grant"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" In a world where funding opportunities are increasingly competitive, grant writers must be sharp, strategic, and efficient. The struggle with the dreaded blank page is all too familiar, but the rise of AI may soon turn this struggle into a concern of the past. AI significantly accelerates your drafting process, freeing up valuable time for you to think critically and edit intelligently. We cover how to accomplish this in our AI Besties Grant Writing Course, a step-by-step program that teaches grant writers how to use AI tools ethically and effectively. But here, we're going to talk about the problem and, most importantly, how AI addresses it! ✨ Myth: AI kills creativity. Truth: AI sparks creativity when used wisely! Curious what's fact vs. fiction when it comes to streamlining the grant writing process with AI? Explore the 8 biggest AI myths and get clarity on what really matters.\nGet the Guide The Blank Page Problem AI is not thinking, hence its draft is not final. Its primary advantage lies in its ability to help you overcome the blank page dilemma. For grant writers, the first draft is typically the hardest part of the process. Beda, a company that has made waves in the grant writing arena, exemplifies this journey. Before they started using AI, Beda’s grant drafting process took up a staggering 70% of their time, often requiring 40 to 60 hours per application. This time-consuming struggle is something every grant writer can relate to. Fast forward: Beda's team started cranking out 40 complex grants a month with only two writers—taking 100-hour applications and whittling them down to four hours! They even hit $750K in their first year, with a 70% profit margin per grant! Ready to see grant writing results like Beda? Learn how to feel confident you're using AI the right way. No more casual dabbling. It is time to go pro without the headache.\nWatch Free Training Evolution of the AI Grant Writing Process Beda\u0026#39;s journey to efficiency didn’t happen overnight. In the beginning, their first five grants took a month and a half to two months to complete, using traditional “manpower” methods. The team immersed themselves in interviews, research, and extensive writing, dedicating a week and a half to each grant draft. Throughout this process, they kept the end goal in mind: to build AI tools that would streamline their workflow. By mapping their learnings from each grant they tackled, they began to identify effective prompts and instructions. This iterative process allowed them to refine their approach and experiment with various automation techniques, ranging from building their own AI to using existing APIs. With each completed grant, they gained insights that propelled them toward greater efficiency. The Aha! Moment After completing around 20 to 30 grants, Beda experienced a significant breakthrough. By November of 2023, they could conduct kickoff calls and generate drafts within minutes. This transformation was monumental; it meant that the majority of their time was now available for critical thinking and editing rather than mere drafting. With the burden of drafting lifted, Beda\u0026#39;s team could focus on evaluating the narrative\u0026#39;s coherence, ensuring alignment with grant requirements, and identifying any gaps in their applications. This shift in focus was invaluable, enabling them to hone their skills in crafting compelling narratives that resonate with grant reviewers. The True Value of AI in Grant Writing The key takeaway here is that AI enhances the grant writing process by accelerating draft creation, allowing writers to concentrate on what truly matters: crafting a winning application. While AI can generate drafts quickly, the end goal is not just a completed document but a successful proposal that secures funding. Critical thinking and editing are the lifeblood of effective grant writing. The more time grant writers can dedicate to these aspects, the better their applications will be. AI serves as a powerful tool in this context, enabling writers to leverage their expertise and creativity effectively. You can dive deeper into our AI Toolkit if you’re thinking about how to build a custom GPT in 2025. We dissected everything you need to know about grant writing and AI. Final Thoughts As the landscape of grant writing continues to evolve, embracing AI as a supportive partner rather than a replacement is essential. While it may not be capable of thinking or producing final drafts independently, AI can significantly streamline the initial stages of the writing process. By overcoming the blank page problem and reducing the time spent on drafting, writers can focus on critical thinking and editing—the true keys to crafting winning grant applications. However, as awesome a partner as AI may be, it still has its challenges. One of such is that AI hallucinates, and the answers it brings up can be lousy. However, it’s nothing to worry about as we have the innovative solution to that - building context! AI needs context to write better. In the end, it’s not about the speed at which you write but the quality of the thought that goes into your application. With AI as your ally, you can turn your grant writing process from daunting to dynamic, paving the way for success in securing the funding you seek. The age of AI is here! Grant writers everywhere are upskilling and shifting their business to new levels. Get our AI Toolkit on how you can build your own custom GPT today. At Learn Grant Writing, we're doing everything possible to keep our grant writers on the cutting edge of the grant writing industry. Join the collective today to participate! Ready to Write Winning Grants Using AI? AI is no longer for the early adopters—It's fundamentally changing how professionals work. Enroll in our course to go from casually dabbling in AI to being professionally certified in 30 days.\nLearn More Free Guide 8 Myths Keeping You From Using AI Fully Download your ultimate myth busting guide\n\u0026times; How familiar with AI are you? I'm brand new to using AI I dabble using AI I'm experienced in using AI Which situation describes you best? Little to no experience in grant writing Experienced Grant Writing Consultant In-House Grant Writer Get the 8 Myths Guide ","date":"2024-11-23","description":"AI conquers the blank page! Learn how AI jumpstarts strong drafts, freeing grant writers to focus\non critical thinking, precision, and creating winning proposals.\n","formatted_date":"November 23, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.23_how-does-ai-enhance-precision-in-grant-writing_hu_2acc565daa96f7c7.webp","permalink":"/blog/how-ai-enhances-precision-in-grant-writing/","slug":"how-ai-enhances-precision-in-grant-writing","summary":null,"title":"How Does AI Enhance Precision in Grant Writing?"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" AI is transforming the grant writing process, helping writers get past the blank page, streamline their work, and draft applications faster than ever before. However, if you’ve ever tried using AI for grant writing, you’d know that getting a quality draft isn’t automatic. It can be downright frustrating to produce a great first draft with ChatGPT. Quality work from your AI all hinges on one crucial factor: context! When using AI to write grants, understanding and structuring the right context is what makes the difference between a high-quality draft and one that misses the mark. One powerful way to do this is by using CustomGPTs, which allow you to upload detailed information and train the AI to “understand” your specific organization’s mission, programs, and impact. Let's dive into what context means for grant writing, why it's so critical to successful AI-generated drafts, and how you can leverage it. Want a grant-savvy AI assistant to walk you through this process? Meet Winnie the Writer, our CustomGPT designed for grant writers like you. We've tested Winnie on over 100 grant applications, and the results are clear: She makes grant writing a breeze!\nUse Our CustomGPT Breaking it Down: Four Simple Steps You Need to Build Context With AI Context is everything in AI-driven grant writing! Without the proper background, guidance, and structure, an AI-generated draft can feel like a shot in the dark, lacking focus and relevance. But with the right context, you can guide the AI to produce a draft that’s accurate, meaningful, and tailored to the needs of both the fundee and the funder. When we talk about context in grant writing, we’re basically talking about two types: fundee context and funder context. Think of context in AI-driven grant writing like packing for a trip. Imagine preparing for two very different destinations—a tropical beach and a snowy mountain. If you don’t know where you’re going (that is, your context), you’re just tossing random items into your suitcase, with no idea if they’ll suit the destination. The fundee context is like knowing who you are as the traveler. It’s all about the essentials your nonprofit brings to the table: its mission, program details, and specific goals. Funder context, on the other hand, is like knowing your destination. This is where you understand the grantor’s focus and values—whether they prioritize healthcare, education, or environmental impact. Just as you wouldn’t show up on a beach with a snow coat, you wouldn’t want an AI draft that’s off the mark. With both fundee and funder contexts packed and ready, you guide the AI to deliver a draft that’s perfectly suited to both sides. However, here’s a step-by-step guide to building context using AI to help you get started with precision and efficiency. If you’d like a broad overview on maximizing AI in grant writing get your AI toolkit here. Step 1: Build Your Fundee Context First, the AI needs to understand the organization or nonprofit seeking funding—this is what we call the “fundee context.” This includes essential information about the organization’s mission, objectives, target population, and project or program goals. Think of this as setting the foundation. By spending just 20% of your time on this step, you can get 80% of the way to a good draft. Here’s how to approach this stage: Prepare Your Organization’s Background: Start by inputting essential information about your organization (your history, impact, and the likes) into ChatGPT or a custom AI model. This includes your mission, vision, values, and any recent accomplishments. AI models like ChatGPT have a “Custom Instructions” option where you can describe these details. Upload Specific Project Information: If you’ve conducted a kickoff call with the organization’s team, record and transcribe the call. This transcript can be uploaded to your AI tool to give it insights into the project’s goals, intended impact, timeline, and other relevant details. Request Drafts Based on Specific Prompts: Now, prompt your AI to create different components of your grant application, like a project description or goals statement. The AI will generate responses tailored to the organization’s unique context, saving you time on initial drafts. Step 2: Build Your Funder Context The second layer of context is what we call the “funder context,” and it’s where things get more challenging. The funder is the entity awarding the grant, and their priorities, mission, and values must be reflected in your application. Unlike fundee context, which requires a smaller initial effort, funder context demands a deep understanding of the grant’s eligibility criteria, scoring metrics, and specific priorities. It’s the 80% of effort that adds the final 20% polish to a grant draft, making it truly competitive. Here’s a practical approach: Gather Relevant Grant Information: For each grant opportunity, start by collecting details such as eligibility requirements, focus areas, and any specific language the funder uses. Federal grants often have more standardized language and criteria, but for foundation grants, you may have to gather information from various sources. Use AI to Analyze and Summarize Grant Details: If you have a lengthy document or application guidelines, input this into your custom AI. Trained models can extract key pieces of information like eligibility requirements, objectives, and selection criteria, condensing 100 pages of information into a handful of essential points. Create a Grant Profile: Once you’ve summarized the grant information, compile it into a single document that your AI can reference. This grant profile will serve as a go-to source of funder context when drafting proposals. Step 3: Merge Fundee and Funder Contexts for Draft Creation Now that you have both the fundee and funder contexts, it’s time to use these combined insights to generate high-quality drafts. This step is all about synthesizing both sets of information to create a tailored, impactful proposal. Upload Both Contexts to Your AI Tool: Combine the fundee’s background and project information with the grant profile you created in Step 2. This provides the AI with a complete picture of the application’s needs. Request Specific Draft Sections: Ask the AI to generate specific sections of the grant, such as the project overview, objectives, or impact statement. Since it has both the fundee’s context and the funder’s requirements, it will be able to craft a response that aligns closely with what the grant is looking for. Refine and Customize: Even with well-prepared context, the first draft from the AI might need tweaking. Use this opportunity to refine language, add any missing details, and ensure the narrative aligns with both the funder’s goals and the fundee’s mission. Let’s say you’re applying for the “Business Scale-Up Grant” for Federic Farms, an innovative farm in Canada. After loading the fundee and funder contexts into a custom AI, you can prompt it to “write a project description for Federic Farms to apply for the Business Scale-Up Grant.” The AI will leverage all the context it has on the farm’s goals and the grant requirements, producing a focused and relevant draft that you can then refine. Step 4: Customize and Reiterate with Advanced AI Techniques For more complex grant applications, you may need additional steps or iterations. Here are some advanced tactics to enhance the quality of your AI-generated drafts: Build Custom AI Models: As you gain experience, consider building custom AI models for different grant types or funders. These models can be trained to use specific terminology, structures, and examples that align with each funder’s unique requirements. Use a Sequence of Prompts: Instead of relying on one prompt for the entire draft, break down your prompts into logical steps. For instance, start with an organizational background, then move to the project overview, followed by alignment with the funder’s objectives. This sequential approach allows the AI to focus on each component individually. Integrate Multiple AI Tools: Sometimes, combining multiple tools enhances the outcome. For example, you might use one AI for research and another for drafting, then integrate the outputs for a comprehensive final draft. Experimenting with different tools and techniques will help you refine your process. Whoosh! That was a handful, right? Interestingly, it's not all! You can dive deeper into our AI toolkit if you're thinking about how to build a custom GPT in 2025. We dissected everything you need to know about grant writing and AI. Final Thoughts: The Real Key to AI Success AI is a powerful tool for grant writers, but its effectiveness comes down to how well you use it. From setting the stage with context to safeguarding your data while using AI tools, there are several skills you need to master to make the most of AI. That's why we created our AI Besties Grant Writing Course. It walks you through the foundational skills you need to stay competitive in a rapidly changing field. Ultimately, AI won't replace the grant writer, but it will help free up time for what matters most: shaping the application into a persuasive, compelling story that speaks directly to the funder's priorities. In grant writing, it's not about using AI for shortcuts; it's about enhancing your ability to connect, align, and communicate effectively with those who have the power to fund your mission. Ready to Become an AI-Savvy Grant Writer? We'll transform how you work in 30 days, so you can feel confident you're using AI the right way. No more casual dabbling. It is time to go pro without the headache.\nWatch Free Training Free CustomGPT Download Access to Winnie the Grant Writer Winnie is 1 of the 4 AI Besties trained to help you with grant writing\n\u0026times; ","date":"2024-11-23","description":"Boost your grant success with AI! Follow this step-by-step guide to building strong context for\nfunders and fundees, making your proposals more impactful.\n","formatted_date":"November 23, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.23_how-to-build-context-for-grant-writing-using-ai-a-stepwise-guide_hu_9e366908a9f7baeb.webp","permalink":"/blog/build-context-for-grant-writing-using-ai/","slug":"build-context-for-grant-writing-using-AI","summary":null,"title":"How to Build Context for Grant Writing Using AI: A Stepwise Guide"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Are you wondering if grant writing is in demand, especially if you\u0026#39;re just starting out? Perhaps you’re concerned about there being too many writers and not enough clients. Well, let’s flip that worry on its head. In 2023 alone, the U.S. had a staggering 1.51 million nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations, but only 10,546 employed grant writers. That’s roughly 143 nonprofits competing for every one grant writer!\nCrazy, right? So, who is handling the grant writing needs of these organizations? These numbers alone paint a clear picture: the demand for grant writers is immense, and it spans multiple sectors—healthcare, education, environment, and more. The Reality of Grant Writing for Nonprofits in 2024 At Learn Grant Writing, we’ve observed an ongoing trend in the nonprofit world: overworked staff members taking on grant writing tasks in addition to juggling other major responsibilities. From executive directors to development officers and donor managers, they’re often trying to wear too many hats. Unfortunately, this leads to rushed, less effective grant applications, with teams chasing “right-now” grants instead of focusing on long-term opportunities that align with their mission. If you’ve ever worked as an in-house grant writer, this may sound familiar. Trying to secure funding while handling other duties can be a recipe for missed opportunities. But here’s the kicker: this situation isn’t just a problem for nonprofits—it’s a huge opportunity for grant writing consultants. You can make good money as a grant writer! Check out this video to discover grant writing as a career. Is There Really a Need for Grant Writers? Whether you’re a newbie or a veteran in grant writing, we’ve all had moments of doubt: Is there enough demand for grant writers? or more recently, Could AI replace this job in the future? These questions are valid, especially if you\u0026#39;re managing a solo grant writing business. However, the answer to these concerns is a resounding yes! – the demand for skilled grant writers continues to grow, and it’s not just viable—it’s lucrative. Grant writers earn an average of $75,853 per year. Consultants in the Collective are pulling in $100k+ as grant writers (check out Kari’ story here and Courtney’s story here). You may be asking, “Why is grant writing flourishing?” It’s because governments and private foundations offer grant opportunities, but navigating their complex processes requires a specialized skill set. That’s where grant professionals come in. Grant writers are essential for: Identifying the right funding opportunities that align with an organization’s goals. Crafting compelling proposals that stand out in a competitive market. Navigating the red tape and complexities of grant application processes. Plus, there’s a growing need for niche expertise, making grant writing to be in more demand. From environmental initiatives to healthcare projects, organizations are looking for specialists who understand their unique needs. At Learn Grant Writing, we help our grant writing members identify their “zone of genius” and sharpen their skills in high-demand sectors. If you’re new to grant writing, this is the perfect time to stop stressing about finding your niche and start building a career. Thinking About Freelance Grant Writing? Brilliant! Traditionally, grant writing has been viewed as an in-house role. But recently, there’s been a shift as organizations increasingly seek specialized experts without committing to full-time salaries. This is great news for you as a grant writer—it means the freelance market is expanding rapidly! Freelancing offers incredible benefits:\nFlexibility: Choose your own clients and projects. Freedom: Work from anywhere, on your schedule. Diverse Clientele: Gain experience across different sectors, from small nonprofits to large foundations. Remote Opportunities: Thanks to digital platforms, you can work with organizations across the globe, all from your own home. Despite these benefits, only 10–20% of grant writers in the U.S. are freelancers. That leaves a huge opportunity for you to take advantage of. Remember that ratio from earlier—143 nonprofits for every one grant writer? Imagine how much impact you can make while also earning a great income (check out Allison’s story here). Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz What Does the Global Grant Writers Collective® Entail? At the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we help you build a life you love through the grant writing profession. We’re known for helping those new to the profession break into the industry without prior experience in grant writing or business. We help you become a well-paid grant writer (either as an in-house grant writer or in building your consulting business) using an earn-and-learn model. Whether you’re just starting or looking to transition from an in-house role, we help you gain confidence and competence in the field of grant writing. The nonprofit sector is crying out for talented grant writers. With increasingly complex funding landscapes, organizations need skilled professionals to: Strategize their grant pursuits to focus on long-term, sustainable funding sources. We teach this as an effective and established method called the Funding Strategy. Navigate complicated application processes with ease. Talk about gigantic federal grants - we simplify it like nursery school rhymes! Bring specialized expertise to target niche areas like climate change, healthcare, or social justice. It’d interest you to see how Erin transferred her scientific skills into grant writing, or how Johanna leveraged her experience in international development for USAID and USDA grants. The good news is that this presents an enormous opportunity for anyone looking for a rewarding and impactful career. As the number of nonprofits continues to grow, the demand for grant writers will only increase, making this a field with substantial long-term potential. Grant Writing — A Field Full of Opportunities!!! If it’s not clear, I’ll say it again: there’s an urgent demand of skilled grant writers in the nonprofit sector. Organizations are seeking help to develop strategies, secure vital funding, and bring specialized expertise to the table. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a newcomer, there’s a wealth of opportunities awaiting you in this field. From the sheer number of organizations seeking funding to the lack of dedicated grant writers available, the demand for grant writers is undeniable. The good news? That demand is growing, and it’s creating endless possibilities for professionals like you to build a rewarding, flexible, and profitable career. So, if you’re considering a future in grant writing, you’re on the right path because the opportunities are bigger than ever. Interested in learning how to break into grant writing without prior experience? Check out this 20-minute training to know how. Join the Global Grant Writers Collective® today to discover how you can get started and build a successful career in grant writing, no matter your level of experience. ","date":"2024-11-22","description":"Discover why the demand for grant writers is soaring! Learn how you can tap into this lucrative\nfield to build a successful, flexible career in grant writing.\n","formatted_date":"November 22, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.22_grant-writers-in-low-demand-think-again_hu_abebdd37b4596f2a.webp","permalink":"/blog/demand-for-grant-writers/","slug":"demand-for-grant-writers","summary":null,"title":"Grant Writers in Low Demand? Think Again!"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" As an artist, getting your project off the ground can be both thrilling and overwhelming—especially when it comes to securing funding. However, you don’t have to stagger at the thought of getting funded, not when we’re here to help you out! We’ve compiled 7 actionable tips that can help you navigate the world of grants and land the financial support your artistic vision deserves. While these tips are targeted at artists, anyone can learn a thing or two about how to write a grant proposal from them. Let’s dive in! 1. Craft a Clear and Concise Project Prospectus Before you start hunting for grants, the most important step is to create a one-page overview of your project—your project prospectus. This document is like your elevator pitch on paper. It should outline: What the project is The problem it solves Who the project serves Estimated costs How you’ll execute it Most importantly: Why it matters Why is this prospectus so important? It’s a powerful tool to gauge interest when reaching out to potential funders, sponsors, or partners. It gives them a clear, concise picture of your idea, making it stand out from the crowd. Most people skip this step, but taking the time to put your idea into a tangible document will help you not only present your project but also refine it in your own mind. Pro Tip: Use tools like Canva to make your project prospectus visually appealing and professional. A well-designed document reflects the seriousness and clarity of your project, setting you apart from others. Your artistic talents and design skills give you an edge here when trying to write an art grant proposal! Check out this training to understand grant writing better. 2. Think in Terms of Projects, Not Programs Here’s a key distinction that can make a huge difference in your grant applications: funders are more inclined to support projects than programs. So what’s the difference? Project: A project has a clear beginning, middle, and end. Success is measurable, with specific deliverables and timelines. Program: A program is an ongoing initiative within your organization that doesn’t have a defined endpoint. While it’s possible to get a program funded, focusing on a well-defined project when writing your art grant proposal is often more appealing to grant funders. A project makes it easier for funders to see when and how their money will have an impact. For example, a 12 to 18-month project is manageable, realistic, and gives you enough time to deliver results. Check out this video to discover grant writing as a career. 3. Focus on WHY Your Project Matters Grant writing is about more than just outlining what you’re doing or how you’re doing it—the “why” is your most powerful tool. Why do you want to get a grant as an artist? Why does your project matter, not just to you but in a broader societal context? How is it going to change people’s lives, shift perspectives, or address a significant issue? Funders want to connect with the bigger purpose behind your project. This is your chance to pull at the heartstrings and explain why your work matters beyond your personal passion. You want to inspire potential funders with your vision. Remember, a compelling “why” can often outweigh a complex “how.” Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz 4. Be Intentional with Grant Selection It’s easy to get distracted by every grant opportunity that crosses your path, especially when some look like quick wins. However, chasing too many leads can lead to burnout and inefficiency. Instead, step back and take a strategic approach. Focus on 2 to 5 grants that align closely with your project and goals over the next 12 to 18 months. We call this a Funding Strategy. You don’t get into writing the grant proposal unless you have narrowed down on the specific grants you’d like to pursue. By being intentional, you’ll increase your win rate and avoid the stress of constantly chasing “shiny object” opportunities that may not be the best fit for your work. This focused approach allows you to spend more time creating art and less time juggling grant applications. 5. Keep It Simple: Less is More! One common misconception is that long, academic writing makes you sound smarter. In reality, grant reviewers are reading hundreds, if not thousands of applications, and they don’t have the time to wade through complicated language. When writing a grant proposal for your artistic project, keep your sentences short, clear, and to the point—aim for around 15 words per sentence. Think of your grant proposal as a story that flows smoothly and is easy to read. The easier it is for a reviewer to absorb your ideas, the better your chances of success. Check out this free training on how to improve your writing skills as a grant writer. 6. Focus on One Project at a Time Sometimes, artists try to present multiple projects in one grant application, thinking it increases their chances of funding. However, this approach can backfire. It often confuses funders and makes it harder to understand your project’s core message. Instead, concentrate on getting one project funded at a time. This gives you the space to fully focus on making that project a success. Plus, once you’ve proven you can deliver on your promise, funders will be more inclined to support future projects. 7. Use Clear, Simple Language You don’t need to sound overly technical in your grant proposal. When writing a grant proposal for your art project, funders appreciate clear, simple language that communicates your project’s value effectively. If you have the opportunity, consider becoming a grant reviewer yourself (as long as there’s no conflict of interest with your project). Reviewing other grant proposals for artists will help you see firsthand what works and what doesn’t, and it can significantly improve your own grant-writing skills. Conclusion? Empower Your Art with Grant Writing Grant writing for artists doesn’t have to be intimidating or overwhelming. By following these 7 essential tips, you can turn the process into an exciting opportunity to fund your artistic vision and take your career to new heights. Remember: clarity, focus, and a strong “why” are your best allies. With the right approach, your artistic projects can become a reality, backed by the support of funders who believe in your vision just as much as you do. Good luck, and happy grant writing! Need more guidance on crafting the perfect grant proposal for your art project? Join our community of professional grant writers to speed up your learning and funding process! ","date":"2024-11-19","description":"Find out 7 essential grant writing tips for artists to secure funding for your creative projects.\nLearn how to stand out and get the support you need!\n","formatted_date":"November 19, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.19_grant-writing-for-artists-seven-essential-tips-you-shouldnt-miss_hu_8ef872ab0dcc8128.webp","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-for-artists/","slug":"grant-writing-for-artists","summary":null,"title":"Grant Writing for Artists: Seven Essential Tips You Shouldn’t Miss"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Every grant writer dreams of an efficient writing process and finding new ways to effortlessly strengthen their proposals. After all, if you could produce a winning proposal in half the usual time, how much more funding could you win for your nonprofit? If you’re a freelancer, how much more business could you secure? 🔮 This is the vision for artificial intelligence in the grant writing field—but here’s the truth: the biggest returns from AI come not from buying a pre-packaged tool, but from learning how to use AI intentionally.. Real talk: We get it. You've heard the horror stories about AI hallucinations and generic-sounding proposals. That's exactly why we don't recommend diving into AI tools without proper training. The grant writers winning with AI? They learned the fundamentals first. Of course, you’ll still need to navigate a confusing field of new platforms and buzzy jargon. Let’s cut through the clutter. In this guide, we’ll answer your burning questions: Are there any all-in-one AI grant writing tools? Which AI tools are worth my attention as a grant writer? What should I keep in mind if I use AI for grant writing? Follow along as we highlight the top AI grant writing solutions to add to your toolkit and the (hard-won) lessons the Learn Grant Writing team has picked up while working with AI. Want to Write Grants Using AI?\nGood deal! Because AI is no longer for the early adopters. It is fundamentally changing how professionals work. Learn how to save time so you can focus on the activities that only you can do. We'll take you from total AI newb or casual dabbler to professionally certified in 30 days. Learn More Before We Begin: Our Top Lessons from the AI Grant Writing Trenches Imagine a company getting its first desktop computer decades ago, a humming, hulking beast of a machine. Before we learned how best to use these tools, there was a steep learning curve (and probably a lot of mistakes). It’s kind of like we’re back to square one with a new technology now.\nBefore relying on just any AI tool to help you write a grant, and especially before paying for one, you should understand the reality of what they’re capable of. Today’s AI tools are not perfect. They cannot write you a winning grant proposal from scratch with minimal input. You’ll need to actively collaborate with them to produce a quality proposal. Here are the most important rules of thumb we’ve learned to keep in mind when using AI:\nContext is critical. The quality of the context you feed an AI tool determines the quality of its outputs. We’ve all seen funny stories of generative AI tools hallucinating incorrect (or downright bizarre) answers to prompts. Avoid these mishaps with thorough, crystal-clear context about the grant, nonprofit, and proposed project. We can show you how to build context for better grant writing. Effective prompting gets AI to focus. Even when you provide all the necessary context to an AI tool, how you frame your requests will impact the quality of its answers. Simple questions with clear-cut answers are less of a concern. However, for questions that would require a human to do multiple steps, you’ll need to employ something called “chain prompting,” guiding the AI through a logical process so that its answers build upon one another. (And no, you don’t need to be an engineer to do this!) You’ll need multiple AI tools. You know that grant writing involves much more than simply sitting down and writing a document. Various tasks related to admin, research, data analysis, and design also come into play. ChatGPT can’t do it all—you know what we mean if you’ve asked it to do research and received made-up answers! We’ll review recommended platforms in all of these categories below. AI can’t do novel and new. Since large language models learn from past information, they inherently struggle to produce and explain novel ideas. If your nonprofit proposes a completely innovative way to tackle a problem, you’ll see better results (and less wasted time) by drafting your grant the traditional way. As you use AI tools for grant writing, you should also consider additional logistics like privacy and bias. Develop thorough AI usage policies for your organization, choose your tools thoughtfully, and always check their outputs. Our guide to grant writing with AI covers these considerations and more—check it out. 🤖 Key Takeaway: AI tools are like assistants; they’ll follow your lead, but they need some serious direction to deliver great results. Tossing a complex task at an AI tool and expecting magic? Not gonna happen. ✋ You’ll need to collaborate with the tech, prompt it thoughtfully, and stay mindful of what it can (and can’t) do. Get creative, stay sharp about its limitations, and you’ll start seeing the payoff. Want to use AI to write faster and win more funding? Of course you do! We’ve gathered the 9 most important lessons to master. Top AI Grant Writing Tools to Keep an Eye On A fishing pole doesn’t catch fish on its own; it’s the skilled fisherman who makes it work. The same goes for AI in grant writing. These tools don’t write winning proposals—you do. But AI can become a powerful support system in your workflow when used strategically. The biggest hurdle most grant writers face isn’t in choosing the “perfect” platform; it’s knowing how to use these tools effectively. After all, you don’t need AI tools specific to grant writing to be successful—just the skills to apply AI to your grant writing processes. That said, it takes a combination of capable tools and grant writing know-how to make the most of AI. We've got our eye on two exciting platforms that show real promise. But we also have the tips to help you learn how to use any AI grant writing tool, even if you don't choose from our top picks.\n🔥 Hot Take: The skills matter more than the tool.\nThe key to using AI for stronger grant proposals is knowing how to use AI. That's why we created the AI Besties Grant Writing Course. Enroll Now Instrumentl Already known as a leading grant database and hub of helpful grant writing tools, Instrumentl is actively testing a new AI grant writing tool. We already trust Instrumentl as our top recommended database for grant writers. This platform simplifies every stage of the grant process, from finding relevant grant opportunities to tracking your progress to later managing the funding. Why are we especially excited about Instrumentl’s foray into AI? Because Instrumentl already has access to thorough details about the grant opportunities in its database. Theoretically, this background should dramatically reduce the time spent feeding context into the tool to generate a quality response. It should already understand the funder, the specifics of the grant, and what your nonprofit does. Instrumentl’s intelligent autofill feature could be a serious game-changer in the industry. 🌟 Full disclosure: We truly love Instrumentl and the quality product they provide grant writers. Members of the Global Grant Writers Collective® get an exclusive deal on pricing—if you sign up for Instrumentl, use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month. Perplexity Think of Perplexity as an AI-powered research assistant. This search engine-style tool is an exceptional resource for grant writers conducting background research or shaping their narrative draft. You can ask Perplexity open-ended questions like, \"How has funding for environmental justice programs changed over the last 10 years?\" or \"What are the top health challenges facing rural communities in the U.S.?\" It'll return clear, concise answers with cited sources, so you can dig deeper into the information that drives your grant narrative. What stands out about Perplexity is that it positions the AI as a true collaborator rather than just a machine that spits out generic responses. Perplexity is built to support curiosity and help you think more critically, making it a valuable resource for more thoughtful grant writing. 🌟 Reminder: We're still in the early days of AI tech. Platforms like Instrumentl and Perplexity have a lot of promise and definitely lead the pack among today's market offerings. However, they (and other platforms you encounter) are far from complete—expect them to evolve and improve in the coming years. You may be hesitant to invest in a complete AI grant writing tool right now—that’s fine! Instead, we recommend learning how to incorporate AI into your work in more targeted, low-risk ways using the tools listed below. Want to use AI to write faster and win more funding? Of course you do! We’ve gathered the 9 most important lessons to master. Recommended Supplemental AI Tools for Grant Writing Grant writing isn't just about crafting a killer narrative. It's a whole juggling act of tasks—research, admin, data analysis, and even design. Mastering each of these areas takes time, and no AI tool can (or should) do it all. It'll take a mix of AI tools to get your workflow where you want it, and having the fundamental skills to use them allows you to tailor your approach as needed. The more fluent you are in using AI, the more flexible you can be when selecting new software. 🤖 Good news: We've done the legwork for you. Below are the AI tools that have earned their spot in our grant-writing toolbox—organized by task so you can jump straight to what you need. AI Tools to Help Draft Grant Proposals ChatGPT If you already know or have used an AI tool, it’s this one.\nChatGPT by OpenAI offers today’s industry-leading AI model. We’ve found it to be the overall best-performing text generator for grant writers. ChatGPT can also become an invaluable resource for brainstorming new ideas, visualizing data, and improving your writing once you learn how to prompt it effectively. Quick Info: ChatGPT What is it best for? Reliable text generation for your proposals (just always give it a thorough review!) Where can you learn to use it? Prompting ChatGPT has quickly become its own niche skill. The internet (especially YouTube) is chock full of reputable guidance. How much does it cost? Basic access to ChatGPT’s core functionalities is free. A single Plus subscription with added capabilities and more advanced LLM models costs $20/month. Team and Enterprise tiers are also available. Claude Claude is the second-most powerful and popular generative AI tool on the market. Our team found that Claude generally does a better job of technical writing than ChatGPT. If your grants tend to be more technical in nature, try comparing the tools for yourself. Like ChatGPT, Claude can also help with brainstorming, basic data visualization, and more. Quick Info: Claude What is it best for? Text generation about more technical topics Where can you learn to use it? Like ChatGPT, your best bet is to explore Google and YouTube for reputable tips and training—there are tons of good options. How much does it cost? Claude offers a free basic plan and a Pro plan at $20/month per user. Team and Enterprise tiers are also available. AI Tools for Grant Writing Admin Tasks Zoom Now a fixture of many of our lives for video calls, Zoom has rolled out a series of extremely helpful AI features in recent years. Their “AI Companion” can prove especially helpful for grant writers since so much of our work involves coordinating with other team members or clients, creating agendas, taking notes, and generating summaries. AI features are available (or in development) for basic video conferencing users, with more complete suites of AI assistant tools available for users of the larger Zoom Workplace platform. Quick Info: Zoom What is it best for? Comprehensive AI-driven admin support and automation tools for your meetings Where can you learn to use it? Explore Zoom’s official Getting Started with Zoom AI guide How much does it cost? Basic Zoom workplace plans are free but come with limited AI functionalities. Pro plans with full functionality cost $13.32/month per user. Fathom Though less known than some of the big players in the AI space, Fathom is among the highest-rated AI notetaking tools available today. Use Fathom to effortlessly record, transcribe, and summarize your meetings as you kick off new grant projects and meet with team members to gather information. We love Fathom because, while focused on a few simple use cases, it accomplishes them very well. The tool also integrates with Zoom, Google, and Microsoft conferencing software, making it an ideal choice if you’re a freelancer who interacts with many different organizations. Quick Info: Fathom What is it best for? Notetaking and transcription on any video conferencing platform Where can you learn to use it? Explore Fathom’s Getting Started guide How much does it cost? Fathom’s basic app is completely free. Team and Premium versions, which start at $19/month per user, offer additional AI functionalities that may be helpful for larger organizations. FireFlies FireFlies is another notetaking AI tool that grant writers may find helpful for improving their meetings and creating more actionable notes and summaries. Though less well-known, this tool offers a few broader functionalities than Fathom. For example, you can use FireFlies to quickly search your meeting recordings for key action items, questions, and keywords. FireFlies’ integrations with Slack, Asana, and other collaboration platforms may be particularly valuable for you. Imagine an AI assistant that automatically creates new tasks and reminders in your platform of choice during a meeting—pretty cool, huh? Quick Info: FireFlies What is it best for? Notetaking and transcription on any video conferencing platform, with added customization and integration options Where can you learn to use it? Explore the How to Use FireFlies guide How much does it cost? FireFlies offers tiered plans of increasing functionality, starting with a free basic plan, a Pro plan for small teams at $10/month per user, and followed by larger Business and Enterprise plans. AI Tools for Grant Research Perplexity Perplexity is an AI-driven search engine that pulls information from the internet in real time to generate concise answers. It emphasizes the reputability of its sources, prioritizing trusted news sources, academic papers, and well-established blogs. For grant writers, we found that Perplexity offers the most value for research, helping you quickly pull relevant information and insights. Use it to help shape your grant narrative and fill in gaps in the logical argument you present to funders. Quick Info: Perplexity What is it best for? Generating quick insights and reliable data to support contextual research for grants Where can you learn to use it? Explore the Perplexity Prompt Guide How much does it cost? Perplexity’s free offering provides unlimited basic searches with caps and daily limits on more advanced Pro Searches. The Professional plan costs $20/month and allows for more Pro Searches and file uploads. Jenni.ai Jenni.ai bills itself as a purpose-built “intelligent research assistant” that helps users analyze, draft, and organize their research projects. Designed specifically to support research, Jenni.ai offers specialized features that grant writers may find especially helpful. Intelligent citation features, file uploads, real-time information gathering, and text autocomplete tools can help you maintain momentum when drafting even the most technical of grant proposals. Quick Info: Jenni.ai What is it best for? Drafting technical grants, conducting research, and effortlessly citing sources Where can you learn to use it? Jenni.ai’s website offers support, but we’ve found YouTube to be another helpful source for in-depth how-to’s and examples. How much does it cost? Jenni.ai’s basic offering is free but limits text generation to 200 words daily, which may be more than enough for limited use cases. The Unlimited plan costs $30 monthly or $12 monthly when billed annually. AI Data Analysis Tools for Grant Writing Coefficient Coefficient uses AI to drastically streamline data reporting and visualization. Import Google Sheets or Excel spreadsheets, then put all the time you’d otherwise spend on manual data updates and complicated report creation back into writing a stronger grant. We’ve found Coefficient to be particularly valuable when working with very large datasets. It also offers a wide range of integrations with platforms like HubSpot, Salesforce, Google Analytics, Mailchimp, and more, so if your organization uses any of these tools, you’d likely see time-saving benefits beyond just your grant seeking program. Quick Info: Coefficient What is it best for? Automating data analysis, updates, and visualization and simplifying large datasets Where can you learn to use it? Explore Coefficient’s Getting Started Guide How much does it cost? Coefficient offers a free version with limited data imports and exports that may be a good choice for limited use cases. Starter, Pro, and Enterprise packages start at $49/month. DataGPT DataGPT combines in-depth data analysis with AI-driven chatbot functionalities. It essentially serves as a virtual data analyst that can quickly comb through your organization’s data to answer questions, visualize trends, and make projections to use in grant proposals. DataGPT may be most useful for large organizations that use a data warehousing service like Oracle or Snowflake. It is an enterprise-level tool first and foremost, although DataGPT is actively developing a less expensive Xpress version for organizations to connect to their Google Analytics, Salesforce, and HubSpot instances. Quick Info: DataGPT What is it best for? Data analysis for large and enterprise-level organizations Where can you learn to use it? Explore DataGPT’s How to Use guide. How much does it cost? DataGPT subscriptions cost around $1,750/month. DataGPT Xpress costs $99/month but currently only connects with Google Analytics and likely won’t be particularly helpful for grant writers. Bardeen.ai Bardeen.ai specializes in workflow automation. It uses AI to pull and import data, run analyses, send messages, and more, following your custom command chains. It also includes a full range of other AI features that connect your various apps to simplify data entry, writing, and research. If you find yourself using complicated workflows to collect, input, analyze, and report data for your grant applications, Bardeen may be a smart addition to your organization’s toolkit. It’s highly adaptable but may create unnecessary complexity if your team doesn’t have a clear-cut use case for it. Quick Info: Bardeen.ai What is it best for? Automating complex workflows between platforms, particularly involving research and data analysis Where can you learn to use it? Bardeen’s YouTube channel offers many how-to resources. How much does it cost? Bardeen.ai is available for free with limited usage credits. Paid plans with additional capacity and features start at $30/month. Gemini Gemini is Google’s flagship AI product and is broadly useful for writing, planning, and research tasks. Like similar platforms, it does a solid job of data analysis and visualization. What stands out about Gemini for us as grant writers is that it works seamlessly with all other Google products, including Sheets, Docs, Analytics, Gmail, and more. For organizations or freelancers already in the Google ecosystem, Gemini offers a highly accessible way to experiment with AI and explore new ways to simplify work. Quick Info: Gemini What is it best for? Basic data analysis and other tasks for grant writers who use Google G Suite Where can you learn to use it? Check out Gemini’s video tutorial. How much does it cost? Gemini is completely free to use but with a capped memory capacity. Gemini Advanced costs $19.99/month and includes access to additional capacity and more advanced LLM models. Copilot Copilot is Microsoft’s answer to ChatGPT and Gemini. It works very similarly to Google Gemini, providing intuitive generative AI and data analysis features that seamlessly connect the full suite of Microsoft applications. If you use Microsoft apps to do your work, Copilot can likely help you save time with researching and drafting your grant proposals. Use it to find new ways to streamline and improve your work while reducing back-and-forth between multiple platforms. Quick Info: Copilot What is it best for? Basic data analysis and other tasks for grant writers who use Microsoft products. Where can you learn to use it? Check out Copilot’s library of tutorial videos. How much does it cost? Copilot is free to use with limited functionalities. Copilot Pro costs $20/month and provides additional functionalities and connections with Microsoft apps. AI Design Tools for Grant Writers Canva Already a favorite choice for simple digital design products, Canva offers an AI-powered Magic Design tool that generates custom designs for presentations, reports, videos, and more. Magic Design draws from Canva’s expansive library of free templates and stock assets and also allows you to upload and edit your own materials. Use it to ideate and produce more polished, creative layouts and visualizations for your grant proposal materials with minimal learning curve. Even aside from grant proposals, organizations of all sizes will likely find value in Canva’s AI features for adding extra shine and creativity to their social media posts, flyers, and other materials. Plus, Canva’s Pro Plan is free for registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits! Quick Info: Canva What is it best for? Basic design tools and AI-powered graphic generation for proposal materials Where can you learn to use it? We recommend this quick video overview of Canva’s Magic Design tools. How much does it cost? Canva\u0026#39;s free subscription includes access to basic AI graphic generation features. Canva Pro offers expanded functionalities and is free for registered nonprofits ($120/year for individuals and other organizations). Gamma Gamma focuses on using AI to streamline and improve the process of creating slide decks. As a grant writer, we’d wager you’ve spent hours creating presentations for kickoff meetings, check-in calls, and more. For freelance grant writers constantly pitching and communicating with clients, you might feel like you live in one big slideshow presentation. Gamma offers intuitive design, text generation, data visualization, and productivity features that might help you dramatically cut down the time needed to create slideshows. Its focused use case and affordable price for more advanced features could make it a smart choice for all kinds of grant writers. Quick Info: Gamma What is it best for? Producing slideshow presentations for grant projects and client meetings Where can you learn to use it? We recommend this Gamma tutorial video. How much does it cost? Gamma offers a free plan with limited usage credits and basic AI functions. The Plus plan includes more functionalities and customization options, starting at $8/month or $96/year. 💡 Pro Tip from the Trenches: The grant writers crushing it with AI aren't using 10 different tools. They've mastered two or three core platforms and know exactly how to prompt them for grant-specific tasks. That's the difference between fumbling with AI and feeling like you have a genius writing partner. Want to use AI to write faster and win more funding? Of course you do! We've gathered the 9 most important lessons to master. Full Disclosure: Our Experience with AI Grant Writing Tech We’ve put in the hours (and money) to learn the hard way what does and doesn’t work at the intersection of AI and grant writing. A little background on our experience with AI here at Learn Grant Writing:\n🦄 In 2023, we started building Unicorn Copilot, a comprehensive AI grant writing solution for nonprofits and freelancers. We partnered with our tech-savvy friends at Beda.ai, who had already seen incredible success using AI to draft grant applications for businesses. And we mean incredible: 40 grants a month from a team of just 2 grant writers, cutting 60+ hour applications down to just 4 hours, turning a 70% profit margin and high win rate. 🤯 We got a beta version up and running, and it yielded some promising results. Our grant writers quickly used the prototype to cut hours off their grant writing workflows, but… 😞 We soon realized that the tech wasn’t built correctly. Models trained to understand the needs of small businesses just couldn’t consistently adapt to the diverse and nuanced contexts of nonprofit grant seeking. Unicorn Copilot ultimately went on pause. It was a bummer. However, there’s a silver lining.\n🌤️ We learned so much about the realities of AI for grant writing, technology’s current limitations, and the best ways to work around them. This knowledge will help us (and you, dear reader!) save precious time and money as the AI landscape evolves. 🎥 We recently presented with our partner Chris Bertulli from Beda.ai on What AI Can and Can\u0026#39;t Do For Grant Writers. We dove into an unfiltered, #realtalk on what it really takes to build and use AI effectively. We’re talking thousands of hours and serious dollars invested, distilled into a high-value, no-fluff, 1-hour training that you don’t want to miss: Through it all, we still stick to the guiding principles of our vision for grant writing AI tools. If you encounter a platform that claims to offer comprehensive tools for grant writing, it should be:\nSmart, trained on tons of real, nonprofit-specific grant writing data and examples Purpose-built, designed for grant writing workflows, not generic writing projects Private, with clearly defined privacy and security policies Accessible, with an easy-to-use interface and affordable pricetag Anything else won't be worth your time. Of course, software constantly grows over time with new features and refined capabilities. Platforms like Instrumentl and Perplexity (see our overviews above) look extremely promising and already offer some incredible features, but remember that they're not finished products. Until there’s a perfect solution on the market, using multiple tools for different tasks may be a better choice for many organizations and grant writing freelancers. You just have to understand their use cases and limitations beforehand. This brings us to our final and most important point for AI-curious grant writers:\nAI Won’t Help You Learn Grant Writing You can break a grant proposal down into discrete steps where machines excel at certain tasks (and truly can save you tons of time and effort). However, winning grant proposals must have a human touch. They tie together language, numbers, stories, and societal context to create compelling and persuasive arguments—a deeply human undertaking. As you explore the marketplace for new tools and digital assistants, remember that almost all AI today is built for either general use by individuals or specialized use by for-profit companies, not nonprofits. 🚨 And, if you don’t already know how grant writing works and what makes a great proposal, you’ll run into even more headaches trying to use AI to take shortcuts. 🚨 You learn how to write grants by getting your hands dirty with old-fashioned training (or new-fashioned, like our curriculum). Learn Grant Writing is the leading training resource and community for grant writers of all skill levels. Members of our Global Grant Writers Collective® have raised over $1 billion and counting for nonprofit causes and earned over $67 million in revenue writing those grants. Check out their success stories to see for yourself. Key Takeaways for Grant Writers Here's what we're seeing: Grant writers who master AI fundamentals are landing bigger contracts, working fewer hours, and winning more grants. Meanwhile, those still doing everything manually are burning out and losing clients to AI-savvy competitors. The window to get ahead of this curve is closing fast. Keep exploring and mastering the fundamentals of grant writing—it's truly among the best investments you can make in your skills and career. To learn more about grant writing, how to win more grants, or even launch your own freelance career, follow us on YouTube or keep exploring these resources from our team: Grant Writing 101: What is it \u0026amp; how do you get started? How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026amp; Succeed How To Change Careers \u0026amp; Thrive: Simple 7-Step Framework Want to Write Grants Using AI?\nWe've got you. This isn't some half-baked, AI-101 fluff you'll find on Coursera. It's a step-by-step system designed by grant writers, for grant writers. Go from weeks to days finding grants and building your Funding Strategy, so you can spend less time researching and more time applying Understand exactly what to do to get AI to write well the first time, so what you produce doesn't sound like an AI wrote it Never start from scratch again. Save 10+ hours per grant by getting quality first drafts and editing support And oh so much more because once you build the foundational skills to use AI efficiently, the world is your oyster. Learn More Want to Know What AI Can and Can't Do for You? How to train your AI to write better drafts\nGet The Guide Free Training AI for Grant Writers: How to Save Hours, Sound Like You, and Stay Relevant How to go from dabbling to pro in 30 days\n\u0026times; ","date":"2024-11-14","description":"AI grant writing tools are transforming the process for people who know how to use them. \nRead our recommendations and essential advice for grant writers.\n","formatted_date":"November 14, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.11.19_best-ai-grant-writing-tools-15-top-resources-and-our-take_hu_29c31a644f49cc82.webp","permalink":"/blog/ai-grant-writing-tools/","slug":"ai-grant-writing-tools","summary":null,"title":"Best AI Grant Writing Tools: 15+ Top Resources \u0026 Our Take"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" In today’s highly competitive job market, choosing a career path that matches your preferences can feel overwhelming. If you’re here, you’re probably seeking a skill that’s lucrative, easy to learn, and easy to break into. Perhaps you’re looking to pivot into something you can do from anywhere and have the option to build in flexibility to your schedule — and there are a few options available! Some of the rising stars amongst them copywriting, data analysts, virtual assistant work, and grant writing — each offering unique benefits. But how do you decide which path to pursue? This article will explore these career options, comparing their potential for success. Whether you’re looking to get into your first career or pivot into a new space, keep reading for what skills each of these at-home flexible careers requires. You’ll also see how grant writing just might be your next career move! Let’s dive in! Copywriting If you prefer writing with flair, you have a knack for creative storytelling, and can convert readers to customers through your words, then copywriting may be a good fit. Copywriting refers to writing very persuasive content that makes people take instant action – which may be buying a product or signing up for a newsletter. Copywriters are the brain behind the headlines you find on ads, or content that engages you on websites and make you linger longer. Companies employ copywriters to write their ad copy, email campaigns, social media content, blog articles, and other marketing content to make readers take buying action. The common salary range for copywriters is $59,165 in 2024. Data Analytics Isn\u0026#39;t it beautiful to see that while some people have a passion for articulating thoughts and ideas through words, others find delight in working with numbers and data? If you’re one such deep thinker who enjoys transforming raw data into actionable insights, you may be a potential data analyst! Data analysis involves examining and interpreting data to draw conclusions to help businesses or policy makers make informed decisions. If you take this route, expect to immerse yourself in statistical tools and software like SPSS, powerBI, and Microsoft excel. There are loads of opportunities for data analysts in healthcare, finance, and tech, where they can solve complex problems as business intelligence analysts or data scientists. Data analysts earn an average of $83,963 per year. Virtual Assistant There’s never been more autonomy and flexibility with work than we have today (post-covid era), and virtual assistance helps you maximize this optimally. If you know yourself to be very detailed and efficient with administrative tasks, yet you crave the comfort of your bed and working on your terms, you can consider becoming a virtual assistant. A virtual assistant (VA) provides both technical and creative managerial support to entrepreneurs from a remote location. Think of managing emails, scheduling the calendar, inventory management, responding to customer inquiries, or any such simple tasks a business owner can afford to outsource, virtual assistants handle them all. As a VA, you can make $50,761 per year. Grant Writing Now to the crux of the matter! You’re probably here to see how grant writing compares to these other careers. What skills does grant writing require? Without mincing words, grant writing combines all the fun skills of copywriting, data analytics, a virtual assistant, and then some others! How’s that? you say. We’ll show you how, but first, let’s understand what grant writing is about. In simplest terms, grant writing involves digging out facts for nonprofits and businesses through research and whipping them up into a compelling proposal with the aim of securing funding. Grant writing blends the strength of data analysis, copywriting, and virtual assistance. Look at it this way — data analysis involves digging up statistics that substantiates the points in your proposal, and lining them up rationally. After analyzing evidence-based facts, you also need copywriting skills to present your thoughts in a compelling way for funders to take action on reading your proposal. The unending calls and administrative duties that must happen throughout the grant funding process (before and after funding) are primarily the work of a virtual assistant. We won’t be presumptuous to say that as an effective grant writer that’s equipped with these other skills, you offer much more value to organisations than when you pick just one of them. Grant writers employ all these skills to help organizations secure funding they need to thrive, which really is the ultimate problem most of them face. Grant writers earn an average of $75,853 per year. As a grant writer, you also get the added fulfillment of supporting causes you’re passionate about. The work you do makes a meaningful impact on your community. Why Grant Writing Could Be Your Next Career High Demand and Niche Market Just like you, organizations will always need money to survive! As long as the need for funding exists, there’ll always be a demand for grant writers to craft compelling proposals. In fact, more grant writers are needed now than ever before as government agencies continue to dole out millions of dollars annually for the most qualified organizations (or those that can best present themselves as such) to enjoy. Our very own coach Haleigh dives deep on why grant writing is in high demand in this video: No Demand for Grant Writers Think Again! Nonprofits depend heavily on grants for their community programs and projects. Healthcare and science-based institutions also actively seek grants to fund medical research and improve patient care. Even higher academic institutions need money to support their scholarship programs. If you can master the intricacies of grant research and writing, alongside the art of presenting your ideas intelligently to funders, the niche market of grant writing is for you. Recurring Income Opportunities As explained earlier, grants are the lifeline of nonprofits! So they need ongoing help to secure multiple grants that’ll sustain them through the year, and that\u0026#39;s where you come in. Unlike copywriting and data analysis that may come as a one-off gig, you can secure steady income through retainer agreements with these organisations. For example, Kari freelanced to build her portfolio. She then landed a fantastic full-time job as a grant writer. She also landed one retainer client on the side for a $6k a month contract. Y’all that’s an extra $72k a year on top of her 9 - 5 salary. Getting to do both with ease, she just bought her dream home in Utah. If you’re able to demonstrate your value, your clients develop trust in your skills and are more likely to retain you for the long term. You won’t find such stability in the freelance world easily! Check out this video to discover grant writing as a career. Skill Transferability If “grant writer” has a nickname, it’d be “versatility.” Passion is dynamic and you may decide to pursue another line of work sometime later. It’d interest you to know that ALL the skills you acquire while learning grant writing are easily transferable to other high-paying roles. We’ve already explained how data analysis, copywriting, and virtual assistance all play into grant writing, but that’s not all! Grant writers also build proficiency in budgeting, project management, and business development. Take Caroline for example. She was a high school English teacher who literally lost her voice after overworking and extreme stress. She pivoted to grant writing and landed a local gig. She built her own consulting firm, making $35k in her first five months and earned over $200k in revenue in her 1.6 years in the Collective. After three years of grant writing, her curious and creative nature called her elsewhere. Caroline landed a gig as the Business Development Consultant at Grammarly, using all her skills from grant writing to pave the way. Or a more fun example, our very own Meredith Noble, used her grant writing skills to buy a house. She won out two other bids by writing her own offer letter using all the tactics she’d developed as a grant writer. In short, you’re adaptable as a grant writer, able to walk confidently into new doors beyond grant writing as they open up. Job Satisfaction What’s more fulfilling than seeing your work manifest as tangible good in the world and your community? Diane is supporting a music school for the blind in her neighborhood, Loretta is raising funds to preserve the Redwood Forest she walked as a kid, while Juan is raising $18 million in funding for agricultural organizations in the Congo. There are a lot of causes to pursue as a grant writer, which brings tangible and meaningful difference to people’s lives around the world. This sense of purpose is more gratifying than a paycheck. If you want to make an impact in a cause you care about, grant writing can be a rewarding career path. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz How to Transition to Grant Writing While grant writing is a high-impact skill, it’s not rocket science. Learning how to be a grant writer is relatively easy. All you need to have are “mini-skills”, professional training, and a portfolio to establish yourself as an authority. Let’s take a closer look at each of these. Get the Necessary “Mini-skills” To thrive as a grant writer, you’ll need a combo of some essential skills such as:\nResearch: Grant writing requires you to navigate the plethora of opportunities and whittle them down to the ones that best fit your client. You’ll also need to know how to gather and analyze relevant data to substantiate your proposals’ points. Your sentences must be data-packed! Writing: As you’d have guessed, you must be good with words if you want to hold the attention of potential grant funders who read your application. Your writing must be marked by simplicity, clarity, persuasion, and the ability to make your writing dance seamlessly to the tune of different funders’ requirements! Project Management: Due to unending deadlines and a lineup of projects, the ability to organize information, manage deadlines, and juggle several projects simultaneously is a big plus for every grant writer. Attention to detail: A meticulous nature is required to follow funders’ instructions in grant writing. If you want funders to highly consider your application, then you must follow their guidelines strictly. Financial Acumen: Funders love to see realistic budgets. Hence the ability to plan your finances is also an important grant writing skill. Want to know what’s great? Everything above is a learnable skill. You can develop the toolkit of a grant writer with the proper training. Get Trained by Grant Writing Professionals Grant writing is serious business, and you wouldn’t want to take on a client’s application without proper training on how everything works. You can check out this post on the 19 Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Every Learner. Instead of trying to figure things out on your own, professional training sets a proven path before you. Intensive workshops, review meetings, and access to experts are some benefits of a professional network. For example, an excellent place where you can learn grant writing professionally is our Global Grant Writing Collective, where you not only get trained from the basics to advanced techniques, you get the support of over 500+ grant writers that’ve secured $675M+ in grant funding! Another facet of our training is to have a handbook containing distilled information on grant writing. Forged from many years of grant writing experience, our CEO packed everything you need to thrive in the grant writing space into this book. Building a Portfolio A portfolio proves to your potential employers that you’re worth your claim, and one way you can build it is to network with other grant writers. You might consider freelance platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer to find grant writing opportunities and build your client base. However, you\u0026#39;ll often run into a chicken and egg dilemma: how do I get my first client without experience and how do I get experience without a client? Unlike freelance platforms, in the Global Grant Writers Collective® we show you how to earn and learn by building your portfolio from real paid experience. When you’re thinking of building your portfolio, we’re talking about networking which can mean linking up with nonprofit professionals and potential clients through linkedin and industry events. If you’re feeling put off by the buzz word networking, trust me you’re not alone. We hear that a lot. There’s a better way. We teach a unique method called the organic networking framework which focuses on curious conversations. The peer-proven method is how Jessie made $15,000 building her portfolio. Working the Organic Networking Framework for Jessie also brought in a job offer, an interview for a different position, a new client, and more opportunities at her current position. We understand the tendency to offer your services for free in the beginning, but you can, and deserve, to get paid for the work that you do–yes, even if you’re new. If you’re curious, check out this training on how you can break into the industry of grant writing without prior experience and without going into debt. As you take the little steps suggested here, your expertise and portfolio will grow, and you can attract high-paying clients. Conclusion You can keep exploring other careers, but if you’re someone who’s even slightly intrigued by the skills we described in this article, then grant writing might just be your next career. Not only does grant writing offer you higher earnings through recurring income and retainer contracts, but your work is also relevant across diverse fields! — education, the arts, healthcare, transportation, you name it. As you learn the art of grant writing, you’re building highly transferable skills, allowing you to transition into other lucrative careers as you please. Finally, grant writing offers you unmatched job satisfaction, allowing you to make a tangible contribution to projects and causes that resonate with your values. If you’re seeking a career that pays you handsomely and helps you do purposeful and impactful work, grant writing is the sure winner! If you’re ready to take action and start your grant writing journey, what are you waiting for? Jump into this 20 mins training today. ","date":"2024-10-07","description":"Wondering if grant writing is a good career fit? Explore how this dynamic field offers growth,\nimpact, and financial rewards to match your career goals.\n","formatted_date":"October 7, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.10.08_finding-your-career-fit-why-grant-writing-could-be-your-next-big-move_hu_1742a6f72ab5d882.jpeg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-career-fit/","slug":"grant-writing-career-fit","summary":null,"title":"Finding Your Career Fit: Why Grant Writing Could Be Your Next Big Move!"},{"author":"Japheth Oseghale","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/japheth-oseghale_hu_851077ba333ad03.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Would it surprise you to know that 60% of members in The Global Grant Writers Collective® had never touched a grant before joining our program? Even more amazing, members have won over $627 million in funding. Yep, that\u0026#39;s right! Many of our now-successful grant consultants started off with zero experience in grant writing. Yet, through dedication, creativity, and a little bit of magic, they’ve transformed themselves into grant-writing powerhouses, earning hundreds of thousands in revenue for their superpowers. We\u0026#39;ve seen firsthand what makes some people thrive in this field while others struggle and eventually decide it’s not for them. After coaching thousands to become grant writers and collecting insights from our members, we’ve discovered a few key traits that set stellar grant writers apart from the rest. Spoiler alert: You don’t need to be a J.K. Rowling-level writer or have a deep knowledge of nonprofits to succeed. Instead, you need a few key qualities to jump into grant writing and crush it like candy! Let\u0026#39;s dive into the seven superpowers that can turn you into a grant-writing unicorn. 1. You Have Some Skills in Your Professional Toolbox It’s easy to overlook the professional superpowers you’ve gathered over the years, especially if you’ve spent time away from the traditional workforce. Stay-at-home moms, we see you! Whether you\u0026#39;ve been in a boardroom or a playroom, those skills are still tucked away inside you, waiting for the right moment to shine. And guess what? That moment could be now! Grant writing isn’t just about putting words on paper; it’s about drawing from a diverse skill set. Think about it: you’ve probably honed some incredible skills through your career, hobbies, or even volunteer work. Here are a few examples:\nResearch: You’re a pro at diving deep into any topic and finding the information you need. Writing: You can craft a narrative that’s engaging, clear, and persuasive. Editing: You have an eagle eye for detail and can polish any document until it gleams. Critical Thinking: You can analyze complex problems and come up with smart solutions. Creative Thinking: You’re able to think outside the box and bring fresh ideas to the table. Community Organization: You know how to rally people around a cause and get things done. Project Management: You can juggle multiple tasks, timelines, and people without breaking a sweat. Problem-Solving: When a challenge arises, you face it head-on and figure out how to overcome it. Problem-Spotting: You can identify potential issues before they become full-blown problems. Planning: You can map out a step-by-step plan to achieve your goals. Budgeting: You know how to manage money and make the most of limited resources. Administration: You’re organized, efficient, and can handle all the nitty-gritty details that keep things running smoothly. You don’t need to have all of these skills, but if you recognize a few of them in yourself, then congratulations—you’ve got what it takes to be a potential grant-writing unicorn! And remember, there’s\nalways room to learn new skills and sharpen old ones as you go. 2. You Jive Better With the Diversity in Project-Based Work If you thrive on variety and love diving into new topics, grant writing might just be your jam. One of the coolest things about this field is that you get to learn about a wide range of issues, from environmental conservation to the arts, healthcare to history, and agriculture to social justice. Every project is different, and no two days are the same. As you explore different fields, you might discover a passion for a particular cause and choose to specialize in that area. But even if you stick to one niche, the work will never feel monotonous. Grant writing keeps you on your toes, constantly challenging you to learn, grow, and adapt. So, if you’re the type who loves variety and craves the excitement of exploring new topics, grant writing could be a perfect fit for you. After all, who wouldn’t want a job that keeps you updated on happenings in different fields? 3. You Get Your Projects Done Even When They’re Challenging Let’s be real: grant writing isn’t always a walk in the park. There will be times when the deadlines are tight, the requirements are complex, and the stakes are high. But here’s the thing—those challenges are what make the victories so sweet. Around here, we call ourselves Grant Writing Unicorns because we tackle projects that seem bigger than our capabilities. Like mythical creatures, we persevere through adversity and come out stronger on the other side. Rejection is part of the process, but it doesn’t define us. We learn from it, grow from it, and keep moving forward. If you’re someone who doesn’t back down when things get tough, who keeps pushing until the job is done, then grant writing is definitely in your wheelhouse. You’ve got the grit, determination, and resilience to succeed. 4. You’re Motivated by Fulfilling and Financially Rewarding Work Not every career allows you to wake up each day knowing you’re making a real difference in the world, but grant writing does! Imagine this: you’ve just helped an organization secure thousands of dollars in funding. That money could be going towards building a new community center, funding a life-saving research project, or providing meals for those in need. Your work isn’t just about words on paper; it’s about cultural and societal change. You’re working alongside passionate changemakers, and together, you’re making the world a better place. But let’s not forget the financial rewards! While the fulfillment of helping others is priceless, grant writing can also be quite lucrative. As you build your skills and reputation, you’ll find that this career path offers a handsome return on your investment of time and effort. You get to do work that feeds your soul and your bank account—how’s that for a win-win? Check out this resource to explore your chances as a grant writer. 5. You Prioritize Your Self-Care Grant writing can be intense. It requires focus, creativity, and a lot of brainpower. That’s why self-care isn’t just a luxury; it’s a necessity. Unfortunately, in traditional jobs, self-care often takes a back seat. You might find yourself stuck in a soul-sucking routine where taking a mid-week break requires approval from a boss. Not exactly ideal, right?\nWith grant writing, you’re in control of your schedule. You have the flexibility to hit pause when you need it, without the guilt. Want to take a yoga class in the middle of the day? Go for it! Feel like spending an afternoon reading, traveling, or simply enjoying some quiet time with your family? Do it! The beauty of this career is that it allows you to prioritize your well-being while still getting the job done. If freedom and flexibility are important to you, grant writing could be your ticket to a more balanced life. You get to work hard, make an impact, and still have time for the things that matter most to you. Because, let’s be real—self-care isn’t selfish; it’s essential. 6. You’d Rather Work From Home Than Be Locked Up in a 9-5 Picture this: it’s a beautiful morning, and instead of rushing out the door to beat the traffic, you’re sipping your coffee in the comfort of your own home. Maybe you’re working from your cozy bedroom, or perhaps you’ve set up shop in a local coffee shop. Wherever you are, you’re in your element—productive, comfortable, and free from the constraints of a traditional 9-5 office job. Studies show that a good work environment can boost your productivity, and for many, that means ditching the cubicle and embracing the freedom to work from wherever feels best. If the idea of clocking into a rigid schedule five days a week makes you cringe, grant writing offers a refreshing alternative. You get to design your workday around your life, not the other way around. Whether you’re a night owl or an early bird, a homebody or a wanderer, grant writing gives you the flexibility to work in a way that suits you. So, if you’re ready to break free from the traditional office grind and embrace a more flexible lifestyle, grant writing might just be your perfect match. 7. You Believe You’re Capable of Doing Anything You Set Your Mind To Let’s talk about mindset! You’ve got the skills, the drive, and the desire to make an impact, but do you believe you can do it? One of the biggest predictors of success in grant writing—or any field, really—is your mindset. We’ve seen that those who succeed aren’t necessarily the ones who know the most from the start; they’re the ones who believe in their ability to learn, grow, and adapt. The ones who recognize they can overcome imposter syndrome. Grant writing is a journey, and like any journey, it’s going to have its challenges. There will be moments when you’re out of your comfort zone, and the temptation to throw in the towel might cross your mind. But here’s the thing—growth happens when you push through those tough moments. The real fun and fulfillment come from expanding into the next best version of yourself. We’ve found that successful grant writers have a growth mindset. They understand that they aren’t limited by their current abilities. Instead, they see every challenge as an opportunity to learn and develop new skills. If you believe that you can do anything you set your mind to, then you have what it takes to thrive in this field. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Wrap up: Unleash Your Inner Grant Writing Unicorn Grant writing isn’t just a job; it’s a unique blend of creativity, strategy, and passion. It’s a career where your professional skills, love for variety, and determination to overcome challenges come together to make a real impact. Whether you’re motivated by the fulfillment of helping worthy causes, the financial rewards, or the freedom to work on your own terms, grant writing offers a path that’s as rewarding as it is flexible. So, if you’re intrigued by the idea of becoming a grant writer and think you might have the right mindset, we encourage you to explore this path further. Take our 16-question survey to see if grant writing is your next career path. Chances are, if you’ve made it this far, you’re already well on your way to becoming a grant-writing unicorn! ","date":"2024-10-02","description":"Unlock your grant writing potential with these seven key superpowers! Discover if you have what it\ntakes to succeed and make a real impact as a grant writer.\n","formatted_date":"October 2, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.10.01_grant-writing-super-powers_hu_aafc9ecff5d1fa05.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-superpowers/","slug":"grant-writing-superpowers","summary":null,"title":"Seven Superpowers of a Potential Grant Writer: How to Know Grant Writing Is for You"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" People ask us all the time: \u0026quot;Can I really make money as a grant writer?\u0026quot; Our short answer and long answer are the same: abso-freakin-lutely! We’re just kidding, we do have a longer answer...it’s the rest of this blog post. ;) In this post, we’ll talk about career options, getting clients, rates and salaries you can expect as a grant writer, and when to make a career change. We’ve included real world examples throughout this post to show how truly possible it is to make money as a grant writer. Career Options as a Grant Writer The first thing you should know if you don’t already is that we 100% believe that freelancing is key to your grant writing career taking off. We believe this, especially if you have little or no experience grant writing, because we can train you how to. No master’s degree required! Then, once you have gained some experience freelancing, there are multiple different directions you can go in. We’ll highlight the most common career options as a grant writer below. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Grant Writing Jobs = Remote If the freedom to literally work from anywhere with a wifi connection seems too good to be true to you, it’s not. We promise. A career in grant writing can make that happen for you. Tiernan takes the meaning of remote grant writing work to a whole new level. She was working with NGOS but severely undercharging. She moved to retainer contracts, upped her prices, and helped win one client $8.5 million in funding. The amazing thing? She works out of her adventure van. Tiernan loves living out of a van with her hubby and doggo in search of waves down the Pacific coast. From rural Alaska to a cattle ranch in Wyoming and everywhere in between, we’ve seen it all (we’ve even got a gal working seasonally in Antarctica). You can, without a doubt, have a successful grant writing career while working remotely the entire time. Full Time Grant Writer After completing your grant writing training and having some freelance work under your belt, you are well-positioned to apply for a full time job. Depending on your other background experience, job titles that might be applicable for you might include nonprofit leader, executive director, development director, grant writer, etc. The point is that because you took the time to invest in your skills, sought out clients, and provided beautiful deliverables, you are now qualified to apply for those positions. Brandis and Julia-Grace, both students in the Collective, are perfect examples of this path. Brandis was working at a full time job that she really didn’t enjoy. When she started to do more technical grant writing for other companies, she was just doing it as a side hustle while still fully employed. However, one of her freelance clients ended up offering her a full time salary position with benefits because they loved her work as a freelancer. Incredible! Julia-Grace was feeling pretty burnt out in her journalism job and she was interested in earning higher pay. She decided to figure out how to work into some other career, began learning about grant writing, and was able to complete a funding strategy for a few different freelance clients. Then, she found a local job with her health district. It was an entrepreneurial position in that she is now able to build out the grant writing practice within this health district. Because Julia-Grace had freelance experience in grant writing and beautiful, relevant deliverables to showcase she was able to land that job. Again, incredible! Read more about Julia-Grace’s story here. Full Time Consultancy You may discover that you enjoy freelance grant writing so much that you want to do the work full-time as a consultant. You can choose to build a team, get nitty gritty about the clients you onboard, establish systems that help your business run smoothly, and continue scaling. This is the route both Meredith and Haleigh took. Meredith started freelancing as a grant writer, landed a grant writing job she held for five years, and then decided to go full-time consulting. She started growing a bit, hired a few team members, and launched from there! Courtney also knew she wanted to break from her 9 - 5 to build her own business. She quit her job in May of 2023. Six months in she completely caught up to the income she left ($85k). Now she\u0026#39;s trending toward making $250k in revenue in 2024. She is focusing on building a team to do what she really wants, which is participating in her kid\u0026#39;s school musical and finishing her manuscript. Side Gig Freelancing/Consultancy It’s possible that freelance grant writing on top of your primary income is completely satisfying to you. You can continue to operate in that way. Or, perhaps you’re a retiree and interested in doing something meaningful. We see this a lot in our program. Folks view grant writing as a great skill to give back to their local food bank either as a volunteer or to just make a little extra cash in retirement. We see mom’s needing to bring in a bit of extra household income, students looking to pay off debt, or professionals hitting the ceiling in pay in their jobs. Megan, a stay-at-home momma, had rigid boundaries around working no more than part-time hours. She jumped into grant writing saying “it allowed (her) the flexibility to juggle being a mother, wife, household manager and professional, in an around taking (her) kiddo to a special needs school. This year so far (she has) made over $50K on part time hours.” Or take Joel for example. He outgrew his marketing jobs, and after applying for 100s of jobs without success, he started side-hustling as a grant writer. In six months, he’d made enough money to quit his job. By the end of one year, he’ll have doubled his previous take-home pay, allowing him income for his three kids to do extracurricular activities. Cherry on top he had time to finish and publish his novel after nine years of not having the time. Best Change of Career Many times (almost all times), a career path is not linear. You may end up trying multiple different paths before you settle on what works best for your lifestyle. This can translate to you bringing a unique background to the table wherever you land. For example, Celia brings her design work to the table. Celia left the corporate world some time ago to raise her family and was looking to re-enter the workforce, but she wanted to explore a career change. She had precise parameters when selecting a new career including great pay, flexible hours, flexible location, and she wanted to contribute to something meaningful for her personally. Grant writing checked all of those boxes. Celia’s background in graphic design has been particularly helpful when building out prospectus\u0026#39; for clients (part of our funding strategy process). Or, take me as another example. I (Alexis) started a professional writing services firm offering copywriting, ghostwriting, and grant writing services. The majority of my work is grant writing related, but I absolutely love the variety in different writing styles I can offer my clients. For me, my greatest strength is compelling writing—that’s my background—and I bring it with me for every client project regardless of the format. How to Get Clients as a Consultant The thought of finding clients as a freelancer or consultant when you’re just starting out can be daunting. We’ve developed a system to help ease the overwhelm and get clients. These eight tips will help you to grow your business and open up your career options as a grant writer. Define Your Niche Whatever you are passionate about, focus and build your grant writing business around it. Whatever it is that fires you up - renewable energy, social justice, infrastructure, animal rights - focus on finding those clients. Learn more about finding your niche here. Informational Interviews Create a list of 15-20 organizations that you would love to serve or have as a client. Reach out with a warm email and once you set up that meeting, prepare a list of questions to ask that organization. Questions like \u0026quot;How does your organization find grants? How much are you looking to fundraise this year? What works well in your organization when it comes to grant writing? What doesn\u0026#39;t work well?\u0026quot; After all of your interviews, you\u0026#39;ll have a much better understanding of the common pain points. This will help you offer solutions to the problems your potential clients are having. 👉 In our mini-course, \u0026quot;How to Start a Grant Writing Consulting Business\u0026quot;, we have sample interview questions that can help you structure your informational interview. Develop Rockstar Expertise for 1-2 Grant Programs If you can become an expert on 1-2 grant programs, it will allow you to approach potential clients with awesome opportunities. Set Up a Professional Email It will help people perceive you as the professional you are. You can also set up your grant writing business as a Google business. It\u0026#39;s common for people to search \u0026quot;grant writers near me\u0026quot; and by setting yourself up as a Google business , Google will then direct people to you. Seek Repeat Clients When you work with a client, ask yourself if you would like to work with them for 5 years. If you do, awesome. If not, then that client may not be worth your time. If there is a possibility of an annual contract with a client you love serving, go for it. While Request For Proposals (RFPs) or Request For Qualifications (RFQs) can be time-intensive, when you get that $72,000 contract to work on for the year, it\u0026#39;s totally worth it Value your time Let\u0026#39;s say your working time is valued at $100/hr. If you are going to a marketing luncheon and it\u0026#39;s going to take you three hours altogether (commuting, following up with leads, attending the lunch, etc.) you\u0026#39;ve spent at least $300. Do you think you will recoup that cost at that price? The answer is it depends. How many leads or connections resulted from that luncheon? When you value your time, you stop wasting time on business development activities that don\u0026#39;t get you the clients you want. Grow Your Business by Growing Your Team As soon as you can afford to get help, get help. For example, our students will go in together on a graphic designer or serve as each other\u0026#39;s quality review or proofreader. Speaking from personal experience, hiring an editor is literally always worth it. Editors catch things you missed and ask questions that you never realized needed to be asked. You can strengthen your ability to win projects when you work as a team. Use a Funding Strategy to Open the Door A funding strategy is a roadmap of grant opportunities for an organization to pursue. This unique element of our course teaches you how to help organizations figure out which grants to pursue and when. This can be a great first project for you and your client. Putting in the work to follow this process is the best way we’ve used to find great clients for your freelancing work. Grant Writing Salary? Okay, so this is really what you came here for, right?\nReal quick: it is within reason for a grant writer to earn $5,000 a month. Keep in mind this is our sensible, conservative perspective. The average salary for a full time grant writer as of July 29, 2024 is $75,853. The range typically falls between $68,109 and $85,320. Keep in mind that because $75,853 is an average, we know grant writers are making more. In fact, members of the Global Grant Writers Collective® are making much more.\nElaine came in at $100k in revenue, burned out and struggling, and in just 2 years, she\u0026#39;s on track to make $1 million. She’s got a team of 4, working with clients she adores and winning millions of dollars in funding. Jennifer came into consulting after extreme burnout in her career. She made $240k and paid $48k into retirement just in year one. Her goal is $370k in take-home pay in 2024. Clara came in having volunteered for friends \u0026amp; family as a grant writer making only $4k in revenue in all of 2023. Now seven months into the Collective she’s made $73k and counting. She plans to retire her husband from a toxic job and has enough funding to cover childcare. Having a salary plus bennies is within your reach! But, really, the sky\u0026#39;s the limit!\nWe anticipate grant writing fees continuing to trend upwards in light of the rising inflation. For more information on what inflation is and how it is impacting philanthropy, check out this YouTube video. Or check out this video on why grant writing is in high demand. There are four main traps folks fall into that prevent them from making a decent salary while grant writing: Not Knowing Your Why First of all, yes, you can make money grant writing, but you must know why you even want to get into this. Grant writing is hard work and if you don\u0026#39;t know why you\u0026#39;re doing it you\u0026#39;re not going to have the grit when you need it on a late night. What is it that you\u0026#39;re looking for? Are you looking for more flexibility to be home with your kids or are you looking for flexibility to travel and geographically limitless? Just understand why you want to do it. It can\u0026#39;t be all for the money; it has to be for the why and the motivation behind it. Thinking Grant Writing is All You Need to Know Grant writing is a technical skill set, but to run a successful business, you also need excellent project management and entrepreneurial skills. You need to know how to do business development activities, find new projects, do the contracting, find insurance, and more. None of those things have anything to do with the act of grant writing, but they’re vital to your success. Not Charging Enough You need to charge appropriately for your services to actually make money. When you start working on projects, even if you\u0026#39;re doing it as a volunteer, you\u0026#39;ve got to document every hour that you spent writing those projects. Then, you can then look back and see whether you accurately scoped and priced the value of your services. There is a lot of strategy in how you price your services. Are you newer in your career and trying to be priced fairly? Or, are you advanced in your career, an absolute rock star, and you can be priced premium only? Not Niching Down You need to figure out your target clients and projects. What type of projects and clients do you find interesting? Niching down allows you to start getting referred to similar clients. This makes it possible for you to make money grant writing since you’ll have one or two grant programs that you pursue year after year. For example, if it costs you $6,000 of time to create a grant application from scratch, but if you’ve already done that application before you\u0026#39;ve got a sample narrative. You have all those templates in place including the funding guidelines. It will take you less time to prepare the application in the future. Therefore, it becomes more profitable for you since you’re still charging the same amount per application because the value of your work doesn’t change. When to Change Careers? You probably thought that because our logo is a unicorn that we hold all the magical secrets of life. We wish 😅. We are so sorry to disappoint and say that we don’t have the answer to this commonly asked, difficult question. Only you can know this. Sometimes, your closest family and friends can be excellent soundboards or observers as well.\nOur best advice is to think about your current situation. We think it boils down to this one question: Is your career life-giving or life-taking? Are you bored? Does your work align with your personal values? Is it helping you achieve the lifestyle you want for yourself and/or your family? Are you constantly burned out? Are your shoulders stretched up to your ears all the time? Are you generally more irritable than not? Is it because of your job? These are really challenging questions because we all have bills to pay, at least one mouth to feed, and various other considerations depending on your location, background, family history, economic position, and more. Some of these things are beyond your control, but not all of them are. We’re not here advocating for you to quit your job at the drop of a hat, but rather to consider how your life could look different if you changed one or two things. Would adding a freelance grant writing side gig make sense in your life? Is that a sensible, actionable step for you? Final Takeaway Simply put, yes, you can make money as a grant writer. The secret to success? Stick with what you enjoy the most and are the best at. We firmly stand by freelancing as a perfect way to get started with your grant writing career. Then you can take it in whatever direction you want that plays to your strengths and helps you build the life that you love. Grant Writing Resources Are you curious if grant writing might be a good fit for you? Check out our free training on how to become a freelance grant writer.\nWant to learn more about the Global Grant Writers Collective®? DM us on Instagram! ","date":"2024-08-25","description":"Our short answer and long answer are the same: abso-freakin-lutely!\nWe’re just kidding, we do have a longer answer...it’s the rest of this blog post.\n","formatted_date":"August 25, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-can-I-make-money-as-a-grant-writer_hu_fdb9cffc21d4bee.jpg","permalink":"/blog/make-money-grant-writing/","slug":"make-money-grant-writing","summary":"Curious about earning potential as a grant writer? Explore how you can turn your writing skills\ninto a lucrative career and achieve financial success in the nonprofit sector.\n","title":"Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer?"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Teachers work harder now than ever before.\nA 2023 study found that teachers work an estimated 53 hours a week, almost a full workday longer than the average working adult in the US. A whopping 25% of their work also goes uncompensated. Back in 2020, nearly 17% of teachers worked second jobs during the school year to supplement their incomes. With today’s wild economy and increasing pressures on teachers—financial, societal, and emotional—these numbers are even higher today. It’s tough out there! Do the pains of working uncompensated overtime hours or supplementing your teacher salary sting for you too?\n👉 If you’re a teacher and you feel like the system is failing you, you are not alone. You want to do what’s best for you, your family, and your career, and that might mean leaving the teaching profession. Teachers make the transition to new careers and lines of work for all kinds of reasons. This guide will equip you with the knowledge, ideas, and resources you need to start navigating a career change with confidence. Here’s what we’ll cover: The transferable skills of teaching Ideal industries for career changes from teaching 15 alternative career ideas for teachers How to change careers as a teacher Real-life career change stories But first, who are we?\nWe’re Learn Grant Writing, home of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. We provide curriculum, coaching, community, and certification for those ready for a career pivot to become well-paid grant writers. Our community includes many former teachers (check out the examples below) who have made career changes. They’re earning more and have claimed more freedom, flexibility, and purpose in their lives. On average, it takes our members just 6.6 months to land a new job and 9 months to launch their own side hustles and freelancing careers! Grant writing might be the right choice for you, too! Check out our members’ success stories or beginners’ guide, “How to Make Money as a Grant Writer,” to learn more. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Understand the Transferable Skills You Bring to the Table Taking stock of your transferable skills is the first step in considering a new field. Acknowledging what’s in your toolbox allows you to consider a variety of career pivots. Plus, you get to build up that confidence factor by considering how all the hours in the classroom translate to killer skills in other fields. Who doesn’t love that? ⭐ As a teacher, we see you. You’ve honed skills that are assets in all kinds of new fields. Feel proud of that! ⭐ In our work with former teachers in the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we often see these standout qualities and skills: Intrinsic motivation. You are mission-driven and heart-led in your work. Daniel, a member of the Collective, said that “teaching is not a job you do for the glory; it’s a job you do because you love helping people.” We couldn’t agree more. Money does not prevent burnout. What helps you thrive long-term in any job is intrinsic motivation to make an impact—teachers are the experts here. Project management. As a teacher, you juggle multiple tasks nonstop and must be organized. You manage not just yourself but the needs of each student, too. You’ve also learned to be attentive to the differing personalities of students, parents, administrators, and fellow teachers. You know how to navigate office workflows and get what you need from the right people. These skills translate beautifully into roles that require careful project management. Flexibility. In a classroom, you have a lesson plan and a schedule, but you know that so much can happen between the day’s first and last bells. Not to mention everything unpredictable that can happen in the course of a school year (cue the pandemic flashbacks). Teachers learn to be adaptable to the constantly changing needs of the students, classroom, and season. Every business benefits from folks with this kind of adaptability and quick thinking. Communication. Effective communication is crucial for teachers. You’re probably a master at getting your point across in a way that your audience can understand. This often involves creativity, patience, and clear articulation. Communication is probably the most underappreciated soft skill, so wear it with pride! Solutions-oriented mindset. Teachers, by necessity, learn to be pragmatic and solutions-focused people. They follow clear plans to help students achieve specific goals but also continuously troubleshoot their teaching strategies to creatively problem solve. The ability to gracefully pivot and reframe limitations as opportunities to be collaborative, creative, and productive is extremely valuable. As a teacher, your job also inherently involves a lot of instructing and coaching. Plus, if you’re a secondary teacher with specialization in a particular subject, you bring even more useful background knowledge to the table. Maybe you double-majored in journalism or biology and could use this foundational knowledge to direct your career search. Whatever your background, the teaching profession has well-equipped you for a future in a new field. Take the time to sit down and define your skills. 🦄 Spoiler Alert! 🦄\nWe’ll cover ideal alternative careers for teachers below, but we can’t help getting ahead of ourselves. We believe the best potential career for former teachers is grant writing. We’re pretty passionate about grant writing. It combines all of the skills listed above. If you’re a stellar teacher, chances are high you’ll be a stellar grant writer. Skip ahead to learn more about why this field is such a good fit for teachers, or check out a few success stories from folks who’ve made the move themselves! Which Industries Offer the Best Second Careers for Teachers? You understand your worth as a professional and can clearly articulate the skills you’ve developed as a teacher—great! What next? You probably already have an idea of what kind of career you’d like to build or which professional field you want to explore. Leading with passion is the best way to keep up your momentum as you embark on a career change, so start with your interests. That said, some passions aren’t quite as marketable as others. Balance your passion with your goals and immediate financial needs. This may go without saying, but it’s worth emphasizing: If your goal is to land a new, better-paying job, switching overnight into a field that’s too niche can be very limiting. If you want to work independently and build a self-sustaining small business, you need to identify a field that interests you and offers a market that can support your needs. After changing careers, how soon do you want to meet or exceed your income as a teacher? 🤔 Put another way, while you definitely could build a thriving career as an artisanal basket weaver (good for you, by the way, sounds very cool), that won’t be an easy path if you’re looking for a bigger salary right off the bat. Don’t limit your focus right away. Zoom out by looking at the broader fields that relate to your skills as a teacher. Those are the places to first direct your attention, and then you can zoom into more specialized ideas within these industries as you learn more. Start by considering these fields where education skills translate particularly well:\nMarketing, communications, and PR Management and sales Human resources and training Nonprofits and fundraising (including grant writing!) Libraries, museums, and other institutions Higher education administration Project management Social work and therapy Instructional, curriculum, and UX design These fields span the corporate, nonprofit, and government worlds. There are tons of potential opportunities within them—find the places where your unique interests and skills intersect with these fields, and you’ll set yourself up well for a successful career change. 15 New Careers for Teachers - Which One’s for You? Let’s take a closer look at some of the potential careers within these teacher-friendly fields.\nHere are 15 popular jobs for former teachers. We’ve also included their average base salaries at the time of publishing from Indeed.com, but note that how much you can earn depends on many factors. There are some roles, like grant writing or event planning, that you can turn into small consulting businesses, which can drastically increase your earning potential. 1. Grant Writer Range: $65,000–$97,000; as of Sept 1, 2025 (we'll show you how to make $125,000 if consulting)\nAs a grant writer, you help organizations tell their stories to secure more funding and serve more people. This fulfilling career is also extremely flexible, allowing you to take grant writing in many directions. You can work directly for one organization (nonprofit, municipality, engineering firm, or for-profit entity) as their in-house grant writer. You can launch your own consulting business like Elaine, in the Collective, who has a team of three and is on track to make $1 million in revenue this year. Or you can write grants as a part-time side hustle like Kari, in the Collective, who brings in an extra $6,000 a month ($72k for the year) from just one retainer client for a few extra hours a week on top of her full 9-5. Training: Grant writing involves specialized know-how, but anyone can learn it. Take a look at our free introductory webinar, How to Make Money as a Grant Writer, to learn how to break into this field without any prior experience. We’ll show you how to get paid even on your first project through our earn-and-learn model. 2. Event Planner Average base pay: $24.44/hour ($58,161/year)\nEvent planning is a diverse field that requires creativity and organization. You might plan corporate, personal, or public/government events, so be prepared to identify a niche that interests you most. Event planners might work for event planning firms, businesses that host many private or public events, event venues, or on their own as independent planners. Training: On-the-job training is most common for event planners. Get experience by connecting with an established event planner. Online and higher ed courses and certifications are also available for more structured training. 3. Academic Advisor Average base salary: $47,890\nAcademic advisors work in colleges, universities, and other educational institutions to help students navigate their programs and graduation requirements. The need for strong communication and organizational skills and the educational setting of these roles make them a natural fit for many former teachers. Training: In many cases, your education as a teacher will suffice to help you land an academic advising role, but additional degrees and certifications can help make you a more competitive candidate. 4. Project Manager Average base salary: $88,923\nAnother highly flexible career, project management can take you to business, nonprofit, and government environments. These professionals organize complex projects, schedules, workloads, and general productivity. Training: Although there are degrees specific to project management, they’re often not necessary to find a job. Some background in business is often preferred, though, and there are also various certification programs commonly prioritized by employers (namely the CAPM, PMP, and Scrum certifications). 5. PR Manager Average base salary: $68,229\nAs a PR manager, you’ll actively manage a business’s or brand’s public perception through outreach, marketing, and partnership coordination. PR roles are quite diverse and can be good fits for those with backgrounds in communications, marketing, journalism, and business. As with other roles in this list, teachers’ communication and organization skills will help them stand out. Training: Having a background in a related field is often necessary, although working into a PR role through more accessible general marketing jobs is another viable route. Freelancing as a marketing strategist or writer can be an effective way to get your foot in the door for this industry. 6. Guidance Counselor Average base salary: $57,201\nIf you want to stay in an educational environment but focus on helping students as people rather than as just learners, guidance counseling can be a natural move. This field does require more specialized education, however, so you may need to plan ahead for that if guidance counseling sounds like the right choice for you. Training: These roles often require a degree in psychology, counseling, or social work. Some employers may prefer or require candidates to have a master’s degree in educational counseling as well. If you double majored in education and psychology, this is a route worth considering! 7. Curriculum Designer Average base salary: $78,851\nCurriculum designers work with educational institutions, public school systems, various government offices, and businesses to develop training programs that support specific goals. It’s a diverse field, but the emphasis on planning and instruction makes it a good choice for many former teachers. Within the field of curriculum, you may also encounter various management and coordinator roles at different levels. Training: Your training as a teacher should be enough for you to be a competitive candidate for curriculum and instructional design roles. Additional certifications in professional development can help as well. 8. Technical Writer Average base pay: $37.48/hour ($64,407/year)\nTechnical writers work in all kinds of industries (typically tech-related) to write content that explains specialized subjects, like how to use software. It’s a highly accessible field for freelancers with strong writing backgrounds—English and language arts teachers take note! Training: Technical writing jobs don’t typically require additional training beyond a background in writing and strong critical thinking skills. Like grant writing, it’s an ideal field for learning as you go, picking up paid jobs and perhaps a certification or two while building your portfolio. You’ll likely encounter opportunities to turn freelance work into full-time jobs if that’s your preferred route—check out our Organic Networking Framework to learn how to do this! 9. Social Worker Average base salary: $67,472\nSocial workers in government offices, healthcare systems, and school systems serve as liaisons and vital resources for individuals and families undergoing significant challenges. This field attracts many former teachers who want to stay focused on helping people outside of the classroom. It can be a tough job but one that’s extremely personally meaningful and impactful for the right candidates. Training: Social work requires specialized training and licensing in many states. If you’re passionate about this career route and prepared to go to grad school, it can be a fulfilling investment. 10. Corporate Trainer Average base salary: $65,568\nAn instructional role in a business environment is an ideal choice for many former teachers. Corporate trainers work to onboard new hires, explain how to use various tools, teach workflows, and reinforce changing policies and practices. It’s a diverse field with many areas of specialization, so you’ll have many potential routes to explore, like technical or leadership development training. Training: Corporate training roles don’t typically require additional training, although more specialized positions and subjects like technology, professional development, and DEI may require additional certification and experience. Freelancing as a career coach can be an effective path into some subfields of corporate training. 11. Social Media Manager Average base salary: $58,237\nHave a knack for telling stories online and generating engagement from social media followers? Combine these communication skills with some marketing knowledge, and you can build a career as a social media marketer. These professionals work as part of broader marketing teams for organizations of all shapes and sizes. Training: Your background as a teacher and portfolio of past projects with measurable marketing outcomes will help you gain entry into this field. Like grant writing and other marketing jobs, freelancing is a viable route into social media marketing and can develop into paid positions or independent consulting work. 12. Human Resources Coordinator Average base pay: $22.97/hour ($50,306/year)\nHR coordinators work to manage all the people processes that keep organizations running, including compensation, performance management, hiring, training, and more. It’s an accessible field that often offers room for specialization and career advancement. You can find HR roles in all types of businesses, nonprofits, and government offices. Training: To begin a career in HR, you typically don’t need additional training beyond your education as a teacher, although background in business administration is a plus. Professional HR certifications also exist to help HR professionals advance their careers. 13. Realtor Average base salary: $99,363\nWell-known as a flexible and accessible field for people of all professional backgrounds, real estate can be a viable option for former teachers. It does require specialized training and licensing and can be unpredictable due to changing economic conditions, but the ability to pick up real estate sales and representation gigs can be a game-changer if you’re able to commit the time and attention. Training: Training and licensing requirements for real estate agents vary by state, but they typically involve finding a sponsoring real estate broker, taking a series of courses, and completing an exam. Realtors need to renew their licenses regularly to remain valid. 14. Paralegal Average base salary: $59,872\nParalegals support attorneys and government justice departments in preparing cases, conducting interviews, analyzing documents, compiling information, and generally keeping the legal system running smoothly. This field offers steady, consistent work and plenty of opportunities. Teachers’ expertise in communication and organization helps them thrive in these roles. Training: Requirements for paralegal positions can vary heavily between organizations and jurisdictions, although an associate’s degree or certificate in paralegal studies is often a minimum. 15. Sales Representative Average base salary: $77,198 (often through commissions or with additional commission structures) Sales can be a smart move for many former teachers since they know how to communicate well and connect with different audiences. Sales roles are extremely diverse and can be quite lucrative, usually with commission-based pay structures. Best of all, they often require no specialized training and allow for a learn-as-you-go approach. Training: Some background in business or marketing can be helpful for sales, but to get your foot in the door, you shouldn’t need any specialized training. There are also plenty of potential freelancing routes that can help you land a full-time job, like working as a freelance sales rep or developing marketing strategies and content for clients. 👉 Why Grant Writing is a Natural Career Choice for Teachers 👈 We want to take a moment again to shout out the field of grant writing as an ideal career choice for many teachers. Both teaching and grant writing involve helping others and making a tangible impact. Grant writing is how Caroline went from burnt-out English teacher to grant writer winning $5.6 million in funding for her clients. Talk about impact! Educators have multiple skills that are directly transferable to a successful career in grant writing, particularly project management and effective communication. ⭐ Grant writing offers the fulfillment, flexibility, freedom, and creativity that so many teachers crave from their careers. It’s a learnable skill and allows you to truly custom-build your career to fit your life and needs, whether that means a part-time side hustle, thriving independent practice, or a full-time job at a nonprofit. Of course, we’re a little biased, but only because we’ve seen the life-changing power of grant writing for so many former teachers over the years. Take a look at the success stories below or learn more about our methodology and community for new grant writers. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz How to Change Careers as a Teacher Ok, so you understand your value and transferable skills as a teacher. You have a sense of the popular second careers that teachers often venture into. You’ve thought about your goals, needs, and interests. How do you actually get started changing your career? We’ve written a complete guide to changing your career, and it’s chock full of tips and resources.\nOur biggest piece of advice is to follow what we call the Organic Networking Framework. Check out our guide or watch this video for an in-depth look: What are the benefits of this career change approach for teachers?\nThis framework minimizes your risks. The whole point is to learn (and earn) as you go. It doesn’t require you to make a huge, immediate choice. It’s possible to continue working as a teacher while building up your training and experience for a new career. The Framework goes at your pace. If you need to keep working as a teacher and take things slow, you’ve got it. If you’re in a place where you want and are able to quit teaching to build your new career, you can speed things up that way, too. It gives you true freedom and flexibility. By focusing on learning and building experience, you’ll open up opportunities for yourself over time. Build a part-time side hustle, go independent, look for a new full-time job—it’s up to you. Whatever your background or professional goals, the Organic Networking Framework can work for you. Take a look, explore our tips, and let us know what you think. We’re excited to hear about how it goes for you! Example Teacher Career Change Resume As you’re reading this, you might be thinking, “Sure, I understand my transferable skills and how I can find new opportunities at my own pace, but what about my resume?” Excellent question! We have an example for you. One of our members (see her success story below) recently revamped her resume to customize it for her new field of grant writing. She incorporated her educational background and clearly highlighted how her skills as a teacher are perfectly suited to grant writing: Looking for more resume help to make sure you really emphasize those golden transferable skills? We highly recommend learning from Jennifer Spoelma, Founder of Career Foresight Coaching. Jennifer even provided our members with exclusive resume training in our grant writing course. Read the Complete Career Change Guide Real-Life Stories to Inspire You We’ve seen tons of teachers pull off successful career changes, and so can you.\nOne of our favorite success stories comes from Jessica Stack, a member of the Global Grant Writers Collective. As a busy teacher and mother of young children, Jessica re-evaluated her personal and financial goals during the pandemic. Her new professional goals included greater flexibility, earning more for her family, and ultimately building a freer life outside of the classroom. After learning about grant writing and building a portfolio of freelance work (using the Organic Networking Framework), her practice really took off. 🦄 After 18 months, Jessica reached $100k in revenue from grant writing contracts. Hear about her journey in her own words:\nThese days, Jessica can choose who to work for, what projects to work on, and when to work on them. This was a huge shift as she was familiar with working for someone else who determined her value and schedule. That type of compartmentalization was stifling for her (sound familiar?). With grant writing, Jessica has more flexibility in her daily schedule and can meld all her passions together cohesively. This has become especially important to her to be a more present mom to her two little boys. Jessica even has enough work to hire fellow members of the Global Grant Writers Collective®—it pays to be part of a community! Become a Paid Grant Writer Caroline is another amazing example. Burnt out as an English teacher, having literally lost her voice, she took a step away from education to recuperate. She explored ways to use her writing superpowers in an adjacent field and sought a career that allowed her flexible hours and better pay. Caroline jumped into the Global Grant Writers Collective® and found that grant writing aligns perfectly with her values. 🦄 After 5 months, Caroline reached $35k in revenue from grant writing contracts coming from zero experience in the field. She was able to work with environmental organizations, feeding into her passions and making her work that much more meaningful. In her first year of grant writing, she helped her clients win $5.6 million in funding. Caroline says, “Ultimately, though, the best ROI has been gaining a professional community, mentors, and peers that I really love to engage with. I didn’t know that’s what I would be getting when I signed up for the Collective, and it’s served my professional and personal growth, my mental health, and my sense of pride in my work in so many ways.” Another member of the Collective, Lauren, decided to learn more about grant writing because she was curious about how she could increase her scope of impact as a teacher. “If I can learn to write grants, then I can write any project that I\u0026#39;m interested in,” Lauren said.\nShe’s since created programming in her school that didn’t exist before she developed her grant writing skills. Teachers are in the unique position of being boots on the ground with the opportunity to see the potential for helpful and relevant programs in schools. Every grant application starts with an idea or a solution to a problem. Teachers are in the best position to identify those solutions. The skills of a grant writer can help make those solutions come to life. Want more success stories? Take a look at how people of all professional backgrounds have turned grant writing into lucrative careers: Explore All the Grant Writing Success Stories Whatever your unique reasons for seeking a new career—to earn more, to be more present for your family, to free up your schedule, or simply give yourself more freedom—you know the value of perseverance and having a plan. You’re a teacher, after all. You’re not alone in wanting to build a new path. Tons of teachers have gone before you and blazed their own trails, and you can do it, too. We strongly recommend learning more about the Organic Networking Framework as you think about your next steps. We’ve seen it work time and again for people from all backgrounds, teachers included. ✏️ And if communication, writing, project planning, and helping people are any of your strong suits, we’ll suggest one last time that you take a look at grant writing. We’ve seen it give former teachers lives of newfound flexibility, freedom, and purpose. If you're interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change. If you have any additional questions about the Global Grant Writers Collective®, let us know! Send us an email. Send us a DM on Instagram. We’re rooting for you! Want to keep exploring? Here are a few additional resources to peruse:\nPart-Time Entrepreneurship By Necessity How to Plan Your Quarter for Business and Life Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026amp; Succeed Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2024-08-16","description":"Changing careers as a teacher is nerve-wracking, but you’re not alone! This guide covers all the\ntips and new career ideas you’ll need to start your journey.\n","formatted_date":"August 16, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-career-change-for-teachers-cover_hu_242e289b96b67423.webp","permalink":"/blog/career-change-for-teachers/","slug":"career-change-for-teachers","summary":null,"title":"Career Change for Teachers: How-To Guide and 15 Ideas"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" So you want to change careers. We see you.\nAre you also feeling a mixed bag of emotions thinking about a career change? That's natural. Taking control of your career journey is empowering, yet a bit scary in the same breath. You might be feeling like you want something more meaningful, lucrative, or just all-around better for your life. However, intentionally breaking the day-to-day rush to explore a career change isn't always easy, even when you know it's the right choice. If you feel called to make a change in your professional life, you owe it to yourself to at least learn more. What would you rather be doing? How can you start doing it in a way that minimizes risk and anxiety? In this guide, we're going to help you navigate these questions and come up with your own answers. We'll also review a peer-proven framework for building a new career that we've seen work for all kinds of people from different professional backgrounds. Here's what we'll cover: Possible career change routes The importance of training and momentum Using the Organic Networking Framework Career change success stories Some age-specific career advice (30s, 40s, and 50s) More career change resources and tips This brings us to our first piece of advice:\n💡 Knowledge is the Antidote to Fear 💡 Fear of the unknown, fear of change, can be a detrimental paralysis in decision-making. Did you know we make more than 50,000 decisions a day? Now add on making a major life shift like pivoting careers, and there are bound to be some pesky fears blocking your way. ⭐ But here's the thing: Simply exploring your options is easy and risk-free. Knowledge allows you to unwrap some of the \"unknowns\" that make change unnerving. You can move forward if you know how. Learning even a little bit about what those first steps might look like is how you get started. Step by step, not a leap into the unknown. As you learn more, the landscape of your potential career change becomes more brightly lit. You can lay out a real action plan, one that accounts for your practical concerns while keeping up the forward momentum you need to stay motivated. You can define your guiding question for a career change that aligns with your values moving forward. We recommend a clear-cut methodology for career changes, what we call the Organic Networking Framework. The framework is made up of steps that are easy to learn, repeat, adapt, and take at your own pace. Who are We? We're Learn Grant Writing, home of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. We provide curriculum, coaching, community, and certification for those ready for a career pivot to become well-paid grant writers. Our members have made career changes that allow them to earn more while building lives of freedom, flexibility, and purpose. On average, it takes our members just 6.6 months to land a new job and 9 months to launch their own freelancing careers! Grant writing might be the right choice for you, too! Check out our members' success stories or beginners' guide, \"How to Make Money as a Grant Writer,\" to learn more. 👉 However, rest assured that this guide is for everyone. We've seen countless members pull off successful career transitions, so we've learned a thing or two about what that process looks like. You will see a few grant writing-specific examples below to illustrate how our members changed careers, but the process we teach can apply to any industry, skill set, or professional background. Make our framework your own, and you'll impress yourself with the results. Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video Career Changes and Your Possible Routes First, what does a career change look like? What's the end outcome?\nCareer changes come in all shapes and sizes. Yes, the end result is paid work in a new field that better satisfies your financial, emotional, intellectual, or lifestyle needs. However, this looks different for everyone. Generally speaking, career changes take one of these three routes:\nSwitching to a new job in a different industry or field Going independent with a new small business or consultancy Starting a freelancing side hustle—a viable option if a new full-time job won't mesh well with your daily responsibilities or lifestyle (popular with stay-at-home moms and semi-retired people) You might already have a clear sense of which route you want to pursue. Great! If you don't, no problem! Better to figure it out now than commit to something that's not the right fit. Our framework helps you ease into finding the right direction that will suit your goals and needs. What Do These Career Change Paths Have in Common? No matter which route makes the most sense for you, they all share a few necessities:\nTraining Networking Getting some experience under your belt Makes sense, right? You can't dive into a brand-new career without at least some background knowledge and connections. Preparing will allow you to get the job or find the opportunities in the first place and then actually do the work. Start with Training for Your Career Change More power to you if you can run a marathon without many weeks of training beforehand. For most people, that'd be demoralizing (at best) and downright dangerous (at worst). Sure, this example is a little dramatic, but so is the idea of trying to change careers into a brand new line of work overnight. It's a recipe for frustration, setbacks, and unnecessary risk. Instead, make training a priority and learn as you go. Better yet, earn as you learn to build a portfolio you can leverage to either land a dream job or scale up to be your own boss. Regardless, you can't fake the fundamentals of the actual work. Once you have the lay of the land and are confident that you could produce a real deliverable—whether it's a grant proposal, graphic design project, sales pitch deck, or whatever you're called to do—allow yourself to go for it. Shift focus to getting your foot in the door (we show you what a \"toe-in-the-door deliverable\" might look like in the Organic Networking Framework) and then keep learning. 💡💡💡\nThe key takeaway: You don't have to be an expert in your chosen field before you can start (no one is at first). You do need to have a working, tactical knowledge of what you want to be doing. Once you're ready, don't let imposter syndrome hold you back. You need momentum to keep moving forward. This is our philosophy for building our members' skills and confidence. We offer a complete grant writing curriculum and certification designed to give people the experience and connections they need to start getting paid work. It's possible to earn and learn, even on your first project. How to Change Careers with the Organic Networking Framework We recommend approaching your career change with the Organic Networking Framework. This strategy will build your confidence and reduce your risks. It allows you to gain experience and then decide your next steps—no life-changing commitments required until you're ready for them. If you're a visual learner, check out our video of the Organic Networking Framework or follow along below for a detailed walkthrough of the framework: 👉 Quick summary of this career change strategy:\nFreelance in your new line of work until you earn your first $15,000. After that, you can decide to scale up into an independent consulting business or leverage your shiny new portfolio of completed work to land a job. 👉 The benefits of this approach:\nThe Organic Networking Framework doesn't require you to make an immediate choice or leave your current job. This approach helps you prepare and build experience. This de-risks the career transition and makes it easier to open doors to new opportunities once you're ready. It also works on your timeframe. You can figure out what works best for you without the added stress of imposed big-picture deadlines (unless you find them helpful and set them yourself—sometimes a good idea!). 👉 How it works:\nThe Organic Networking Framework consists of seven key steps:\nStep 1: Create an Outreach Contact List. First, sit down and think about what connections you'd like to form in your new career. Is there a specific company that you want to work for? Or a company or individual you could support with professional services? An organization in your chosen line of work that you just find cool and want to learn more about? If you're early in your journey, this step may require some upfront research. You'll need to identify potential contacts and the individual at that organization who can best answer your questions. We recommend you develop a list of at least 20 potential contacts. Once you have a list of contacts, reach out to one! The goal of this first outreach is to simply learn more about their work and how you could support it. A quick email will do the trick—here's an example for an aspiring grant writer:\nHi Barbara, My name is Amy, and I first found your organization through social media after a friend shared one of your posts. I love your mission and the work your team does in the community! I'm writing today because I'm thinking about getting into grant writing. I'm curious to hear about your take on the opportunities for grant writers in this industry. How does a quick 20-minute informational interview next week fit into your schedule? Let me know your thoughts and availability. Looking forward to connecting!\nThere you go—short and sweet while providing the context the contact needs to understand your request.\nStep 2: Host an Informational Interview. An informational interview with a business contact is your opportunity to ask a ton of questions, listen, and learn. Before you freak out thinking \"I hate networking and don't want to sound salesy,\" remember you're just having a genuinely curious conversation. ⭐ You're not trying to pitch yourself and your services. Rather, you're here to learn about the challenges that this organization faces. If you recognize that you can truly solve a problem the organization faces with your skills, it will feel natural to get into solutions on how you might be able to help. Once you have an informational interview lined up, take some time to prepare a few questions. For our example above, these might include: How do you know which grants to go after? Do you have a strategy for pursuing them? Who writes your grant applications? What does your organization struggle with most when it comes to consistently getting grant applications out the door? Customize a series of questions for your own contacts and go into the meeting with a listen-and-learn attitude. Take notes, lean in, ask thoughtful follow-up questions based on their responses, and show up with curiosity. Understand where an organization needs help and you'll be able to recognize where you can propose being part of their solutions (your services). Step 3: Offer a Deliverable That Will Allow for a Quick Win. After your meeting, figure out what you can offer your contact that will help solve the challenges discussed in your informational interview. The deliverable is your foot-in-the-door strategy to secure your first freelancing client. There's one big caveat to keep in mind: ⭐ Your first deliverable(s) for clients need to create quick wins. In eight weeks or less, you should be able to execute the plan that you present. Your solution should generate a positive return on investment (ROI) for them. Why are speed and ROI important? You want to make it as easy as possible for your client to say \"Yes!\" to your plan (especially when you're new to the work). Offer a solution or support service that you can accomplish quickly, addresses a tangible need, and saves them time and/or money. 🦄 Here's an example: At Learn Grant Writing, our recommended first deliverable is a Grant Funding Strategy. A Funding Strategy is a 12-month roadmap outlining grant opportunities with the highest likelihood of success to fund an organization's needs. Nonprofits often struggle to pursue grants consistently, treating it as a sporadic activity to tackle whenever they have time or a pressing need. A Funding Strategy saves them time and gives them a concrete plan to generate more revenue for their projects than they'd likely be able to pursue on their own. What's an ideal foot-in-the-door strategy for your chosen industry or niche? Determine one based on what you've learned from your contact and your own research. Think of it as a low-risk way for you to get to know one another and to prove your value to them. Once you've determined your deliverable, reach out again to offer a proposal with your deliverable:\nI can help you solve the problem we discussed, and I can get it done in a couple of weeks. Here's what I'm thinking… What are your thoughts? Can I send you a proposal for what it would look like to work together on this? Looking forward to hearing from you! Asking for a proposal sets up the expectation of this gig being paid. Plus, a proposal can easily be converted into a contract with a quick signature from the client. If all goes well, you'll secure your first low-risk freelancing work. Get ready to dive in!\nStep 4: Create the Deliverable. Now comes the really exciting part—doing paid work in your new chosen field!\nYour career change is off to a stellar start. Solve your client's problem and do a job you're proud of. Remember, you have value to offer! Refer back to all the training and resources you've gathered to prepare for your new career. If you're part of an online community like the Global Grant Writers Collective®, tap into all the help at your disposal if you need it, like mentoring, guides, and advice from fellow practitioners. Complete the deliverable according to the timeline in your initial contract or wow your client by delivering the work ahead of time. Allow a week or so for your client to make any iterations to your deliverable (set this up in the proposal to minimize excessive back and forth) and, boom, your deliverable is finalized for the client. Step 5: Amend the Contract to Extend the Work. Here's where you turn one-time work into sustained business. This simple step can be a game-changer. Meet up with your client to present your deliverable, answer their questions, and then pivot:\nThese are my recommendations, and I can help you implement them, too. What do you think about amending the contract so I can put these plans into action for you? If the client agrees, you'll secure more work, and they'll have an even easier time realizing the ROI of your plan. Your help will likely be less expensive and/or time-intensive for them than it would otherwise cost to devote a paid employee to the task. If the client's challenge is important but difficult to prioritize internally (common for busy, cash-strapped nonprofits), you can help them quickly address it without siphoning time away from their most pressing activities. 🦄 In our field of grant writing, we've seen this step turn quick odd jobs into $100k contracts! By offering to write all the grants in their funding strategies, our members have quickly launched lucrative freelance grant writing careers and raised over $567 million in funding for nonprofits in their communities—real win-win outcomes. Of course, not every opportunity will play out like this. However, if you're starting from scratch in a brand new industry, any new business represents growth. In fact, any new conversation is a step forward. Don't underestimate the power of an informational interview even if initially they don't become a client. We've seen grant writers land clients months after their initial conversations. This tip applies across all industries and skill sets, too. Take a close look at your deliverable and think about the extra work that the client will have to do to implement it. How can you fill those needs? Step 6: Repeat Steps 1-5 (and Keep Improving). Remember your list of potential contacts? Return to it and work your way down the list.\nRepeat the steps above and build a knockout portfolio of freelancing work. Keep listening, learning, and improving along the way. ⭐ Our best tip for this stage: Remember that opportunities tend to boomerang back after the upfront investment of your time. It can take a while for a potential client to get back in touch or agree to extend the work. The connections and foundations you lay will pay off if you stay consistent and keep producing high-quality work. Keep refreshing and expanding your list of contacts. Ideally, you should have a couple of projects going on simultaneously but at different stages of work (i.e., producing a new foot-in-the-door deliverable while you're also implementing an older one for a different client). The goal is to keep your plate of available work nice and full. Master this process and you can build a thriving side hustle.\nStep 7: Earn $15K and Decide your Next Step! Finally, you'll decide how to springboard your hard-won freelancing experience into a real career change.\nWe recommend earning your first $15k through freelancing projects. Then, you have a choice:\nKeep the ball rolling and officially launch your own consulting business. As an independent consultant, you'll continue with the contract-based work you've been doing. This means quitting your current job to go full-time with your own work. It's a little nerve-wracking, but you've proven you can do it. We see grant writers in the Collective transition to full-time consulting in just nine months. Of course, you can also wait until you've earned more than $15k if that will relieve your fears (just remember that changing careers was your ultimate goal—do not get burned out working two jobs at once). Find a new job in your chosen career. Your new portfolio of paid work and network of contacts and clients will help immensely. Even if you're technically underqualified for a fantastic job opportunity, you can still succeed because you've proven you can do the work. We see it happen with our members all the time. There you have it! This straightforward career change methodology reduces risk while building your experience and confidence. It gives you the flexibility to make the right choice for your circumstances when the time comes. And it works—check out the examples below for proof. Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video Career Change Success Stories Want to see how some real people pulled off successful career changes?\nIf you follow the Organic Networking Framework, you'll eventually reach a crossroads in your freelancing journey: Go independent as your own small consulting business or find a new job in your chosen field. We've got examples of each path: 🦄 Loretta Skiff: From $14/hr Working in a Dog Kennel to $100k as a Grant Writer Loretta, with a master's degree, was making $14/hr working in a dog kennel. She now charges $18,000 for grant proposals. She scaled her team and now hires other Collective unicorns because her flywheel is churning. She even helped win half a million in funding for the redwood forest she used to hike as a kid! Hear the Full Story 🦄 Diane Debrovner: 20 Years as a Magazine Editor to $50K Grant Writer in One Year! Diane loved her career as a magazine editor, but technology was quickly shrinking her industry. She made a late-in-life career pivot to grant writing. Working part-time hours, Diane secured over $50,000 in revenue as a grant writer. She's found time to do more of what she loves like securing a publishing deal for her first book. Hear the Full Story 🦄 Joel Dulin: From a Dead-end Job to Grant Writing Success in Eight Months Joel hit the ceiling in his marketing job. Looking at a career pivot, he sent out hundreds of emails, but got zero responses. He instead used the Organic Networking Framework to have curious conversations with contacts. After eight months of grant writing, he was able to leave his job in marketing. He doubled his salary working for himself and had more financial security to support extracurricular activities for his three kids. As a bonus, he also had time to publish a novel he'd been working on for eight years. Hear the Full Story 🦄 Jessica Stack: Launched a Successful Consulting Business Jessica joined the Global Grant Writers Collective® in 2021 after re-evaluating her personal and financial goals during the pandemic. As a busy teacher and mother of young children, she decided that she wanted to find a new opportunity that would give her schedule greater flexibility, help her earn more for her family, and ultimately let her build a freer life. After learning about grant writing and building a freelancing portfolio, she dramatically grew her practice. After 18 months, she hit $100k in revenue from grant writing contracts. Read the Full Story 🦄 Julia-Grace Sanders: Doubled Her Salary in a Brand New Field Julia-Grace was a journalist covering niche topics but found that the work wasn't personally fulfilling and didn't offer much room for career growth. After hearing about grant writing from a friend, she took a closer look. She found that the things she loved about journalism—talking to people, telling stories, learning something new every day—transferred beautifully to grant writing. Fast forward, and Julia-Grace successfully followed the Organic Networking Framework to build her grant writing experience (including a $22k freelancing contract). Before long she'd landed a full-time grant writing job that pays double her old salary. Read the Full Story We share these stories not to show off our thriving grant writing community (although we're pretty proud of it 😉) but to illustrate the power of the Organic Networking Framework. Start small, learn the ropes, and build your confidence and experience. This way you'll give yourself real options and stronger chances of building a thriving career that you love. Want to see more success stories about grant writing? We've got tons more from our community. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Some Age-Specific Career Change Advice Age is one of the biggest concerns that people have when weighing a career change. Am I too old to venture into a new field? Am I too young to bring enough relevant experience to my job search? If you've been asking one of these questions, you're not alone. The fact is that ages can make a difference during a career change. This difference isn't always in the opportunities you're able to pursue (although age discrimination unfortunately does happen), but also in your personal circumstances and mindset. After all, things change as we go through new eras of our lives. We have new, more, or different responsibilities that we need to factor into the career change equation. We bring different attitudes and skill sets to the table that can impact the amount of friction we encounter during a big professional transition. Here are a few age-specific career change tips that you may find helpful. We recommend reading through all of them. The tips stack as you go—they're helpful for everyone, but we want to call out specific advice that might be most relevant for people in different age groups. Use the Organic Networking Method as your foundation and build up from there: How to Change Careers at 30\nIn your 30s, you're getting comfortable in your working life.\nMaybe you've landed a career that's been working fine so far, but it's not really tapping into your passions or offering the growth opportunities you want. Maybe you want to earn more, or you have new responsibilities or priorities in your life that have made you re-evaluate your career choices. Maybe you've struggled to find a satisfying or well-paying career at all and want to take control of your journey. Whatever brings you to considering a career change, there are some key tips to keep in mind:\nReally take the time to understand what you want. Knowing this now will set you up for a long and fulfilling career that meshes with your interests, life goals, and needs. Do you know that you want to start a family? Or that your top priority is landing a high-paying position? Do you value independence and want to start your own business? Factors like these will all shape the journey you take. Identify your transferable skills. Many job-changers in their 30s already have valuable experience in a different field than the one they want to break into. A common concern is that a lack of directly relevant experience will hold them back. (Those unrealistic requirements in job listings don't help, either.) However, you probably already have transferable skills that will serve you well in your new field. Look back at the success stories above—a former journalist found that her storytelling and interviewing skills translated perfectly into a new grant writing career. Have patience. When you have a clear idea of what you want from a new career, it can be easy to lose patience with the whole process. Even if you're in a hurry, think twice before quitting a job cold turkey to find one in a new industry. The world's unpredictable, and you'll thank yourself for taking the time to thoroughly prepare. Get some training, research on your own time, and follow the Organic Networking Method described above. You may be surprised at how quickly (and smoothly) it goes for you. Want a real-life example of a career change in your 30s? Check out Erin's journey from scientist to grant writer. How to Change Careers at 40 In your 40s, you're established in your working life. If you're like many, you've been at a job for a while and know your industry well. This is also a time when our personal responsibilities—family, mortgages, all that fun stuff—reach a peak. Maybe you're feeling burnt out and have realized that a personal passion of yours would make for a more fulfilling career. Perhaps you need or want to earn more to support your family, or you're thinking ahead to retirement and want to see if you can earn more with something new. Consider these tips:\nShout out your strengths. After your years of work, you understand your professional strengths better than anyone. Take some time to think about and define them. Let them shine front and center as you explore new career options, apply for jobs, or launch your own business. Carefully weigh your responsibilities. Retirement savings, relatives getting older and requiring care, kids getting ready for college sooner than you think—there might be a lot more on your mind than in your 20s and 30s. Considering your unique mix of practical needs and responsibilities is especially important right now as you chart out a career change path. Tap into the power of your network. By the time we're working in our 40s, we've met plenty of people, including bosses, coworkers, clients, partners, and all kinds of other supporting characters. Don't be afraid to break out the old Rolodex and revisit your network of contacts. Someone you know may have launched their own business or moved into a new organization or line of work that interests you. Don't feel defensive about age. Don't let the inherent anxiety of a transitional period like a career change get the better of you and make you feel defensive about your age. Everyone started a new career at some point. You should feel proud that you're taking control of your career path. Prepare, network, learn, and earn—you've got this. Get up to speed on the tech used in your chosen space. Every industry has its own unique set of tools, some or many of which might be brand new to you. You don't need to be a whiz off the bat (that's what job training is for), but you should have a working knowledge of what these tools are and how/why they're used. Try to get firsthand experience with them if you can. Prioritize training resources that cover common industry tools. Keep an eye on AI, too. It's transforming all kinds of fields (grant writing included), so a solid understanding of how to use it in your new field can set you apart. How to Change Careers at 50 By your 50s, you know a thing or two about your skills and priorities. Maybe you've spent decades in one career or have hopped around within related fields, expanding your skillset and network along the way. Some of the responsibilities of your 40s and earlier 50s may have relaxed a bit, too, for instance, if a child graduated college and is fully supporting themself. You might be looking forward to retirement and want to plan ahead for a personally fulfilling side hustle to supplement your income and keep your hands busy. For some, the idea of retirement might be a new source of financial anxiety, leading you to want to supplement your income now with a better job or freelance career. What should older working professionals keep in mind when changing careers or launching new side businesses? Here are our tips: Build an online presence. You've probably been online just like everyone else, but are you up-to-date on the web practices that people use to promote their businesses and brands these days? LinkedIn is totally free to use, and simple websites for your side hustle or brand are relatively inexpensive (and easier to create than you might think). Make passion a priority. You know your needs and circumstances best, but for many looking to change careers in their 50s, the goal is to build supplemental income through a personal passion. If this is you, let your passion lead you. You've worked decades to get where you are (possibly in a career that you didn't enjoy). Take the opportunity to build the freedom and fulfillment you've wanted. Use your years of experience to your advantage. As an older working adult, you've seen it all—good and bad bosses, coworkers, and business strategies. Think back on the most impactful lessons you've learned along the way. Take stock of all the skills you've picked up over the years. List your professional strengths and weaknesses. Use these to help shape your decision-making as you move ahead with a freelancing move or interviews for new jobs. Be prepared to work with younger people. If you follow the Organic Networking Framework and choose to find a new job, be aware of what you're stepping into. Your new coworkers or managers may be younger than you and have different attitudes than you're used to in professional settings. Remember, there are just as many unhelpful generalizations out there about younger professionals as there are about older professionals. Team players who don't fall prey to those generalizations are the ones who thrive long-term. Want an example of a successful change in your 50s? We've got a great one—Check out Abigail's journey to becoming a nonprofit Executive Director and grant writer. Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video More Resources and Tips for Starting a New Career Let's review a few additional tips that everyone—regardless of age, skill level, or intended career—should keep in mind when preparing for a professional transition: Do a reality check. You can make a plan to follow your dreams (or at least take your first steps toward them), but you also must take stock of your circumstances and practical needs. Make a list of the pros and cons of your intended career change. To be safe, assume you'll make less money than you currently do, at least in the short term. How would this tangibly affect your life? Your family's lives? Invest in education (but don't jump the gun). If you're 100% positive you want to move into a field in which a particular secondary degree would be necessary to land your dream job, go for it. If you're not 100% positive, hold off on making a big commitment to an expensive higher education program. Scale your education investment to your needs until you're confident in the direction you want to go. Your training options will vary significantly depending on the industry, but practical, hands-on training is often the best choice for newcomers in non-academic fields. Professional programs that offer industry-recognized certifications (like the Global Grant Writers Collective®!) can be a smarter choice when taking your first steps. Find a community. Speaking of finding practical training opportunities, look for communities of fellow trainees and practitioners in your chosen field. The Global Grant Writers Collective is a great example for grant writers. The right combination of training curriculum, coaching, resources, and community can be incredibly empowering. Find the right community and rest assured that no matter the problem you're facing, a fellow member is currently dealing with it or has overcome it in the past. Consider lateral career change opportunities. Before moving forward with a significant career change, make sure to review all your options. Your current place of work might offer lateral career change possibilities, i.e. moving into a new, unrelated role within your current organization. It's worth feeling these out or explicitly discussing them with your manager beforehand. If your organization is well-managed and open to lateral job changes, you could do this now. If you're not sure, you might want to wait to bring it up until you're fully prepared to leave your current role. Recognize imposter syndrome when it rears its ugly head. As your efforts take off and you begin to see the fruits of your labor, it may feel strange. Who are you to be successfully venturing into a new field? Do you know what you're doing? Are you just getting lucky? These self-sabotaging feelings create imposter syndrome, and it can paralyze your progress if you let it. Prepare to encounter it, listen to it (in case it does help you uncover particular weak spots to improve), but then let it go and keep moving. Quick exercise: Let's say you've spent a few months learning, practicing, and taking on paid freelance work in your chosen field. You're still feeling a little iffy about your skills. Then you find two perfect job listings: One with a \"coordinator\" title and another with a \"manager\" title. Which one do you apply for? ⭐ Spoiler alert—there's no right answer, but this is a scenario where unchecked imposter syndrome might really hold you back from amazing possibilities. Want to hear about this real-life example? Learn Grant Writing member Wedeline Casimir shared her amazing story with us. Take a look to learn how she overcame imposter syndrome and took a risk to land a dream role. Helpful Resources for Changing Careers Looking for additional resources to help you navigate your career change? Here are a few to explore:\nOccupational Outlook Handbook from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This official federal resource compiles pay statistics and other details for various occupations. Use it to roughly gauge a median income and get the lay of the land for your dream role. CareerOneStop from the U.S. Department of Labor. Here's another federal resource that rounds up tons of helpful information and resources for job seekers, including self-assessments, certification information, resume and interview tips, and more. Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) from the U.S. Department of Labor. If you're a U.S. military veteran, service member, or spouse, this program provides a range of helpful job change resources, services, mentoring, and workshops. American Job Centers. These government resource offices established as part of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act help to connect job seekers with local businesses. Explore the website to learn more and find your nearest Job Center. CareerLeader. If you're interested in business and want to forge a new career, this well-regarded self-assessment program can help you narrow down potential industries and identify your strengths and weaknesses. Note that the program costs $99.95 but may be worth the investment if you want a little upfront guidance to narrow down your interests and potential career fields. My Skills My Future, a part of the CareerOneStop suite of resources. This easy tool helps you identify and explore your professional skills. Enter your current or past job to explore others that draw on the transferable skills you already have under your belt. We hope that this guide and the Organic Networking Framework empower you to chart out the career you've dreamed of. Whether you're looking for better pay, more flexible hours, or more fulfillment, this process can help. One last note: We strongly recommend grant writing as an ideal choice for many prospective career changers. This is especially true for those with backgrounds that involve writing, project management, and nonprofit work (although it's still an excellent choice for anyone with a desire to claim more freedom in their life while helping support worthy causes). Learn How to Become a Paid Grant Writer Want to learn more? Here are a few additional resources (some grant-specific) from our team:\nCareer Change for Teachers: How-To Guide and 15 Ideas Part-Time Entrepreneurship By Necessity Why Start a Side Hustle Grant Writing? Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026amp; Succeed Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? How to Plan Your Quarter for Business and Life Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2024-08-16","description":"Ready for a new career but don’t know where to start? We’ve got you covered. This freelancing\nframework gives you a simple roadmap for changing careers.\n","formatted_date":"August 16, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/how-to-change-careers-cover-image_hu_c01079e591141d1e.webp","permalink":"/blog/how-to-change-careers/","slug":"how-to-change-careers","summary":"Ready for a new career but don’t know where to start? We’ve got you covered. This freelancing\nframework gives you a simple roadmap for changing careers.\n","title":"How To Change Careers \u0026 Thrive: Simple 7-Step Framework"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Welcome to the new frontier for grant writers. Artificial intelligence (AI) tech is already changing the game and reshaping the field of grant writing. What's all the buzz about? Our team in the Global Grant Writers Collective® dove in head first to see for ourselves. We tested tools and even built one from the ground up (jump ahead to take a look). The results have been amazing. Our technology partners who helped build our AI grant writing software tried it out, too. They earned $1 million in revenue with NO grant writing experience. 🚨 Wait, what? Does this mean AI will take your job? Or that anyone can do this?\nMight look like it, but no! There's a lot of AI anxiety out there—don't fall for it. You can and will succeed in the new era of grant writing if you adapt. Here's what you'll need: Grant writing know-how and support (from trusted experts like us 😉) Working knowledge of AI and how to use it for grant writing (you're in the right place!) Quality AI tools designed specifically by and for grant writers (spoiler alert - we've got you covered) We've hit all the AI roadblocks so you don't have to, and we're ready to share what we've learned.\n🤖 Read on to start building your grant writing future! 🚀\nLouder again for the people in the back: We're a long way from robots taking over our jobs as grant writers, but grant writers using AI will. Winnie the Grant Writer Swipe our CustomGPT that we built and tested on over 100 grant applications. She makes grant writing a breeze.\nAccess Winnie the Grant Writer! Free Access Winnie the Grant Writer Your AI-powered grant writing assistant\n\u0026times; Quick Answers: What is AI? First, a little context. With a whole lot of jargon floating around, let's bring these AI concepts down to earth. ⭐ What is AI? Technically put, artificial intelligence (AI) is the approximate replication of human thought processes or \"intelligence\" by machines. AI also generally refers to the field of researching and developing this kind of technology. These thought processes involve identifying patterns in data (usually huge sets of it) to find connections and using them to make inferences. AI is like an echo in a mountain. When you shout something to a mountain, the echo repeats what you said. If a group of people shouts to a mountain, the echo will sound kind of like a combination of those sounds. AI similarly repeats, uses, and combines the information it gets, just like an echo uses the sound of your voice. ⭐ What is machine learning? Machine learning (ML), is the pattern identification process that powers AI technology.\nAI systems scour data for connections and patterns. They then \"learn\" from these patterns to judge probability and make inferences, loosely similar to the human decision-making process. ML systems can retain their correct inferences to inform future outputs, basically learning from their mistakes and improving their \"understanding\" of different connections. Think of it like this: Your favorite video game or phone app gets harder as you get better at it. Just like when you play a game that adjusts to challenge your current skill level, ML systems learn from what happens and try to become better at their tasks. Part of what sets an ML process apart from human learning is its scale. AI systems trained on large datasets can process tons more information than human brains, hence all the buzz around the potential this technology has to change the way work is done. ⭐ How do AI chatbots work? AI chatbots like ChatGPT are large language models (LLMs). These are a type of AI system specifically built to analyze and generate text. These models are trained with large sets of data and written content to find patterns between words, phrases, concepts, and how they're arranged together. Then, LLMs \"learn\" from those patterns to generate written outputs. When an LLM generates a written response, it's predicting that those words fit together and answer your query based on everything it's \"learned.\" Think of it like a vast recipe book that contains every recipe ever written—every dish, every dessert, every seasoning tip. Now, let's say you're trying to decide what to make for dinner, but you're not quite sure of the steps or ingredients. You ask this book, and because it has so much knowledge from all these recipes, it helps you figure out the best recipe based on what you like or what ingredients you have. Instead of just recipes, LLMs contain words, sentences, and information from millions of books, articles, and the internet. When you ask it a question, it looks through all it has learned to help give you the best answer. This process is called natural language processing (NLP), a type of machine learning. ⭐ What are the types of AI you might encounter in grant writing? As a grant writer (or most other kinds of professionals these days), you'll encounter different types of AI technology. These tools fall into two general categories based on how they're used and what kind of outputs they provide: Generative AI. These tools generate written answers to queries (and now visuals, too). They take the form of LLMs. They can be trained on very broad sets of data to respond to practically any query or on smaller sets of data to serve more specific purposes, like our grant writing AI tool. Examples: ChatGPT is the most famous generative AI tool today, but you've used plenty of others without knowing it. Think of chatbots on websites or other virtual assistants. Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube suggestions—yup, those are aspects of generative AI, too. Predictive AI. These AI systems are designed specifically for analyzing data to generate predictions based on the patterns in it. While generative AI does something similar by treating language as data, these are data-first tools that provide data-based responses. For example, many nonprofits today use AI systems to rank donors by their likelihood to give based on a range of prospect research data points. Examples: Think of your weather apps, stock market apps, or traffic apps like Waze. Even Google Maps analyzes the current traffic as data to predict your time of arrival. Pretty handy, right? How Can You Use AI for Grant Writing? AI can be immensely helpful for grant writers. Consider these use cases during different stages of the grant writing process (and imagine how much time you could save when you sit down to tackle them): Grant Research\nPredictive AI algorithms can help you identify the most viable opportunities to pursue based on various known factors like past funding, approximated competitiveness, mission alignment, and more insights available in grant databases. Grant Preparation\nUse generative AI tools to create project summaries and organizational background materials using the details you provide. Spend just a fraction of the time refining and polishing them. The right approach could help you generate the entire narrative skeleton of your grant in just minutes! Proposal Writing\nGet your grant writing questions answered by AI chatbots trained on relevant content, generate language for the proposal, and save time (which you can put back into taking your proposal to the next level with compelling details). Business Logistics for Freelancers\nFor freelance grant writers, use AI tech to generate client onboarding materials and contracts. Some tools might even help you source new clients by exploring connections in your network between organizations and funders through mission alignment, location, specialties, etc. Of course, exact functionalities will vary greatly from one AI platform to another. If you invest in any new AI tools for your organization or freelancing business, first think about your biggest pain points. Where would automation help? Prioritize these possible improvements and use them to guide your search for new additions to your toolkit. What are the Benefits of Using AI for Grant Writing? Even though the technology is complex, the primary benefit of using AI to support grant writing is very simple: It saves you a ton of time. Whether you ask an AI chatbot for fast answers or generate starter text for sections of a project brief for a client, AI equals efficiency. Full stop. Let the AI tools do the heavy lifting so you can skip the writer's block and stay in your zone of genius, adding the human touch. AI tools write drafts. Grant writers turn them into winning proposals by understanding the context and adding more compelling details. Under this efficiency umbrella, AI brings more specific benefits depending on how it's used, including:\nSolving the blank page problem and writer's block Revealing new insights and connections that you might miss. Analyzing provided data (like funder reports or 990s) to provide quick summaries and highlight notable trends. Making boring tasks less boring—let AI handle things like drafting contracts and organizational background sections. From one grant writer to another, I'm telling you that you are going to put out higher-quality work when you rapidly uplevel your efficiency. Increased efficiency means higher-quality work leading to more funding for organizations. Get more done in smarter ways, and you get to focus on bringing the sparkle. You get to win more funding overall because you'll have more time in a deep workspace to bring the magic. More funding for organizations means a radical impact on communities and greater financial freedom for grant writers. Using AI effectively is a win-win-win for the world. When nonprofits and consultants lean into these changes with curiosity, they change the game. We've got the perfect tool to help you get started—check it out. 8 Myths About AI Check out the video and guide we made for you on the top 8 myths keeping you from using AI (or using it with peace of mind anyway!)\n8 Myths About AI Free Guide 8 Myths Keeping You From Using AI Fully Download your ultimate myth busting guide\n\u0026times; Potential Drawbacks: Is AI Safe to Use for Grant Writing? Of course, any new technology brings some risks, especially in the early days of its adoption. We're guessing the first person to ride a horse (or unicorn 🦄) probably learned how to do it the hard way. The risks and potential drawbacks of artificial intelligence have been discussed a lot, so you're probably aware of several of them. However, it's crucial to understand these possibilities so you can 1) find trustworthy tools and 2) ethically deploy them with real nonprofits. These are the three biggest concerns to keep in mind:\n1. Generic or Incorrect Answers It's well known at this point that general AI tools like ChatGPT can generate pretty blah (or even completely made-up) answers to queries. Its writing style is already fairly recognizable, too. This means that some AI tools may inadvertently take more of your time to use effectively. They might require you to manually tinker with the prompts, refine the generated language, and check for accuracy. In many situations, this defeats the whole purpose of AI, making it not worth the time to use when you could do tasks manually the old-fashioned way. 🚀 The Solution: Use an expert-crafted grant writing tool built for the purpose of grant writing. Systems trained specifically on material about grant writing will be much more likely to give you the reliable, consistent outputs you need to make them truly useful. 2. Privacy Risks The outputs of LLMs are typically used to continually retrain them—hence the learning part of machine learning. But when these tools are publicly (or just broadly) available for use, this can create security and privacy risks. Sensitive information might get added back to the big pot of data that's mixed up and served to other users. Nonprofits and anyone working on their behalf must be mindful of these concerns and avoid sharing potentially sensitive information with LLMs if appropriate safeguards aren't in place. Failing to protect your organization's, donors', clients', or their donors' information can bring reputational (and maybe even legal) damage. AI has also triggered several copyright battles, which might be a concern for some organizations.\n🚀 The Solution: Use AI tools that store information completely in closed private systems. Some AI platforms train private, personalized algorithms for each user, meaning they don't return any outputs to be inadvertently shared with others 📣 In the grant writing space, our solution is currently the only one that provides complete algorithmic privacy. 📣 3. Job Security: Will AI Take My Job? No way around it, the rise of AI has unleashed a lot of anxiety about the possibility of it replacing human workers in many industries. Will AI take your job as a grant writer? No. But a grant writer using AI will.\nWe know firsthand. We've been quietly building a grant writing consulting business with our new AI grant writing software, so we've seen exactly where and how the technology falls short. A human touch is still very strongly needed for the relationship building and communication that only a human can do right now. Only you have the context, judgment, and common sense to handle some details like attachments, program design, project management, and more. However, knowing how to use AI tools will quickly become an industry standard for driving maximum impact. Remember, the name of the game is efficiency. Plus, with the rise of grant writing-specific AI tools like ours, you don't even need to become a prompt engineering expert—we've already done it for you. 🚀 The Solution: Dip your toes into the world of AI grant writing soon. Explore the options already available to you (like as a Learn Grant Writing Collective member). No need to be afraid of a new tool, especially one that could transform your career! So is ChatGPT even helpful for grant writing? You're probably wondering if ChatGPT, the world's buzziest generative AI tool, is a good choice to help with your grant writing projects. No, it's not. Especially when grant writing-specific alternatives are out there to use instead (like ours).\nMany of us have already experienced this weird contradiction: AI has huge potential and is a majorly disruptive force. But when you use ChatGPT, you often get long-winded, fluffy replies. They're not in your writing style, and they're often incorrect or too vague to be immediately helpful. You end up spending much longer to spruce up ChatGPT's responses than you'd spend doing the work yourself. Not to mention you've got to worry about privacy risks, too. Learn How To Use AI Like a Pro: Introducing the AI Besties Grant Writing Course The truth is, the power of AI in grant writing lies in your skillful use of the technology, not in the company that provides it. A grant writer well-versed in AI fundamentals can wield any tool to drive powerful results. Enter the AI Besties Grant Writing Course, Learn Grant Writing's game-changing, self-paced course that teaches grant writers how to confidently use AI to create, refine, and enhance compelling grant narratives. In this course you'll learn:\nPrompt engineering: Master the art of crafting effective AI prompts that return valuable responses. Time-saving workflows: Save 10+ hours per grant simply by knowing how to get high-quality drafts and editing support from your AI tool. Ethical and responsible AI use: Unlock the efficiency of AI without sacrificing your unique voice, values, and ethics. The future of grant writing isn't about letting AI do everything for you—it's about writing faster, better, and with less stress by knowing how to use these tools wisely. Ready to Become an AI-Savvy Grant Writer? We'll transform how you work in 30 days, so you can feel confident you're using AI the right way. No more casual dabbling. It is time to go pro without the headache.\nWatch Free Training See what's happening inside the Global Grant Writers Collective®: Success Stories from Collective Members One Collective member, Courtney, was preparing to work with a new client. She plugged past grant proposals for the client's program into Unicorn Copilot and reviewed outputs. The result? Drastically simplified meeting prep with a clear vision, summaries about the program, its recent changes, and current needs. From a six-hour task down to less than an hour. Wow.\nWhat happened next? Courtney quit her 9-5 job in May and by June had replaced her monthly income with grant writing gigs. After six months, she'd done $100k in business—a success that she attributes to AI Copilot helping her dramatically scale and streamline her work. This is the core value of AI for grant writing professionals—quickly cut through the clutter and background to get to the meat and potatoes of the work. Now, multiply these time-savings across all your work and you're looking at some serious efficiency. With more time to put into quality, impact, and connection-building instead of logistics, you'll be an unstoppable grant writing force. Join the Community and the New Frontier of Grant Writing! Save time, work smarter, impress clients, and drive more impact for nonprofits in your community. AI technology is changing how work is done, including grant writing, and we're excited to have you on board. Not yet a Collective member? Learn more about our exclusive community for grant writers of all skill levels to learn, practice, and thrive together. To learn more about grant writing, how to win more grants, or even launch your own freelance career, follow us on YouTube or keep exploring these resources from our team: Grant Writing 101: What is it \u0026amp; how do you get started? How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026amp; Succeed Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Want to Write Grants Using AI? AI is no longer for the early adopters—It's fundamentally changing how professionals work. Enroll in our course to go from casually dabbling in AI to being professionally certified in 30 days.\nLearn More ","date":"2024-06-02","description":"AI for grant writing is rapidly changing how nonprofits secure funding. Ready to be on the cutting\nedge of grant writing tech? Check out our crash course.\n","formatted_date":"June 2, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/ai-for-grant-writing-guide_hu_6030bc27467c8251.webp","permalink":"/blog/ai-for-grant-writing/","slug":"ai-for-grant-writing","summary":null,"title":"AI for Grant Writing: Your Burning Questions Answered"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Let's say a new task just landed on your plate: Securing more funding for your nonprofit.\nBut you're stretched for time. Grant opportunities are pouring in through your inbox from the board. They're all due in two weeks, and you just got off the phone with a donor who's decided they're not pledging this year. Another fire to put out—a typical day, right? You're doing the best you can with your finite energy, and we're rooting for you. In fact, this blog post is for you. Grant writing unlocks growth and stability for nonprofits. When you know how to work smarter to secure funding efficiently, the right grants approach will help you multiply what you're able to get done with your precious time. More funding for projects and programs, fewer headaches and anxieties that prevent you from doing the real on-the-ground work. We've rounded up the mostimportant tips for grant writing newcomers. Master these, and you'll have a solid foundation for securing more funding, saving more time, and driving more impact for your nonprofit. Check them out: Understand What Grants Are and Are Not. Know Where to Look for Grants. Build Relationships with Grant Funders. Find the Right Grants for Your Nonprofit. Partner with Other Nonprofits. Spend Enough Time on the Grant Application. Recycle Proposal Content Thoughtfully. Have Your Application Independently Reviewed. Stay Grant-Ready. Get Some Professional Grant Writing Training. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Tip 1: Understand What Grants Are and Are Not. Quick refresher: A grant is a gift of money awarded to an entity so that the entity can achieve a specific goal or purpose. Typically, this money is awarded from two primary types of funders: Government (city, state, and federal). Foundations (community and private). It's important to have a realistic expectation of what grants can do (and cannot do) for your organization.\nGrant funding can be an incredible strategic type of funding, but you simply cannot rely on it to get your organization out of the red. In other words, winning grants should be the icing on the cake, not the actual cake. Ideally, grant funding complements your existing development efforts. It's important to have a diversified fundraising plan, where grant-awarded money constitutes no more than 10-20% of your fundraising goals depending on your organization type. This is true for any part of your fundraising plan—for example, you should be nervous if a single major donor represents much more than 20% of your yearly revenue. Why? If that revenue stream dries up for whatever reason, you're left high and dry! Obviously, we love grants here. But what we care about more is that you develop a sustainable, truly effective organization that can cover your base costs. Key Takeaway: Grants should help your organization stabilize and grow, not make up the basis (or a risky chunk) of your entire operating budget. Tip 2: Know Where to Look for Grants. If you give an executive director an idea for a new revenue stream, they'll probably immediately ask how they can tap into it. The question is this: Where do you find grants? The first and easiest thing you can do is think about your network. Who is your banker, electric company, insurance provider, etc.? Do they have a grant program or a corporate foundation established? Reach out and ask about the application process. Get to know what they're interested in funding—you'll never know unless you ask! However, the fastest way to consistently find grant opportunities is to use a grant database. A database can do in seconds what could take you days to do with Google searches. Visually, it's a much easier way to organize and track grant opportunities. But, which database do I use? Great question. We did the research so you don't have to. Check out our reviews of the top grant databases, plus our final recommendation. Spoiler Alert: Our favorite database is Instrumentl. Plus, they provide a discount to students of Learn Grant Writing—use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month. Check it out! Tip 3: Build Relationships with Grant Funders. For nonprofit organizations, relationship-building is key to success. The successful pursuit of grant funding is no different. You should ideally work to build relationships with funders before, during, and after applying for grant funding with that particular agency. This is a blessing and a curse because while it takes work to build relationships, these connections can help you tremendously. Basically, do what you do best—care for donors as you care for your beneficiaries. Get to know them, invite them to partner with you in your mission, learn more about their funding goals, and engage where they do in the community. In the same vein, don't neglect to follow up and thank your funders. Be diligent in your reporting and evaluation measurements. Stay connected with the funder throughout the funding cycle. Demonstrate your thankfulness and recognize their gifts how they prefer to be recognized, like with a press release, anonymously, a sign on the door, etc. Handy Resource: One of our most popular blog posts covers strategies for \"invite-only\" funders. In it, you'll find tactical tips for relationship-building (whether the funder is \"invite-only\" or not.) Tip 4: Find the Right Grants for Your Nonprofit. Relationship-building goes hand in hand with researching potential funders for your nonprofit.\nAs you whittle down your list of funders, be sure to ask who and what they have funded in the past and how much. This will first help you determine whether a funder is the right fit now and then, if you move forward, will inform your ask when you submit applications. You can also learn a great deal about a funder's history through their 990-form data. Grant research is a huge topic, and, in our opinion, this is the most important step you take to know you are focusing on the right grants in the first place. We even dedicate an entire module in the Global Grant Writers Collective® to grant research and prioritization. Bonus points if you take a deeper dive with Chapters 4, 5, and 13 in our book, How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn. Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now Once you have a manageable list of funders to consider, schedule a call with a program officer. Be sure to check if any of your board members already have a relationship with the funding organization. If so, ask them to coordinate an introduction. In this meeting, your goal is not to sell your organization or proposed project. Instead, be curious. Learn. Objectively evaluate if your organizations are a good fit for each other. If you bring this mindset shift to your meeting, you will have a much more honest, meaningful, and productive conversation. After all, nothing is worse than spending a ton of time on a grant you have no chance of winning. Be skeptical until you have enough positive data points to confirm the grant is worth your time and resources to pursue. Crucial Reminder:\nIf you find yourself stretching your programming plans to make your ask fit within a funder's preferences, stop. Let that grant opportunity go. When you stretch and alter your vision and goals, you're not going to beat out applicants who have missions that perfectly align with the funder's. There are always other grants! Tip 5: Partner with Other Nonprofits. This might sound scary, but hear us out. Other nonprofits are not your competition. We're all in this together working to create a better community and world. Work to adopt an abundance mindset (there are plenty of resources available for us all) versus a scarcity mindset (there aren't enough resources to go around). By partnering with other nonprofits on a specific project, you can:\nDemonstrate to funders that you're willing to work collaboratively (and isn't that the definition of life at a nonprofit—collaboration?) Give the funder the opportunity to support multiple organizations in just one project. It's hard to say no to a well-developed, collaborative, and creative project that supports multiple missions. Expand your organization's reach, both in terms of providing your services and reaching new donors. For example, I recently wrote two Housing and Urban Development grants for two different rural Alaskan communities. Per the funding guidelines, the proposed project required applicants to hire a Project Manager who would be a .5 FTE (full-time equivalent). The two communities agreed to share that Project Manager who would split their time between each village. Since these two villages were pursuing the same grant in the same funding cycle, the two village representatives attended our project meetings together and helped one another submit the best possible proposals. And, you know what? They both were awarded funding ($1.3 million! #humblebrag). How much more fun that the two villages could celebrate together?! Key Takeaway: Don't be afraid to collaborate. Choose generosity over fear of scarcity—it pays off.\nTip 6: Spend Enough Time on the Grant Application. We've seen this before and it's not pretty. That's why we're going to say it louder for the people in the back: 📣 Spend more than five minutes on the grant application! 📣 Even a short application from a small community foundation takes time and intentionality. Even an \"easy grant\" that you're confident you'll win requires time. Tough love: You're not doing yourself, your organization, or who you serve any favors by rushing through the application. Slow down and remember the basics of good writing. Complete sentences, the craft of story, persuasion, etc. ✏️ Free Writing Resource ✏️ We actually built an entire course on writing for grant writers—check it out! Don't forget to consider asking for help. Could you delegate portions of the grant application to a Board member, volunteer, intern, or other staff member? There's no shame in asking for help when you need it and when it will benefit your organization as a whole! Recognize others' strengths, ask them for their expertise, and then take the lead on pulling it all together into a single, coherent message. Important Note: The prerequisite here is that you've taken Tip 4 (funding research) to heart. You must be confident you're focusing on the right grants in the first place. It's best to do fewer high-quality grant proposals than throw everything at the wall and \"see what sticks.\" Tip 7: Recycle Grant Proposal Content Thoughtfully. We're all for repurposing grant proposal content because it can save you a lot of time and energy during the drafting process. However, you will still need to update (even upcycle) any previous content. Even if you apply to the same foundation year after year, find ways to improve and change your application. Grant reviewers notice when you submit the exact same grant application repeatedly. They can tell how much work you did or did not put into the application, which influences their final decision. Always ensure that the content you're repurposing appropriately answers questions in the application. This will require you to slow down a bit and think through the questions, but again, it's worth it. Chances are the last proposal had slightly different questions, meaning you'll need slightly different responses in the current proposal. Pro Tip: AI technology is changing the game everywhere, including grant writing. With AI tools that speed up researching and drafting your proposals, you can focus on perfecting them. Learn Grant Writing offers an industry-leading AI grant writing tool, available through the Global Grant Writers Collective®—get in touch to learn more! Tip 8: Have Your Application Independently Reviewed. Per best practice taught here at Learn Grant Writing, we always recommend having an independent review of your grant application before submission. Why? You live and breathe the mission, while an outsider will spot holes in the narrative and catch things you unintentionally missed. Recruit someone who hasn't been deeply involved in the grant writing project and is unfamiliar with what you're proposing. You might even collaborate with a fellow, trusted nonprofit organization (Tip #5 coming in hot again!). Perhaps the pair of you could exchange final drafts of your grant proposals for mutual review. Fun Fact: One of the first grants written by a member of our team was when she worked at a nonprofit organization. She was mentored through the grant writing process by a senior grant writer from a different organization. Both organizations were applying for the same grant funding. Different asks, of course, but they were pursuing funding in the same funding cycle from the same funder— and both organizations won funding! Tip 9: Stay Grant-Ready. When you stay grant-ready, you don't have to get grant-ready.\nBefore diving into grant prospecting and certainly before tackling your first proposal, spend some time preparing. Grant readiness means being prepared financially and organizationally at both the program/project and organization levels. In other words, the back end of things should be in order before you apply for funding. Of course, you will still work through application-specific details, but the process is much smoother the more prepared you are and the more standard documentation you have on hand. These will come in handy throughout the various parts of a standard grant proposal, particularly sections concerning organizational background, project details, budgets, logistical plans, and required supplemental documentation. Here's a short, non-exhaustive list of key documents we recommend keeping at the ready:\nTax Exempt Status Letter IRS Form 990 W-9 Strategic Plan Organizational Chart List of Board of Directors Audited Financial Statements (if you are large enough to have these) Previous Annual Reports Program/Project Details, including a scope of work description, outcome measures, target population, relevant statistics, etc. History of Grants Received And potentially more depending on the specifics of your grant Also, if you aim to apply for federal funding, you'll need a Dun \u0026amp; Bradstreet (DUNS) number and a System for Award Management (SAM) registration. Proper preparation will help the grant writing process go smoothly for you. Ensuring you have all this information easily accessible in a central \"grant readiness folder\" is a great place to start. Don't Worry: If you find this all a bit overwhelming, take a deep breath! It's not nearly as complicated as it sounds. It's just about getting organized so you can find the information you need to write grants efficiently and effectively. (We even teach a file organization structure in the Global Grant Writers Collective®.) Tip 10: Get Some Professional Grant Writing Training. Whether you work in a nonprofit and have been asked to write a grant or want to start a freelancing side hustle, professional grant training will be a major asset for you. Or, maybe you're too busy to do grant writing yourself and decide to hire a grant writer for your organization. But without a proficient understanding of the grant writing process, you won't be able to identify a stellar grant writer from one that is terrible. (Trust us, we have heard plenty of horror stories!) By getting professionally trained to write grants, you'll save yourself thousands of lost dollars and skip years of frustration learning everything the hard way. Spend three hours a week for 4-6 weeks, and you'll know the exact steps to take to: Stay organized and master grant jargon Research and prioritize grant opportunities Develop a (super impressive) funding strategy Prepare and write winning proposals In short, you can become a grant writing unicorn faster than you might realize. Back in the day, live workshops were the most common way to receive continued education in grant writing. The problem, however, is that our minds can only soak up so much information in one sitting! Plus, what are you supposed to do when the workshop ends and you get stuck on a real project? Grant writing can be a lonely business! That's why we shifted grant writing training online. Our approach gives you time to apply lessons to a real-world project and ask questions when you encounter hurdles in real time. We've created a thriving community of fellow grant writers and students to learn from each other, something you won't easily find in one-time, in-person offerings. Want to see if the way we teach grant writing works for you? Do yourself a favor and check out this training: How to write fewer proposals and win more grant funding as a confident nonprofit grant writer. Working as a nonprofit grant writer? Want to write fewer proposals and win more funding? We built this training just for you. Check it out! As a nonprofit professional, you're busy and your time is precious—we get it. These tips and considerations are designed to help you utilize your time well. Go forth, win grants, let us know how it goes, and continue to serve your community well! Remember, check out this training on winning more funding by writing fewer proposals, and keep exploring with these additional resources for grant writers: [Reviews] The Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Every Learner [Reviews] The Top 12 Best Grant Databases for Finding Funding How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026amp; Bonus Tips Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026amp; Succeed ","date":"2024-05-14","description":"Struggling with your first (or yet another) grant application? Check out our top 10 grant writing\ntips to help you tackle the challenge and win more funding.\n","formatted_date":"May 14, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grant-writing-tips-for-nonprofits-feature_hu_8ad5a9c601d82acd.webp","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-tips-for-nonprofits/","slug":"grant-writing-tips-for-nonprofits","summary":null,"title":"Grant Writing Tips for Nonprofits: 10 Ways to Start Strong"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":"The Top 12 Best Grant Databases for Finding Funding","content":" The fastest way to find grant opportunities is to use a grant database.\nThere’s a time and place for Google, but using it for grant research can be a huge time-suck. A database can do in seconds what could take you days. Plus, it's a much easier way to organize your grant opportunities and keep track of them on platforms designed for the purpose. There are several popular grant databases to choose from, but not all will align well with your organization’s unique needs. We’ve taken the time to test out several grant databases to give you a clear picture of the strengths and weaknesses of each. In a hurry? Our top recommended grant research database is Instrumentl, so we’ve partnered with them to offer our grant writing community a special deal. Use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month. Now, let’s dive into the top grant databases worth your time. Click on each database name to jump to the full review: Instrumentl (Our Top Pick) GrantX Foundation Directory Online (aka Candid) Grants.gov GrantStation Devex Pro Funding GrantScape The Catholic Funding Guide GrantForward Grant Gopher Pivot GrantSelect GrantWatch Stick with us to the end for some expert grant research tips! How Healthy Is Your Consulting Business? Take our 4 minute consulting business test to quickly diagnose your sticking points and get you moving, with more joy and ease.\nTake The Test Instrumentl (Our Favorite Grant Search Database) At Learn Grant Writing, we love Instrumentl! If you sign up for Instrumentl, use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month. We’ve coordinated with the team behind Instrumentl and can assure you that they have your best interests in mind. Beyond that, the design is clear, the process is extremely user-friendly, and we personally love the deadline reminders (please tell us we’re not the only ones who need a kick in the pants every once in a while!). Specific Features Include: Intelligent matching - access tailored matches of foundations and grant opportunities New match alerts - receive new matching opportunities in your inbox weekly 990's \u0026 foundation profiles - view in-depth foundation profiles and 990 data. Instrumentl actually reads and pulls the most relevant information from the 990 to easily display helpful data. Deadline tracking - receive automatic upcoming deadline reminders Reporting tools - share your progress with board members or staff Tasks - create and manage all your grant-related tasks in one place Document library - store and organize all your grant documents Organization tools - easily organize multiple prospect lists with the option to include notes on each prospect Diverse sources - explore grants sourced from corporate funders, federal governments, state governments, private foundations, community foundations, and clubs and societies Instrumentl’s pricing can be found here. Plans start at $179/monthly. Higher-tier plans, which support more projects in your account, are also available. We understand grant databases can be a chunk of change, but for the superb tracking system and all the other relevant tools, Instrumentl is the best database we’ve found for its value and full suite of additional features. Plus, members of the Global Grant Writers Collective® get an exclusive deal on pricing! 👉 After your free trial, if you end up liking the tools as much as we do, use the discount code LGW to get $50 off your first month of Instrumentl. How Does Instrumentl Compare to Other Grant Tools Out There? Instrumentl is the leading institutional fundraising platform that brings grant prospecting, tracking, and management to one place. For context, most other grant tools are only capable of doing one or two of these three components. One of the strongest aspects of this platform is that you can learn how to use it in under an hour. The same cannot be said for other prominent alternatives. Nonprofits and grant writing consultants often choose Instrumentl for its superior user experience and intuitive data insights, along with its all-in-one grants functionality. Take a look at our partner webinar with Instrumentl for a sneak peek at its features:\nIf you’re on the fence comparing a few grant database providers, the Instrumentl team has created helpful product comparison pages to other commonly used grant tools. Working as a nonprofit grant writer? Want to write fewer proposals and win more funding? We built this training just for you. Check it out! GrantX GrantX is a grant database with a built-in AI research agent that does the searching and vetting for you. The database covers 900,000+ active funders across the US, including foundations, federal programs, corporate giving programs, and community funds in all 50 states. Here's what makes it different: instead of filtering through results yourself, you enter your organization's name and website, and the agent builds a profile of your org, searches the database, and delivers a pre-vetted shortlist of matched funders, ranked and ready to review. First results come back in about 10 minutes. Key features include:\nAI Grant Agent - analyzes your organization and matches you to relevant funders, so you're reviewing a curated shortlist rather than raw search results Funder Intelligence - giving pattern analysis and warm introduction pathways for each matched funder Search Autopilot - new opportunities are automatically matched and delivered weekly without you lifting a finger Discovery Dashboard - pipeline tracking, deadline management, and real-time recommendations in one place A few other features we thought were really useful:\nGrant scoring and evaluation - each match comes with a support score, probability of success, and a pros-and-cons breakdown to help you prioritize which grants are actually worth pursuing Funder profiles with 990 analysis - full funder breakdowns including giving trends, peer comparisons, geographic and sector focus, and grant size distribution, so you're not manually digging through 990s Connection pathway mapping - maps out board member relationships between your org and matched foundations, and suggests who to reach out to and how to frame the pitch Pipeline and application management - save grants, move them through pipeline stages, and get checklists with estimated time commitments for each step Plans start at $79/month, and there is a free tier available to get started.\nIf you like the idea of a grant database but don't have the time (or the staff) to sit in on running searches, GrantX essentially automates that part of the process. It's a good fit for teams that want matched, vetted opportunities delivered to them on an ongoing basis rather than carving out hours each week to search manually. Want AI to do the searching for you? Try GrantX today. Foundation Directory Online (aka Candid) Foundation Directory Online (FDO) from Candid is one of the most well-known legacy grant databases in the nonprofit field. For a quick peek into the database and what to expect from the platform’s features, check out a professional sample funder profile and sample grant search. FDO offers three different subscription levels: Essential (starting at $35.54/month), Professional (starting at $126.58/month), and Enterprise for very large organizations (request a custom quote). Funder profiles are offered along with recipient profiles (for Professional tier members) and Private Foundation 990s, when available. With over 225,000+ expanded grant-maker profiles available with FDO Professional and 108,000+ expanded profiles with FDO Essential, Foundational Directory Online is a reliable legacy option for a grant database that offers tons of helpful information. Grants.gov Grants.gov is the official source of truth for all things federal grants, and it’s completely free to use. This federal service provides a comprehensive, up-to-date database of all federal grant opportunities as well as a trove of additional educational resources and form libraries. It offers collaborative grant Workspaces to help your team better organize its projects and submit proposals, available in different configurations depending on the scope of your efforts and the number of registered users. As with many large-scale online government platforms or portals, though, the overall usability and intuitiveness of the grant search functions in the database lag behind those of many paid platforms. However, it does provide a full range of filter functionalities that get the job done plus plenty of guidance for learning how to use the site. As a free, comprehensive, and trustworthy resource on federal grant opportunities, every nonprofit needs at least a cursory understanding of how to use Grants.gov. Master this platform, federal grant lingo, and the complex federal grant application and management processes, and you’ll have an invaluable grant seeking skillset. GrantStation GrantStation offers nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and government agencies the opportunity to identify potential funding sources for their programs or projects as well as resources to mentor these organizations through the grant-seeking process. The grant database is only one of the services provided by the organization. GrantStation features grants from:\nGovernment sources Private, corporate, and community foundations Corporate contribution programs Faith-based funders Association grant programs Federal grants are pulled from Grants.gov and for those in Canada, GrantStation provides a page for each province listing the agencies with grant programs. Funding agency profiles are available with detailed primary contact information, current funding priorities, geographic scope, grant guidelines, application deadlines, and notes that provide \"insider\" information on selected funders. Full membership access allows members the opportunity to utilize all the online grant-seeking tools they offer, including the GrantStation grant database. The full membership is a bit pricey, though, ranging from $699 (one year) to $1,782 (a better deal for three years). We appreciate that this database considers Canadians, as we know that many of our grant writing students are from Canada or work with Canadian organizations. However, the database is still a bit clunky to use and doesn’t have a great tracking system for saving grants or setting deadlines and reminders. Pro Tip: A 1-year subscription ($110) to The Chronicle of Philanthropy will give you access to GrantStation’s grant database! Devex Pro Funding Devex is a media platform and resource hub devoted to the global development and international philanthropy fields, and it offers its own database and search platform, Devex Pro Funding. Compiling grant opportunities from over 800 funders worldwide, this platform offers a standard range of search and organization features. One standout feature involves forecast analyses, which help you identify potential grant opportunities through projections of funding activity based on funders’ past grant awards. It’s a specialized platform for organizations and consultants that work in global development—if this is you, Devex might be a wise investment. Take a behind-the-scenes look at Devex Pro and how one of our coaches uses the site to source international funding here. Individual subscriptions start at $83 a month. For organizations, contact Devex for custom pricing. Discounts may also be available for small nonprofits, students, and organizations in low- and middle-income countries. GrantScape GrantScape offers U.S. federal, state, local, and foundation grant sources. There are over 180,000 grantors and over 11,300 available grants currently housed within the database. The core database provides robust search and filter functions, funder profiles with updated contact details, and helpful dashboards for saving grant opportunities and setting up reminders. While they don't have a free trial for their grant database, they do offer a free trial on their post-funding resources, including the Grants Compliance Expert. Individual memberships start at $30/month, with more comprehensive packages available for grant writing consultants ($102/month) and enterprise-level organizations (request a quote). Overall, we found GrantScape to be a reasonably affordable option and we like the resources available within the dashboard function. If you'd like more information, here’s a 30-minute demo of the database. The Catholic Funding Guide A few of our Learn Grant Writing students use the Catholic Funding Guide but mentioned the database leaves much to be desired. The search functionality is pretty basic, although the system does offer funder profiles. This database is fairly limited in terms of the type of funding it hosts. Most of the grants fall within a range of grantmaking sources including faith-based agencies, such as those under the sponsorship of the U.S. Bishops, religious orders, the Vatican, Catholic healthcare systems, fraternal groups, and international Catholic funding agencies. You can get a one-year standard subscription for $229 or a professional plan for $299.\nOverall, we found the database to be a bit outdated in terms of design and limited in regard to tools within the system and ease of operation for the user. However, for organizations that would benefit from the specific focus of this grant database, it may help you save time and quickly narrow down your search to the most relevant funders. Grant Forward 190,000+ grants exist within the GrantForward database. This database covers the whole ecosystem of funding including grants, sponsors, pre-solicitations, and the funded awards. Notably, it focuses on academic grant seeking. Subscribers can also receive an early heads-up when opportunities are being prepared, and are informed of what projects, topics, and organizations get funded. Additional features of GrantForward include: The option to exclude grants from searches View history to easily retrieve opportunities Filter include/exclude enhancements The ability to edit publications in researcher profiles Keyword search options for profiles The subscription cost per year varies and is determined both by funding size and the population of your organization (students and employees), although it is generally on the higher side. We liked the extra features of GrantForward and the simplistic, easy-to-use layout, although we still felt it was a bit pricey for what subscribers receive. However, its specialized focus and features for academic grant seeking could make it a strong contender for some organizations. Grant Gopher Grant Gopher is a well-known grant research resource for U.S.-based nonprofits. It was born out of a real need for accessible research platforms that cut through the clutter and help small, grassroots organizations like schools and clubs find much-needed funding without jumping through endless hoops. The platform provides a simple but effective search functionality plus a library of grant seeking resources and tools tailored to smaller nonprofits. The paid plan comes with alerts, notifications, additional search options, and a helpful calendar tool. Grant Gopher’s goal of accessibility is still reflected in the platform’s pricing today—a free, limited-functionality plan and a Pro plan with extra features and notifications for just $9/month. Grant Gopher also offers a special program called Pro Success Path for a limited number of registrants that provides monthly in-kind research services, giving small organizations an even bigger leg-up on their grant seeking competition. For many types of small organizations, particularly schools, the price point and easy-to-use nature of Grant Gopher can’t be beaten. Pivot Pivot is a grant database designed specifically for researchers. Anyone from corporate to academia (faculty, staff researchers, and graduate students) can benefit from using it. However, you must be affiliated with an institution that subscribes to Pivot to create an account. Subscribers can search for a funding opportunity and instantly view matching faculty from inside or outside their institution. Conversely, a search for a scholar will link to matching funding opportunities. Pivot also enables you to add internal deadlines for critical funding opportunities and sends weekly updates on saved searches. Additionally, subscribers can receive alerts whenever new matching opportunities are posted that match their saved searches and create groups for sharing funding opportunities on an ongoing basis. Pivot is only available to professionals whose affiliated institution subscribes to the database, which is fairly limiting. To help with learning the system, their YouTube channel is packed with useful tutorials. GrantSelect The GrantSelect database provides detailed grant records, including contact information, sponsor name and address, subject terms for related searches, and type of sponsor (federal agency, foundation, research institute, etc.). When available, the records also include: Deadline date(s) Restrictions on who may apply Lists of previous awards and amount(s) Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number Populations encouraged to apply (e.g., women, minorities, disabled) RFA and PA numbers for NIH grants Program numbers for NSF grants GrantSelect offers three different subscription options depending on how long you wish to subscribe and whether it’s an individual or institutional subscription. Individual subscriptions have two options, including Standard at $150 per month and Professional at $495 annually. If you’re interested in an Institution subscription, contact them for a quote. Note that the free trial subscriptions are open only to faculty, staff, and administrators at academic institutions or libraries. To request a trial, contact the sales staff, who will discuss terms, provide a quote, and send you access information. As a whole, GrantSelect is a fairly robust grant database and could be a smart choice for academic organizations and libraries. We appreciate when the company can include all of the extra bits of information to compose a complete grant record—these extra tidbits can make a big difference in your grant seeking efforts. GrantWatch GrantWatch is one of the more affordable grant databases we reviewed. Prices are $18/week, $45/month, $90/quarter, or $199/annual. Within the database, grants include foundation, corporate, state, city, and federal funding sources. Over 27,000 grants are available in GrantWatch for nonprofits, small businesses, and individuals. GrantWatch provides detailed information such as:\nEligibility and geographic focus Pre-application and workshop information Description of the grant program Funding amounts Number of awards Funding source Contact details Links to grant applications While the information subscribers have access to within each grant record is extremely helpful, the trickiest part for us was finding relevant grants. The platform’s search and filter functionalities are fairly limited, which can complicate and slow down your research process. All in all, GrantWatch might be more affordable, but subscribers are missing out on quality features and helpful functionality in finding applicable grants. Working as a nonprofit grant writer? Want to write fewer proposals and win more funding? We built this training just for you. Check it out! Expert Tips for Navigating Grant Research Once you’ve chosen your ideal grant database, it’s time to start researching!\nWe’ve got a few expert grant research tips to share:\n⭐ Connect with Nonprofit and Grantmaker Associations. You’re not in it alone! There are tons of associations at the local, state, and regional levels that bring together resources and expertise for nonprofits. Nonprofit associations can offer training and education to support your grant program, and some even provide their own mini-databases of localized grant opportunities that are worth exploring. Associations of foundations frequently offer similarly helpful resources. A quick Google search for relevant associations in your state or region can get you started. The National Council of Nonprofits’ directory of state branches is another good starting point. For foundations, try United Philanthropy Forums’ list of members broken down by state. ⭐ Learn About Community Foundations and Corporate Philanthropy Programs. Don’t limit your grant research to just the big names or private foundations. Smaller community foundations and corporate philanthropy programs are extremely viable funding sources that often go overlooked. Plus, these relationships can be both actively and passively beneficial for your nonprofit. Let us explain:\nCommunity foundations offer grants just like other types of foundations, but they also frequently sponsor donor-advised funds (DAFs), which are like philanthropic savings accounts for donors to disburse gifts to nonprofits over time. DAFs have quickly become a major part of the philanthropic landscape, but these opportunities can be hard to find. Get to know your local community foundations and ask about their DAF programs. If you can build relationships with the right donors, DAF grants via community foundations can become a reliable (and lucrative) stream of revenue for your organization. Corporate philanthropy programs also regularly offer grants to nonprofits, but they may be off your radar if you don’t know where to look. Learn more about your local, state, and regional business environment, and try researching your donors’ employers. Tap into the passive value of these programs by specifically looking for matching gift programs. These employer-sponsored benefits match the donations made by employees to eligible nonprofits, effectively doubling the value of their gifts. There are tools and databases built specifically for this niche if you’d like to invest further. ⭐ Ensure Your Guidestar Profile is Up-to-Date. Guidestar (now part of the larger Candid brand) is the industry-standard source of truth for learning about nonprofits, their governance structures, and past financial filings like Form 990s. As such, funders of all sizes, DAF sponsoring organizations, and even some donors rely on it to help make their philanthropic decisions. This is an extremely important public-facing source of information about your nonprofit, but it can also be easily neglected in the hubbub of your daily work. Regularly take the time to review and update your nonprofit’s profile—it’s worth the effort!\n⭐ Master the Grant Prioritization Process. You can’t go after every grant opportunity you find. Not only will this waste your time, but it might also make your proposals less effective since you’ll have to rush through them. Understanding how to prioritize the grant opportunities you find is critical, and it will help ensure your efforts yield a positive return over time. Always start your grant research by finding opportunities that match your mission, proposed program, and timeframe. When you have a solid list of options, cut it down further by looking closely at these criteria: Alignment. Your shortlist should already be pretty well-aligned with your mission and needs but go further by looking at the funders’ past funded projects. Does your proposed project or program sound like it’s in the same ballpark as those that the funder has a proven record of supporting in the past? Does your plan closely align with the grant’s stated purpose and guidelines? Competitiveness. How likely is your organization to receive this grant? Consider the value and specificity of the grant as well as the funder’s prominence. Try to roughly gauge how much attention this grant is likely to get. Even if you can tell you’ll be up against a lot of other nonprofits, taking a shot can still be worth it. However, this exercise helps you recognize the challenges and build more effective backup plans if needed. It can also help you know when to prioritize grants that might be less valuable but offer a very high chance of success. Many of these skills come with experience, but they’re also learnable!\nDon’t forget to seek out additional grant writing, research, and management training if you need extra support or want to hear directly from an expert. Online grant writing courses can help, and they’re especially valuable when paired with online communities like The Global Grant Writers Collective®—check it out! Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Our Ultimate Grant Database Recommendation We know that you need to do what is best for you, but we can’t help but offer a glowing recommendation of Instrumentl. We have used lots of other databases and found them to be clunky and generally more expensive than Instrumentl. We could spend even more time and detail explaining our history of examining other databases, but much of the value we offer you is having filtered through those resources to land on what we think is the best resource for nonprofits. We think your best bet is Instrumentl. Which grant database do you use? Would you recommend it to other grant writers? Why or why not? Let us know! If you haven't already, be sure to follow us on Instagram for new updates, or keep learning with these additional resources from the Learn Grant Writing team: How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026 Bonus Tips Project Management For Nonprofits and Grant Writers Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026 Succeed Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2024-04-10","description":"Cut through the clutter with this roundup of the best grant databases for nonprofits. Use our\nreviews to help find the perfect choice for your nonprofit.\n","formatted_date":"April 10, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/best-grant-databases-reviews_hu_d643dbcda355d354.jpg","permalink":"/blog/best-grant-databases/","slug":"best-grant-databases","summary":null,"title":"Reviews: The Top 12 Best Grant Databases for Finding Funding"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" You’ve been asked to write a grant proposal for your nonprofit. Or you’re looking for a new way to grow your skills and earn some extra cash while doing good. You’re writing a proposal as a freelance grant writer. What comes next? Grant writing is a specialized skill, and real money is on the line for important causes. While writing a grant for the first time can feel nerve-wracking, grant writing is a very learnable skill. Master it, and you can unlock tons of support for organizations. You can also build a more fulfilling career. The trick to success is following consistent processes to stay on schedule and produce your best work. This guide breaks down our very best advice on how to write a grant and win more funding. We’ve also included bonus tips to level up your proposal writing. Here’s what we’ll cover:\nHow to Write a Grant Proposal: Video Overview Anatomy of a Grant Proposal How to Write a Grant in 7 Steps How We Can Help Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz How to Write a Grant Proposal: Video Overview Let’s kick things off with a little context:\nWhat’s a Grant? A grant is a financial award to support a person, organization, project, or program. It is intended to achieve a specific goal or purpose. In most cases, a grant is awarded to a nonprofit organization from a foundation, corporation, or government agency to fund a specific project or program. What's Grant Writing? Grant writing is the act of preparing an application to receive funding for a project or organization through a grant. The magic of grants is that the money awarded does not need to be paid back, which makes them such valuable sources of funding. To learn more about how grants work and who’s eligible for them, head over to our longer guide to grant writing basics! Grant writing is like baking cake.You have a recipe to follow to get it just right. Some recipes are more complex than others—a small local grant is your basic chocolate cake, while a big federal grant is a three-tiered wedding cake. Whatever you’re baking, there are key ingredients coming together in specific steps. When you learn the fundamentals, you can adapt to any recipe (or grant proposal) thrown your way. 🎂 For the visual learners among us, follow along as we bake up a grant proposal! 🎂\nAnatomy of a Grant Proposal Before jumping right into your first grant writing project, it’s helpful to understand the different elements that grant applications often ask for. This will give you a clearer idea of what to expect and what information you’ll need to gather for your proposal. Let’s take a look: Most grant proposals include these main sections:\nIntroduction or abstract. What can grant makers expect from your proposal? (Pro tip—write your abstract last so that it’s as accurate and reflective of your story as possible!) Organizational background. Who are you writing the grant for? What is the organization’s history? Statement of need. Why are you proposing a project or program? What needs will it address in your community? Do you have hard numbers to back it up? Project description. What is the project or program you’re proposing? Methodology. How will you implement your new project? What will the steps and timeline look like? Goals and objectives. What are the specific, measurable goals for your project? How do they connect back to the statement of need? Budget. How much will it cost to implement your project? How much of that funding will come from different sources, including this grant? Evaluation plan. How will you measure your progress and the impact of your project? Sustainability plan. How will you sustain the new project or program after the grant funding ends? In addition, many grants require further documentation like:\nA resolution. Is your whole organization on board with the project and ready to comply with the funder’s requirements if awarded the grant? Risk assessments. What are the risks and challenges that may impact the successful implementation of your project? Partnerships and collaborations. Are other organizations, sponsors, and/or major donors helping to fund or implement your project? Letters of support. Can constituents and peer organizations back up your organization’s ability to get things done? Appendices, data, and research. Do you have additional research to back up your statement of need and projected impact? Other supporting documents, like resumes of key staff members and a copy of your IRS 501(c)(3) Letter of Determination. Note that different grants can have wildly different requirements depending on the context and funder. Grant applications might also have different names for these elements, so it’s important to very closely read and understand their requirements—see Step 1 below! Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class The Nitty-Gritty: How to Write a Grant in 7 Steps We’ve covered all the parts of a grant proposal that you might encounter. Now, let’s get into how you actually write the darn thing. At Learn Grant Writing, we follow a tried-and-true 7-step approach to writing winning grants. Step 1: Follow Your North Star ⭐ (AKA the Funding Guidelines). Funding guidelines are instructions from the funder on how to apply for a grant. They’ll also include information about eligibility, what the narrative requires, attachments, and much more. These guidelines are not like the Ikea instructions you didn’t read or the airplane safety card you ignored. Nope, these funding guidelines are like having the recipe for your great-grandmother’s famous family spaghetti sauce, and if you diverge at all you will not quite get it right. For that reason, treat your funding guidelines like great-grannie’s recipe, with care and attention to detail. You usually can download funding guidelines from the funding agency’s website. Once downloaded, print them so you have a hard copy to mark up. Yes, the anti-paper millennial just told you to print your guidelines. Why print your guidelines? Because you will catch nuances that, for some reason, are difficult to see when reading on a computer. Even if you have two screens, you want the instructions by your side to spill coffee on! Read the funding guidelines from beginning to end and then take a break. Dance to your favorite song, do a few sun salutations, pet your dog, or whatever you do to maintain your energy. When you are done, come back to the guidelines and reread them carefully. Highlight keywords that are used repeatedly and specific instructions like font size requirements (yes, they get that specific). The funding guidelines should, at a minimum, spell out what information the funder wants in your grant narrative. If you are lucky, they will also include how they score your responses. Note that requirements can vary drastically. Easier applications might only have two pages of instructions. Federal grants can easily have 80+ pages in their funding guidelines. The complexity usually correlates to the funding award size and funding source. Step 2: Prepare Your Narrative Skeleton. Nothing is more intimidating than a blank page. To avoid feeling overwhelmed, always prepare a “narrative skeleton.” This is an outline for each section of the narrative and, if available, the scoring criteria. Start by typing each narrative prompt into a blank document.By doing this, you’ll prepare the exact headers and subheaders that the funding agency wants to see in your narrative. Below is an example of a funding guideline that will get put into a narrative skeleton:\nRating Factor 1: Capacity of the Applicant Subfactor 1.1.a Managerial and Technical Staff. You must describe the project-specific roles and responsibilities and knowledge/experience of the project director and all individual key staff in planning, managing, and implementing projects for which funding is requested. Experience pertaining to specific activities should be relevant, recent (in the last five years), and demonstrate that past projects were completed on or ahead of schedule. Scoring Criteria: You describe the roles/responsibilities and the knowledge/experience of the project director and all individual key staff in planning, managing, and implementing projects for which funding is being requested. Experience of all individual key staff is relevant, recent, and successful. Manually rewriting the application guidelines will help you organize your thoughts about how to respond to each section. You can even begin brainstorming here by adding bullet points with information you want to include. Looking at the example above, you know you need to collect specific project examples from key team members on their recent and relevant experience in delivering projects on schedule. ⭐ Pro Tip: Do not start writing complete sentences yet! I know, it’s tempting. At this point, though, you only want to capture ideas and questions so you can more readily identify where you have gaps in information later. Once you have a complete narrative skeleton with bullet points, you will have a robust understanding of what you need to prepare the full grant proposal. Quick Recap Check out this video for an overview of Steps 1 and 2. These first steps are extremely important—do them well, and you’ll boost your chances of writing a winning proposal! When you’re ready to move on, it’s time to schedule a kick-off meeting. Step 3: Host an Outstanding Kick-Off Meeting. A kick-off meeting is where you gather everyone involved in the project to plan for the grant preparation process. Your invitees will likely include organizational leaders and/or board members, plus key staff members who will be involved in running the funded project or program. Remember, the amount of help you receive during the grant writing process is directly correlated to the success of your kick-off meeting. Never be afraid to ask for what you need to do your job and win the grant! If you are meeting in person, express your gratitude to the group by bringing cookies or lunch. Even if you’re meeting remotely, you can arrange to have coffee and pastries delivered right before your call. If people feel appreciated and inspired by you, they will make your requests a priority. Here’s our most important piece of advice—prepare an agenda beforehand and email it one day in advance.\n⭐ Pro Tip: Develop a grant kick-off meeting agenda template that you can reuse over and over. You can download a template on our free resources page. Fill in your agenda template with names of attendees, dates, times, and subjects. Also, send your narrative skeleton outline along with the agenda ahead of the kick-off meeting. This gives your team a better handle on the application requirements and can spur ideas on other information they can provide you. Plus, it shows you have a process in place and are well-organized right from the start. When it’s time for the meeting, start with introductions if needed. Then, run through the narrative skeleton, asking where you can get the information you need for the grant application. Team members often come up with ideas for additional information or resources to reference when they can see the narrative skeleton themselves. Close out the meeting by discussing the grant development schedule. You want to know now if someone will be unavailable because of vacation or other work obligations. Even if you carry 95% of the responsibility for completing the grant application, it is still important to establish a schedule with deadlines for your own accountability. Following the meeting, send out an email summarizing action items and a calendar invite for the next progress check-in meeting. It is easiest to agree on a fixed time per week to meet. Schedule progress meetings that last no longer than 30-40 minutes. Shorter meetings help attendees feel refreshed enough to complete their action items immediately. Watch this video for a closer look at why kick-off meetings are so important to the success of the grant preparation process. Step 4: Finalize Your Grant Budget. Even if it’s just a back-of-the-napkin estimate, have at least a rough cost approximation for your project at this point. In a perfect world, project budgets would be nearly complete before starting an application, but it never seems to work out that way. However, finalizing your budget is now your top priority! The project budget impacts all other parts of your application. For instance, if a grant requires the applicant to fund 50% of the project cost, it is impossible to calculate your cost share without knowing the total project cost. On top of that, an applicant’s cost share commitment must be documented in a formal resolution or letter from someone authorized in your organization to do so. Getting a resolution passed can be a time-consuming and formal process in some organizations, so it is best to get that ball rolling early on. Grant applications also often require a budget narrative to describe how you developed a reasonable cost estimate. Might go without saying, but it’s worth saying anyway: You can’t write a budget narrative without a complete budget! Most narratives also require an implementation plan and description of the benefits or projected outcomes of the project. Does your budget allow you to impact the lives of 20 veterans or 200? Will you renovate four low-income housing units or 14? I am guessing the last few paragraphs were pretty overwhelming! Before you give up, know that none of that will be an issue for you if you have a finalized project budget. As such, we cannot emphasize enough the importance of finishing your budget as soon as possible. ⭐ Pro Tip: There’s no need to start your budgeting process from scratch! Download your free copy of our grant budget template here. Free Grant Budget Template If preparing a grant budget scares you, those days are about to be over! Download the free grant budget template below and take our free grant writing class to learn how to use it.\nFree Template Step 5: Write Your Grant Narrative Fast and Furiously. Now it’s time to put pen to paper (or, more likely, fingers to keys) and start writing your grant.\nThe grant narrative is a written description of your project, the problem it solves, and why it should be funded. It’s the bulk of your application, made up of the primary parts of a grant application listed above. The exact nature of your narrative will vary depending on the requirements of each funding agency. Sometimes, a private foundation will ask for a letter of inquiry first. This is usually a two-page letter summarizing your proposal. If the funder likes your proposal, they’ll invite you to submit a full application. Other times, a grant narrative will be 15 pages of single-spaced writing with other lengthy and technical attachments. Always customize your grant narrative to the grant for which you are applying. You can certainly recycle some text from previous applications, but it must be intentionally reworked to fit the funding guidelines. Let’s take a look at some of our most important recommendations for this stage:\n✏️ Prepare Your First Draft as Fast as Possible. The time it takes to prepare your first draft of the narrative depends on the scope and complexity of the grant and its requirements. If you are completing an online form, with responses generally under 500 characters, you should finish your first draft of the grant narrative in four days or fewer. If it’s a more complex proposal, requiring 18–20 pages of content, try to write your entire first draft in eight days (ideally fewer). How do you write quickly? By staying focused.\nIt’s tempting to leave your narrative to track down information. At all costs, avoid doing this! Often the information you seek will get deleted in later drafts anyway, and it costs you too much time and energy to refocus. For example, perhaps you are writing about who benefits from your project. It’s tempting to stop mid-sentence to look up supporting data. Instead, write a sentence like this: “XX% of the project beneficiaries are low to moderate income.” Later on, you can look up the exact statistic. Let’s pause a hot second and talk about context switching. It is immensely taxing for your brain to bounce between tasks. With the best of intentions, we sit down to bust out our grant narrative. Not five minutes later we are glancing at our phone because notifications lit up on the screen, which somehow leads us to opening our inbox. Then we find ourselves ten tabs deep in our browser. It is crazy! In fact, one study by Gloria Mark, Professor at the University of California Irvine’s Department of Informatics, found most people average only three minutes on any given task. Three minutes! When we context switch, it can eat up to 80% of our overall productivity , according to psychologist Gerald Weinberg. Guess what? You will not be loving life as a grant writer if that is how you approach grant writing. This field requires deep work to A) get the job done, and B) keep you from burning out. ✏️ Write Your Grant Narrative Backward. The harder sections are usually towards the end of your grant narrative and include topics like budgeting, project feasibility, etc. Working through the complex portions of the application first makes it easier to write the beginning sections, which are typically broader strokes. ⭐ Pro Tip: Dreading the idea of writing a long narrative? Here’s a time-saving hack! Record yourself talking slowly and clearly about each section of the narrative. Use your grant narrative skeleton developed in Step 2 to guide your recording. Then use any number of online resources to convert your audio file into text. The text file will be much easier to edit than writing your first draft from scratch. This method can save hours of writing, and it is how I wrote the first edition of my book! ✏️ Stay Accountable by Collaborating With Someone Else. When we spend a lot of time working on a narrative, we become blind to silly mistakes. Prevent errors and write faster by having someone else evaluate your grant writing progress. Your “accountability buddy” does not need to read your earliest, messiest versions of the narrative. But, if you have them accepting your drafts, it keeps you accountable to writing deadlines. This support can be truly invaluable. Send your progress every two to three days to inspire yourself to work quickly.\nIdentify who this person will be during the grant kick-off meeting. Ideally, it is someone within your organization. If you do not have someone in your organization to collaborate with, ask a friend or other working professional if you can repay them the favor later. When I was just starting my business, I hired my sister to edit my grant narratives. She named her price by putting something she wanted in my Amazon cart, and I was happy to pay for it because of the mistakes that she caught! ✏️ Edit, Edit, and Edit Some More. After you complete your first draft of the narrative, you want at least four more versions. That’s right, four. On complex grants, you can have as many as 15 different narrative drafts! Remember, great writing is concise and clear. Winning grant proposals tell clear, impactful stories. The only way you get to that level of brevity and impact is to continually fine-tune the writing. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Step 6: Prep Your Key Grant Application Attachments. You’re picking up great momentum now! You’ve read your funding guidelines, prepared your narrative skeleton, hosted a kick-off meeting, drafted a budget, and gotten underway with narrative writing. A key part of learning how to write grants involves getting comfortable with a range of other documents and attachments. The attachments required for each application will vary depending on the grant program. In this section, we will cover the most common attachments you can expect to encounter: a budget and budget narrative, a resolution, and letters of support. Attachments can require a long lead time to finalize, so it is important to start them early in the grant writing process. Generally, we advise discussing attachments at the progress meeting after your kick-off. For a quick overview, watch this video about how to prepare common grant application attachments: 📃 Grant Budget and Budget Narrative In Step 4, you developed your grant budget. We recommend you use our grant budget spreadsheet as your “base camp budget” for the general project as a whole. Then, in this step, you’ll adapt your budget to the format specifically requested by the funder. Some might have you fill out the information via an online fillable form. Others will have their own spreadsheet for you to use. This is where things can get confusing—budgets do not always have the same categories. If you get stuck, reach out to the funder for guidance. Often the funder will also ask for a narrative to accompany your budget. What they’re looking for is a written description of how you arrived at the project cost. It’s extremely important to track that information when you initially create your budget and keep it documented in your project folder for easy reference. We format budget narratives by using subheaders for each of the budget categories the funder includes. Be exhaustively detailed and thorough in your response. 📃 Resolution A resolution is approval from the highest in command at your organization to submit a grant application. The purpose is to ensure that your organization is aware and willing to legally bind itself to the rules of the funding agency if awarded funds. If you are a nonprofit organization with a board of directors, you would get a resolution passed by your board. If you are a government entity, your tribal or city council would approve the resolution. Resolutions are not always required for grants, and sometimes they will not be requested until later in the process. In more complex federal grant applications, the funding guidelines may require very specific wording in the resolution. As always, follow your North Star (the funding guidelines!). The timing for getting a resolution approved can be the tricky part. Most boards meet no more than once a month, which can make it challenging to get your resolution done and in their hands before the grant deadline. Be sure to figure out when your approving body meets and add that to your grant calendar so you won’t miss this deadline. Coordinate with the Clerk or person responsible for preparing the board meeting to get your resolution on their agenda. Have the resolution printed on official letterhead. You’ll need the signed copy for your application. 📃 Letters of Support For Grants Before awarding you funds, it’s common for foundations to want to see some references and third-party perspectives on your organization’s work and competencies. Great letters of support can play pivotal roles in the grant maker’s decision! We have an entire blog post dedicated to helping you land compelling and vibrant letters of support—check it out! Letters of Support Want to double your narrative and not have to write it? The trick is great letters of support! Quality letters of support add heart and sincerity to your application and can nudge your application ahead of the rest.\nFree Download Finalizing Your Attachments Once your attachments are complete, consider adding a cover sheet that describes what is included. This is particularly helpful for attachments with several documents like letters of support. You can list every organization that submitted a letter to make it easier for the reviewer to understand what they are about to read. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Step 7: Conduct an Independent Review and Submit Your Grant! Part of what makes grants so intimidating is the number of moving parts. You have the narrative, several attachments, the application submittal process, and more. Even if you are impeccably well organized, it can be easy to make a mistake. Avoid surprises of last-minute work by planning thoroughly at the beginning. This is why project management is so important. At Learn Grant Writing, we use the Asana platform for project management, which makes tracking moving parts easy. Learn more about project management for grant writers with our guide. Once you think you have completed everything in the application, package it as if you are going to submit it right then and there. But before submitting, give the application package to your independent reviewer. Your reviewer will double-check that all forms are included and that your contact information is correct. It is usually the simple things where we find the most mistakes! Now it’s time to submit your grant proposal. Turn in your application at least one day early, but preferably two. Most people are not managing their time well and submit their applications at the very last minute—don’t be that person. Avoid burnout, unnecessary stress, and embarrassing mistakes by submitting your grant early. ⭐ A word of advice from one grant writer to another:\nYou’ll experience a bizarre adrenaline rush after submitting your grant. There is something absolutely awful and wonderful about pressing send! If you followed the seven steps laid out here, you know the application was submitted in tip-top shape. But even then, it can give you nervous energy. Have a plan to dissipate this energy. Take the afternoon off and go for a hike. Meet up with a friend. Take a bike ride. Doing something active is the best way to diffuse any lingering grant writing intensity while also helping celebrate the successful submission with “you time.” Want more tips for a smooth grant submission process? We’ve got ‘em. Check out this video! How to Learn Grant Writing - We Can Help! You now know the seven steps to write a grant! The trick to being a Grant Writing Unicorn is not having magical superpowers, but simply following the funding guidelines to a tee, being the best project manager you can be, and learning to manage your focus. Mastering those principles will make you an unstoppable grant writing force.\nIf you want more thorough training, we can help! Join our free grant writing course for a more in-depth look at our grant writing process, plus tons of extra tips. And for the complete grant writing experience, consider joining the Global Grant Writers Collective®. This membership program gives you everything—a professional-grade (but always accessible) grant writing curriculum, coaching, mentorship, community with other grant writers, and even CFRE grant writing certification! Our Unicorns have used their experiences with the Collective to secure more funding for their nonprofits, start lucrative new side hustles, and even launch fulfilling new careers as grant writing consultants— check out some of their stories! But whatever you do, keep learning! Here are a few resources we recommend as you get started on your grant writing journey: The Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Every Learner How to Become a Freelance Grant Writer Tips for Writing Your First Draft of a Grant Narrative How to Avoid Last-Minute Grant Pursuits Happy grant writing!🦄\nFree Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2024-01-21","description":"Learning how to write a grant proposal can unlock growth for your organization and your career.\nCheck out our tried-and-true 7-step system to get started!\n","formatted_date":"January 21, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/how-to-write-a-grant_hu_a96e797c513bfd27.jpg","permalink":"/blog/how-to-write-a-grant/","slug":"how-to-write-a-grant","summary":"Learning how to write a grant proposal can unlock growth for your organization and your career.\nCheck out our tried-and-true 7-step system to get started!\n","title":"How to Write a Grant Proposal: 7-Step System \u0026 Bonus Tips"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" So, you’re interested in becoming a freelance grant writer? Yay! We’re so happy you found our little corner of the internet. There’s a high demand for your skills and a shortage of talented grant writers in the world. We’re here to fill that need while helping you discover your professional and personal goals—whatever they might be. People are drawn to grant writing for all kinds of reasons: Are you motivated by a flexible lifestyle?\nTotally legitimate! The cool part about grant writing consulting is that all you need is a laptop, internet, and a client. Then you're in business. Do you want to take control of your destiny?\n47% of the global workforce are freelancers right now, and the trend is growing! The faster you can understand the mechanics behind a successful independent consulting business, the better off you are. Are you motivated by a flexible lifestyle?\nTotally legitimate! The cool part about grant writing consulting is that all you need is a laptop, internet, and a client. Then you're in business. We want to help you on this journey of becoming a grant writer and creating your own consulting practice. This post covers our best tips to kick off your rockin' grant writing freelance business: Study up and join a community. Build a network to find jobs and clients. Learn the business skills you’ll need. Use a grant funding strategy. Have a plan for handling common challenges. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz 1. Study Up On Freelance Grant Writing And Join A Community. Maybe you already understand the basics of grant writing or have written proposals—great! You’re off to a strong start. If you’re starting from scratch, you’ll first need to learn more about grant writing and get your feet wet with the process of researching, planning, and writing grants. The good news is there are tons of excellent resources out there to learn grant writing (including us). We even show you how to earn and learn on your first project before you’ve even written a grant. We’ve rounded up some of the top paid and free grant writing classes. Check them out, and keep in mind that some options will be better than others for folks who want to freelance. These are often paid but include more thorough guidance and hands-on training for both the grant writing process and the business skills you’ll need to succeed. If you’re serious about starting a grant writing side hustle (and turning it into a thriving consulting business), you need to think about training as an investment. But… a little appetizer never hurts, right? Try out our free grant writing course for a solid introduction to all the steps and skills you’ll need as a freelancer. Now, fast forward—you’re building your grant writing know-how and feel excited to take actual steps into the field. What should you know? You probably have a few immediate questions: 🌟 Who Hires Grant Writers? All kinds of organizations hire grant writers to research grant opportunities and write proposals on their behalf. These organizations include: Nonprofits of all sizes Schools, colleges, and universities Museums and history centers Hospitals Local governments, housing authorities, and tribal organizations Some faith-based organizations While grant writers are often hired on a one-time freelance basis, there are plenty of opportunities to grow your relationships with clients (like creating Funding Strategies). Many organizations hire their trusted freelance grant writers on longer-term retainer contracts. Larger organizations also often have in-house grant writers as paid employees. 🌟 How Do Grant Writers Get Paid? Great question! And an important one.\nFreelance grant writers are paid through either project fees (one fee for the whole project of researching, writing, and submitting the grant) or hourly rates (a flat rate per hour spent working on the proposal). We discourage hourly pricing because it punishes you for working smarter and harder over time—learn more about value-based pricing here. Fees and rates can also vary a lot based on the client’s budget and the grant writer’s experience. In terms of hard numbers, our conservative estimate for a freelance grant writer’s earnings is $5,000 a month. The median salary of a grant writer is $74,414 (as of November 2023). **It’s important to consider that this number is a median and includes both freelancers and in-house grant writers. There are grant writers in both categories who make much more and less than this median. A writer’s exact pay will vary based on factors like their experience level, their certifications and other skills, the opportunities they find, the budget of their clients or employer, and more. The takeaway? Grant writing is an extremely flexible career path with earnings that can easily scale up with your experience and connections over time. To learn more, dive into the nitty gritty with our longer guide: Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? 🌟 Why Join A Grant Writing Community? Grant writing is a craft, and like other crafts with a real-world demand, sharing knowledge and connections with others in the field can be invaluable. It’s why industries host conferences and form professional associations. It’s why artisans and merchants formed guilds way back in the day! Well, maybe there weren’t medieval grant writing guilds (but that would have been cool). However, there definitely are modern grant writing associations and communities that serve the same purposes—connecting working and student grant writers and creating spaces for them to share their grant writing and business experiences. The internet has made it easier than ever to find supportive grant writing communities. Even better if they’re bundled with expert-level training resources! That’s what we do best at Learn Grant Writing. Home of the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we provide curriculum, coaching, community, and certification so you can launch a successful freelancing business. You get access to: Thorough training on all things grant writing and freelancing Professional Grant Writer and Funding Strategist Certifications that stand out to clients Nationally-recognized CFRE certification (91 credit hours!) to help you build a stellar reputation with nonprofits All kinds of bonus training, online resources, and templates for grant and business documents A community of fellow grant writers to learn from and celebrate with Live coaching calls and mentorship opportunities Discounts on subscriptions to the top grant databases Our community has changed members’ lives and helped them launch lucrative, fulfilling careers—check out some of their stories! The key point to remember is that you don’t have to (and shouldn’t) go it alone. Venturing into a new field and trying to learn new skills by yourself can very quickly sap your energy, enthusiasm, and confidence, and we hate that. However you find community, it should bring you practical guidance and peer support—the magic combo for long-term success. Find your fellow grant writing unicorns! 🦄🌟 Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class 2. Build A Network To Find Freelance Grant Writing Jobs And Clients. Once you’re comfortable with the grant writing process and are part of an active community to share skills and challenges, what comes next? How do you supercharge your freelancing trajectory? Focusing on the areas you’re passionate about will set you up for success. You’ll quickly develop expert-level knowledge on the topic, which will help you to be even more sought after as a grant writer. This means picking a niche. How? Create a list of about 15-20 different industries, nonprofit missions, or types of organizations that interest you. These do not need to be local. Think big here! No idea is a bad idea. Simply get your interests down on paper so you can look at the list as a whole. Are there common themes that emerged? Are you surprised? Excited? Next, conduct informational interviews. These interviews are hugely important when starting your grant writing consulting business because they can help you find new clients and give you direct insight into their needs and pain points. Find someone in an organization or industry like one on your list. Then, interview them to learn more about what grant funding and grant writing looks like for them. Remember to be curious! As a member of the Collective, we’ll provide you with questions to cover your bases and get the creative juices flowing. Offer a Funding Strategy if you spot an opportunity and are energized by the conversation—this is an excellent way to get your foot in the door! A Funding Strategy is a roadmap of the best grants to pursue over the next 12-18 months. These grants should represent the highest likelihood of success and ROI, tailored to that particular organization ( learn more below ). This three-step strategy will help you gain more clients. We have tons of support and sample language to help you through this process available in the Collective. Here’s a quick overview in video format: How to Get Clients as a Grant Writing Consultant. Deciding on a niche will ultimately help you narrow your focus. This saves your precious time, energy, and capacity. Sometimes picking a niche doesn’t happen overnight—anyone else major in “Undecided” for what felt like forever in college? That being said, if you have multiple interests that you’re equally passionate about, we encourage you to get some grant writing experience in each area to try them on for size. We’re confident that you’ll know when you’ve found your perfect fit. 3. Learn The Business Skills Needed To Become A Freelance Grant Writer. We know it can be overwhelming to think about running a successful business. I mean, have you tried googling “how to run a business” before? Well, if you haven’t, we don’t recommend you start now. It’s a doozy! Instead, focus on the three big skills that will make you and your business shine: technical, managerial, and entrepreneurial skills. When you sign up for the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we walk you through these skill sets in bite-sized pieces (that is, we won’t overwhelm you like Google does). Our complete program covers everything you’ll need to launch your business and thrive as a grant writer: Get Started We cover our Organic Networking Method, how to create a funding strategy, and how to master your entrepreneurial, can-do mindset—skills you’ll need to succeed no matter the size of your freelancing goals. Find Grants This is our specialty and why so many grant writers turn to us after trying other training programs! We teach you all about project planning, grant research, project management, and more. Make Your First $15,000 Time to gain experience and land some jobs. We’ll teach you about sole proprietorship, how to find clients, how to snag contracts, and how to get paid. Launch Your Career At this stage, you might want to go further than part-time freelancing by launching a new consulting business or landing a new job—great! This is when we’ll teach you business essentials, tips, and tricks for bookkeeping, taxes, marketing, salary negotiations, and more. Growing to $100K-$250K Annually The next level of success—we’ll show you how to grow your team, perfect your fees and rate structure, and become a marketing superstar. This curriculum has it all, a complete mix of technical grant writing skills, managerial must-knows, and entrepreneurial hacks. The best part about this method is that it gets you to your goals faster than you think possible. If you want to speak with our unicorn team, drop us a line or DM us on Instagram. The key takeaway? You need a complete grant writing education to thrive, and that means more than just learning the technical grant writing process and best practices. You’ll save a lot of time and energy by learning the business skills you need in advance. 4. Use A Grant Funding Strategy To Get Your Foot In The Door. How do you decide which grants to pursue? How do you efficiently research what grants are out there? And which ones will give you the highest return on investment for your time and resources? Those are all good questions. The answer is having a Funding Strategy. A Funding Strategy is a roadmap of what grants you will pursue and when. Think of it like a 12-18 month roadmap. The Funding Strategy is the final deliverable after you have filtered through 100+ grant opportunities and narrowed it down to the top 2-5 you want to pursue. This is your toe-in-the-door deliverable for landing clients for the long term and securing months-long contracts (aka: job security!). Once a client sees the Funding Strategy, they’ll have the opportunity to hire you to carry out all the grant writing for the next 12-18 months. How does the Funding Research Funnel work? Here’s a quick run down (or you can watch our video all about funding strategies): Start by researching any and all grants related to your project. Here's our review of the top ten grant databases. We recommend Instrumentl, an outstanding online grant database. This process should yield 100+ grants. Anything over 150 is too many to process, so you should filter your search if this happens to you. (You can use this discount code LGW to save $50 off your membership: https://www.instrumentl.com/lgw) Next, you’ll do a quick evaluation to determine which grants are worth further evaluation. We have a specific process we teach for this in our course, but it generally can be done in two sittings and will narrow your list down to 20-25 grants that best fit your criteria. Finally, you’ll determine competitiveness, ask quality questions of the funder, and think strategically about the top 2-5 grants worth your precious energy to pursue (we can teach you how to do this). Although the last step is the most time-consuming, it’s 100% worth it for the confidence it brings to your strategy. A Funding Strategy is crucial to grant writing success. Chasing grants erratically is a recipe for burnout and chaos. But by having a roadmap, you can 1) secure a long-term client, 2) keep your client from thrusting last-minute grant pursuits on you, and 3) strategically position your grants to maximize their value. It gives you confidence that you are focusing your precious resources on funding agencies that genuinely want you to apply—truly an expert-level strategy. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template 5. Have A Plan For Handling Common Freelancing Challenges. There will always be barriers when it comes to trying something new. Walk into this endeavor anticipating challenges. When you expect them, you can create a battle plan to work through them. Thankfully, these challenges aren’t often totally unique—plenty of other successful grant writers have experienced them, too. Here are some of the most common challenges that freelance grant writing consultants in our community have experienced and how they’ve handled them: Common Freelance Grant Writing Challenges Challenge 1: Working Full-Time Before jumping into grant writing full-time, a lot of folks keep their full-time jobs to maintain stability. Makes sense, but boy, it can be hard. If you’re in this boat, get creative: where are the chunks of time in your day when you can get a little work done on this side hustle? Does it look like getting up an hour earlier? Dedicating the first hour after work to building your business? A few hours on your weekend days? As a Member of the Collective, you can plan on spending 3-5 hours per week on grant writing in your first three months—and the material is all self-paced, making it even more flexible. In this window, you can earn your grant writing certificate and complete your first paid client project. You can download our app to listen to the online instructional content while cooking, driving, walking, or whatever you need to do. This allows you to soak up the information the first time audibly and then double back when you have a real client to deploy your learning. And remember the value of community! We know you can do this, and we’re here to support you. Let your close family and friends in on your pursuit, too. Let them know that you’re investing in something that will help you realize the future you’re dreaming of. Challenge 2: Kiddos 🐣 They’re the best, huh? And, probably one of your biggest “whys” for pursuing grant writing consulting in the first place. If you’re a parent, we already think you’re a superhuman. You obviously know your situation better than us, but some of our community members work during nap times, quiet times, or when grandparents or others can watch their kids. Over half of our community members are parents, so you’ll be in good company! One of the biggest encouragements we can offer you is to stay the course. Remember your “whys,” keep close to the vision you have for yourself and your family in the future, and recognize that there is incredible value in this investment into your skillset. We’re rooting for you. Challenge 3: Financial Concerns We are certainly not a $19.99 Udemy course. Our pricing increases annually to reflect the huge improvements we push to the program, so be sure to watch this training for the latest pricing. The biggest difference between our program and others you might be considering (check out our reviews of online grant writing courses) is that we show you how to actually pay for your investment. Like, with real grant writing work. Our goal is to help you earn enough to cover your membership within your first three to six months by getting paid to do a real Funding Strategy for a client. The rest is gravy from there as you build your business! Fostering the Right Mindset There are loads of other tips and tricks out there to help you make the most of your time. We just want to highlight one of our favorites that will help you foster a productive mindset. Do not underestimate the power of 15 minutes! In 15 minutes, you can wash a sinkful (or two!) of dishes, fold a load of laundry, write 500+ words, watch a video in one of our Modules, and a million other things that will add up over time. This is how we get things done: 15 minutes at a time. Or, in the words of writer Anne Lamott, author of Bird By Bird: “Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write, which was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, “Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.” 🕊 Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott Most importantly, in case you haven’t heard this lately, you have already done hard things and proven yourself capable. We know that you haven’t arrived here completely fresh-faced having walked through zero challenges in your life. You can do hard things. You Can Become A Freelance Grant Writer—You Got This! Whether you’re motivated by a flexible lifestyle, want to take control of your destiny, or wish to do something meaningful, we think becoming a freelance grant writer can help you get there. We want to support you on this journey of becoming a grant writer and creating your own consulting practice. By deciding on the niche you want to serve, learning the necessary skills to run your own business, starting with a funding strategy, and facing your challenges head-on, we have every assurance that you will be successful. A Small Sample of Unicorn Wins You can explore additional success stories here and on YouTube. Early Wins If you have any additional questions about the Global Grant Writers Collective®, let us know! We can connect you with a member of the program so you can learn more about their perspective and experiences. Shoot an email to info@senworks.org or DM us on Instagram! Want to keep learning? We’ve got some recommendations:\nGrant Writing Basics Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Three Possible Career Paths Through Grant Writing Training Why Start a Side Hustle Grant Writing? Grant Writing for Nonprofits: Our Top 10 Tips Top Mistakes Grant Applicants Make (And How to Avoid Them) ","date":"2024-01-18","description":"Freelance grant writing can be an amazing way to build a career you love. Plus, it’s a skill\nthat’s always in demand! Check out our advice and resources.\n","formatted_date":"January 18, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2024.01.13_freelance-grant-writer_primary_hu_bb365856aafa28a3.webp","permalink":"/blog/how-to-be-freelance-grant-writer/","slug":"how-to-be-freelance-grant-writer","summary":null,"title":"Freelance Grant Writing: How to Start Strong \u0026 Succeed"},{"author":"Johanna Tatlow","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/johanna_tatlow_hu_87a229d196ba1569.png","card_title":null,"content":" As someone who has assisted organizations in getting over $15 million in USAID and other US government funding, I often get questions about finding jobs in international development. More recently, I have been fielding questions about starting grant consultancies for international development. I have been in this space since 2015. In managing millions of grant funding, working with clients across the globe, and reflecting on how my career came to be, I’ve learned some valuable lessons the hard way. I’d love to share my expertise with those who are interested and passionate about building a career in international development. If you're looking to become a grant writer in the niche of international development, I'll cover the challenges of \"breaking in,\" how to build relationships to win more grants, how to find your first few projects, how to approach Funding Strategies, and how to specialize and scale your consulting business. Breaking Into the Field The Right Way International development can be a fantastic career track. And I love grant writing. The intersection of the two energizes me. I love working with organizations on huge, complex issues and finding the right funding to tackle those challenges. You meet fantastic people as you do this work. And—if you’re doing things right—you get to make the world a more just, equitable place. International development has the potential to help a lot of people. It also has the potential to hurt a lot of people. If you want to be a responsible grant writer for international development organizations (I will call them NGOs from here on out), you will end up assisting them with program planning and checking for any unintended or potentially harmful impacts. For instance, iron deficiency anemia has long been identified as a problem in Sub-Saharan Africa. So, many NGOs will want to increase iron intake via supplements or iron-enriched foods. It’s a good impulse. BUT increasing iron levels in that region has been proven to increase deaths (“all cause mortality”). Why? Because parasites and malarial protozoa thrive on high iron. So if you want to increase iron levels (important for reducing maternal mortality, for instance) without accidentally killing people, you have to supply anti-parasitic (deworming) and anti-malarial medication. Because there have been so many harmful attempts in the past, reputable NGOs are careful in who they hire to design grant programs. If you want to be successful in the field, you have to be continually committed to challenging your own assumptions and engaging with new discoveries on how best to serve people. Iron supplementation is by no means the only thing international development practitioners have been very wrong about. Early attempts to mechanize agriculture also had horrific impacts, including outright starvation. Nor is the emergency response sector exempt. Delivering dairy as the primary protein to a starving people group with severe lactose intolerance. Giving away rice such that it put local rice farmers out of business and eliminated food production for the next year. Those are a couple of the mistakes my field has made. To guard against repeating such mistakes, the bar of entry to the field is high, particularly if you are a “Western” person. Don’t let it discourage you. Let it drive you to excellence.\nThere are a couple of common avenues into the field of international development:\nBeing a “local” who is leading an impact organization in your own community (eg: a Kenyan who is working on poverty alleviation around Nairobi) Being a member of a diaspora community (eg: a Somali living in Minnesota) who is helping people back home overcome challenges Having lived experience overseas for a few years (Peace Corps, faith-based mission stints, college study abroad, or international work) Having substantial technical expertise to offer. For instance, you may be coming out of a nursing career and have a passion for international healthcare. Or you’ve worked on green energy financing in the US, and you want to do the same elsewhere. In the absence of these, many people try to “short-cut” their way into international development through university studies, either at the undergrad or graduate level. The good programs will ensure you get substantial overseas experience and internships in the field as part of your training. But not all programs are good. So, my first recommendation if you are seeking to go into international development is to do a self-assessment. What experience or expertise are you bringing to the field? If you don’t have much right now, you may need some time to develop it. Having said all that--grant writing and fundraising is a technical skill. If you are already good at that, then you do have value to offer that NGOs are desperate for. So, how do you edge your way in?\nNudging doors open in the international development world is all about relationships.\nCurious about building a grant-writing consulting business? Find training to meet you where you’re at in your grant writing journey. Building International Development Relationships Hopefully, you have a few relationships in the international development world already. You can reach out to former professors, for instance, if it is your area of study. Or reach out to others who are still back in the country you lived in for a bit. When you are in this first stage, you’ll want to reach out to everyone you’ve ever met and let them know that you are looking to help NGOs with grants. You may not have people jump to reply. That’s okay. Send a follow-up email or two, but don’t pester too much. Next, you will need to connect with new people. The easiest way to do this is LinkedIn. The platform is essential to getting off the ground as an NGO consultant. Make a profile that showcases not just your past jobs but also the stories that connected you to international development. Once you have your profile, drive traffic your way by following the main influencers of the NGOs and niches you are interested in. Comment on as many of their posts as you reasonably can to build your network. Connect with anyone you remotely know and anyone you’re interested in knowing. Connect with anyone you have an informational interview with or a conversation with at a conference. If you have commented on someone’s post, send a connection request after: “Hey, I see you talk about {interesting stuff}. I’d love to connect.” Make sure you are connecting with “nationals,” the local people who actually do the program groundwork in their own home countries. They often have the best perspective and the best ideas. As funders realize this, they have begun to shift to granting to “on-the-ground” organizations directly, a movement known as “localization.” In other words, even if you didn’t want these nationals’ perspective (in which case, please just quit the field now), they also hold decision making power. However, very little work has been done to assist them in building grant writing potential or in navigating complex applications. As a grant consultant, you both have a great deal to learn from them and a valuable skill set to offer them. As you make connections on LinkedIn, put in the extra work to take the relationships off the platform as well. After a few interactions, reach out and ask if they could talk for 15 minutes. Be clear about what you will talk about. If you have a pitch, they want to know upfront. Don’t spring it later. Sending a Zoom or Google Meet invite link within LinkedIn messaging is the easiest. You can ask for their email and phone number for follow-up. Not only are connections crucial for finding paid assignments, they are also crucial for ensuring your clients actually receive funding. A grant you write will succeed somewhat on the basis of the quality of the grant. However, it will succeed largely on the basis of the organization’s reputation and the quality of the relationships between senior “field staff” (the people in other countries) and the funder’s staff. For USAID, this takes the form of “Mission concurrence,” as in, the country office has to sign off on wanting your organization to work there (side note: you can find the Mission email at the very bottom of each USAID country profile page). For many foundations, this means you can’t even put in an application if you don’t know who in the country to email for a referral to headquarters. MasterCard Foundation, for instance, is referral only. As is the Buffet Agricultural Foundation last I checked. You can certainly reach out to them, but not with a cold grant proposal--only to introduce their field staff to your field staff, who would then explain their current program and introduce the idea of what they would like to do next. After which, you might get to write that up into a grant proposal with some chance of securing funding. The more you make connections and build relationships, the greater your chances of success in finding and supporting clients. Finding Your First Few NGO Projects The first few grant projects are the hardest to land. When you are just starting off, your target client will likely be a small organization with a very specific focus (eg: one that digs wells in Uganda). You may start with less ideal clients. You can also explore pro-bono, particularly for organizations that are local to impoverished countries. But do this from a place of mission and not a belief that you aren’t worth getting paid. Grant writers make a huge difference for their clients and are well worth a fair fee. Many of the best organizations furthering “international development” are actually ones started by, say, a Senegalese in Senegal. However, because of currency exchange rates and geographical disadvantages, they will not be able to pay you a US market value for your grant writing services. As someone who is starting out, editing those proposals to sound like they were written by a native English speaker will give you good experience and insight into the field. But it may not result in many connections to paying work. If you are in the US and need to make a US wage, then your ideal client will be small or midsize organizations with US offices. Those are going to be the easiest to connect with and the easiest to find foundation funding for. If you are wanting to get into the bigger (federal, e.g. USAID) grants or work with larger clients right away, you will likely need to do so as an editor or secondary writer under a Lead Writer. Not only can that arrangement open doors for contracts, but it can also be an excellent learning opportunity. They will have insights into donors and players in the field that you need. They will also have insights into the culture of the international development field itself and shifting preferences on terminology and word choice. Funding Strategies For NGOs There is one primary way in which NGO grant work differs from the standard procedure on Learn Grant Writing, and that is in creating a Funding Strategy. A Funding Strategy is a memorandum summarizing the top 10-15 grant opportunities that yield the highest likelihood of success. But finding funding opportunities isn’t going to be as easy as doing an Instrumentl search. Here are some other recommended ways to source international funding:\nGoogle Bard is surprisingly helpful as a search tool. Search phrases such as “top funders for water projects in Africa” and then follow up on the lists found in search result articles. FundsforNGOs has a website with good lists of funders and a basic database. Following key individuals and foundation accounts on LinkedIn will keep you in the loop. I recommend Joanne Sonenshine, the folks at GlobalGiving, and Mastercard Foundation, among others. Look through the annual reports or 990s of organizations doing similar work to see who funded them, and then reach out to those funders. Consider “subbing” to the larger organizations. Big NGOs such as World Vision and CARE -International often give money to smaller, local organizations to do specific projects. Follow blogs from groups such as the Borgen Project and The Bridgespan Group. They often write posts such as “Five Organizations Working Towards Eliminating Malaria”. The key to developing a Funding Strategy is having someone inside the organization to collaborate with. Your responsibility will be to find lists of potential opportunities across several search platforms. When you’ve uncovered opportunities that are a good fit, done your research to make sure your organization is eligible, and compared past awards to vet for alignment, then you’ll move on to outreach. Depending on your relationship with the organization, you might lead the outreach between a funder and an organization, or they might. Ideally, you will be looping in a “field contact” (someone based in the country for which you are finding funding) who can work with a “program officer” of the funder (or, in USAID’s case, “the Mission” and in USDA’s case “the Post”). They should invite the program officer to come out and observe current projects or go with them on fact-finding trips. You’ll need to emphasize that you are not going to be the relationship holder with donors but rather the introducer. The NGO has to take it from there. In your search for potential donors, don’t overlook past donors.\nYou would be surprised at how often these foundations get neglected by accident after one round of funding finishes. Ask the organization you work with for a list of funders who have given in the past five to ten years. Corporate giving, faith-based giving, and smaller foundations tend to be the low-hanging fruit. Even if they can only give 10% of what you need, this can be used to show match to the bigger organizations who like to see “leverage” with their funds, where you are matching some percentage with another donor or funding source. You might not end up doing a Funding Strategy.\nFunding Strategies are usually led by a Business Development Director/ VP or are part of a senior executive’s role. Most of the mid and large-size organizations should already have funding sources they have identified. If an organization wants to include a large foundation (the Gates Foundation, for instance) in its strategy, the senior executive will probably need to have a meeting with, play golf with, or plan a trip to co-occur with a foundation representative. For example, an executive might attend two hours of a conference halfway around the world so that they can get coffee with the foundation rep who is scheduled to speak. That is way above your pay grade.\nEventually, you will find a medium-sized client or two who is happy to give you repeat work. You can help them with some strategy and work on larger projects with them. Specialize And Scale Your Consulting Business The world is a very big place. And international development is a bit of a catch-all term. When you start off, you can and should throw a wide net. If you want to succeed in the field later, you’ll need to specialize. Do you want to write grants for economic development projects? Or for healthcare? Or education? Nutrition? Infrastructure? Or would you prefer to write for humanitarian crisis response? Technically, that’s not international development (a discussion for another day), but it does dovetail. If you don’t want to limit yourself to a particular technical area, you can niche down by geographic region instead. Perhaps you have a passion for Honduras, or you would like to support projects in West Africa. Focusing on a niche allows you to become a consultant instead of a freelancer. Rather than being someone who is hired for writing gigs, you will become someone who has insight and expertise to offer during the program development process. You will start to contribute to the design of solutions rather than just writing up what the field leaders are requesting. After you’ve written three large NGO grant proposals (“large” in NGO terms means over $1M in value) in your preferred area, you can usually worm your way into more via platforms like KeyLime, Konektid, and Head Global. All of these have a USAID focus. They are the ones that the largest NGOs turn to when they have “surge needs.” They will want to know what your specialty is to determine if you are qualified, and they will request references. Working for those clients lets you build up a word-of-mouth reputation. You need to be on more than one of these if you want consistent work. Even then, you are likely to have dry spells during the summer and early autumn. Having retainer clients of your own will even out your income. Rewarding Work As An NGO Grant Writer International development is a field I am passionate about, and it requires passion. It also requires humility. And it requires an orientation to relationships that I frankly lacked when I first started. Maturity, mentorship, and the school of hard knocks taught me a lot. When you start out, you will have some closed doors, some misunderstandings, faux pas, and hard knocks too. That’s okay. Every single person who is in this space has had an “Oh my word, why did I DO that?!?” moment. As well as a “I have no idea what I did wrong. Why did they react that way?” moment. Lots of those moments, actually, given the cross-cultural nature of the work. We live and learn. There are a lot of challenges and needs out there. There are a lot of NGOs doing good work. And there is a lot of grant funding available to NGOs that requires a well-crafted grant proposal. So, in theory, the field should be wide open and accessible. In reality, it can be difficult to break into. But if you do, it is worthwhile. You meet inspiring people. You make a difference. You may even get to travel the world, albeit not usually to any of the common tourist attractions! So, go. Start making connections. Use LinkedIn. Ask questions. Offer your services. And see where the path takes you. ","date":"2024-01-06","description":"Want to know the secrets to a successful career in international development grant writing? In this article, learn how\nyou can break in, build relationships, find projects, specialize, and scale your consultancy. This is your guide to\nmaking a meaningful impact in a complex field.\n","formatted_date":"January 6, 2024","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-international-niche-cover_hu_f70883fc2a9ec75.jpg","permalink":"/grant-writing-international-development/","slug":"2024.01.06_build_niche","summary":null,"title":"5 Steps To Building Your Grant Writing Niche In International Development"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Have you been thrown into the deep end working at a nonprofit organization and tasked to apply for grant funding for the first time? Maybe you've heard about the field, catching the buzz from a friend starting a grant writing side hustle. Or you've seen how others have pivoted their careers to launch grant writing consultant businesses. However you found grant writing, we're glad you're here!\nGrant writers are perceived to have superpowers—they know how to get free money!\nWell, it's not quite that easy. There is no such thing as free money, and grant writing is a lot of hard work. However, it is very learnable and an incredible skill set to have in your quiver. Even newcomers succeed with the right guidance and training under their belt. This crash course in grant writing will cover everything you need to know to start approaching grant writing like a boss! Grant Writing Essentials: Definitions \u0026 FAQs Grant Writing vs. Nonprofit Fundraising The Grant Writing Process for Beginners Understanding the Grant Fundraising Landscape Why Grant Writing is Such a Valuable Skill Curious about how to get into grant writing without prior experience? Check out this video to learn more. Grant Writing Essentials: Definitions \u0026 FAQs Let’s start with the essentials: a few grant writing definitions and frequently asked questions.\n🌟 What is grant writing? Grant writing is the process of crafting a written proposal to receive grant funding from a grant making institution in order to fund a program or project. Grant writing involves laying out your case for why the grant will do the most good for you (or your project or organization). A stellar grant proposal will clearly show the funder that your plan is the best possible choice for accomplishing your shared goals. Think of grant writing like making a pitch to investors or lenders but to receive funding that you won’t need to pay back. That begs the question…\n🌟 What are grants? A grant is a financial award to support a person, organization, project, or program. It is intended to achieve a specific goal or purpose. Nonprofits can use grants to complete projects, run programs, provide services, or continue running a smooth operation. Great, now where is all of this money coming from?\n🌟 Who provides grant funding? Typically, grants are awarded to organizations from grant making institutions (also called grantors). These include foundations, corporations, and government agencies. Grantors provide grants to help further their goals in their communities (or around the country or world) and to support other organizations that do on-the-ground work. These goals are typically philanthropic or social in nature, but grants might also be offered for educational, scientific, or any other purpose. Grants usually come with very specific guidelines for what the money can and can’t be used for, as well as rules for how the “winner” of the grant (or the grantee) will report on its progress. When a grant has specific guidelines, we call these funds restricted. Restricted funding means they can only be used for the purposes laid out in the proposal and specified by the funder. So, can anybody and everybody get grant money?\n🌟 Who is eligible for grant funding? Many different types of organizations are eligible to write proposals and apply for grant funding. Most notably, 501(c) nonprofit organizations that have IRS Letters of Determination (basically any type of legit nonprofit). More specifically, these types of organizations are eligible for grants through grant writing:\nNonprofits/public charities with IRS-recognized status Unincorporated community groups with fiscal sponsors Tribal organizations (and sometimes housing authorities) Faith-based organizations (which sometimes must provide direct social services depending on the grantor’s guidelines) Local governments Exciting, right? Grants can do a lot of good for organizations of all sizes. But who’s doing the work?\n🌟 Who does the actual grant writing and drafts the proposal? All different kinds of folks! Each organization finds their sweet spot for getting the work done. Grant proposals can be written by: Employees of eligible organizations Volunteers lending their time Freelance grant writers providing a contract-based service Grant writing consultants who provide organizations with ongoing help through retainer contracts Successful grant writing leads to positive impacts on real people and real communities. Grant writers put in the elbow grease because they care about charitable organizations and their missions. They want to see their communities thrive. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz 🌟 How do you learn grant writing? Grant writing is a set of specific skills and processes, so it can be taught and learned like any other subject. There are a few different avenues you can explore to level up your grant writing skills.\nDIY Method: You can binge-watch YouTube content to pick up the bits and pieces of grant writing. This is certainly a cost-effective method! However, factoring in the stress of reinventing the wheel while riding the struggle bus of going it alone, you’re spending more time (and $$) in the long run to learn grant writing skills. Higher-Ed Programs: Several universities offer certifications in nonprofit management, but most do not focus solely on grant writing. For a semester or two, the curriculum will teach you the ins and outs of nonprofit organizations, which includes grant writing. These courses include a university certificate for formal education. The downside, however, is that university programs fall short of helping students bridge the gap between learning the material and actually applying it—in other words, getting paid tp use your newly acquired knowledge in the field. Online Courses: There’s a wide variety of online courses to help you learn how to become a grant writer. Online education is flexible for those who are looking to add grant writing as a new skill set on top of a full-time schedule (life, work, etc.) or level up their skills. Yes, even if you’re an in-house grant writer working with a nonprofit organization, professional training is applicable. You can check out a roundup of the best grant writing classes here. Curious about how to break into grant writing without prior experience and with no added debt? The Global Grant Writers Collective® is the only program of its kind to show you how to be a world-class grant writer while also building a flexible, fulfilling life you love. Grant Writing vs. Non Profit Funding We’ve covered all the basics, but there’s a bit more important context to understand as you launch your grant writing journey. You know that grants provide funding to organizations to do good work in their communities, but how does this relate to the bigger concept of fundraising? TL;DR — Grant Writing vs. Fundraising Fundraising is how you raise money for your organization. Grant writing is one type of fundraising activity. Grant writing includes asking foundations or government entities for support while other fundraising activities usually target individual donors. What is nonprofit fundraising? Fundraising is generally defined as the process of soliciting financial support for a cause or project. Central to the idea of fundraising is the collection of cash donations (although all kinds of assets can be donated). Donations can be collected immediately or over months or years, as is the case for long-term pledges of large donations to capital campaigns. Fundraising is an essential way for most nonprofits to bring in revenue for their missions. Monies raised through general fundraising activities are often referred to as unrestricted funds and can be used for any expenses, such as staff salaries or rent. Donors can also require that their money be used in a specific (or restricted) way. Who fundraises, and what do you need to do it? Nonprofits are the most common group to fundraise. However, other groups like those adorable Girl Scouts selling their highly addictive cookies (our greatest weakness 😋) and people raising funds for mission trips are eligible for fundraising, too. The only thing you technically need to fundraise is trust from your donors. But when you represent an organization, establishing trust means getting official with a 501(c)(3) designation and publishing an annual report. Remember that fundraising isn’t so much about asking for money as it is about inviting others who have a passion for what you do to join you in your mission. Once you find them, you can do that work together—the beauty of fundraising! How is grant writing different from fundraising? As you can already tell, fundraising has a much broader definition than grant writing.\nFundraising can take many forms, and grant writing falls under that umbrella.\nFundraising usually refers to generating cash donations by:\nBuilding relationships with individual donors Holding fundraising events Making public appeals for donations and marketing your organization to the community When you submit a proposal for a grant, it’s a one-on-one targeted pitch to a funder. You understand their past giving history. You’ve vetted them for mission alignment, and your project meets their goals for impact. The relationship between you and the funder is more formalized (though there is room for personal relationships over time). With fundraising through individual donors, not through a grant, your approach is less formal. You likely don’t need a lengthy proposal, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have a plan. To fundraise from individual donors, you may be soliciting funds from individuals whose circumstances and philanthropic interests are largely unknown to you. Your approach can usually be applied to a wider audience, whereas grant writing targets one organization with specific guidelines. In either case, relationship-building and strategies like prospect research are very important for nonprofits. Then what do grant writing and fundraising have in common? In both cases, you need to do research, pursue leads, prepare talking points, evaluate opportunities, and cultivate relationships. The essence of both practices is the same. What is different is the target and approach. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class The Grant Writing Process for Beginners With all the context out of the way, let’s get to the meat and potatoes. How do you actually write a grant proposal? What are the key steps to follow? Here it is: our signature 7-step process for writing a winning grant. We’ll summarize the key points to understand for each step, but please check out our longer grant writing process explainer for a deep dive into the nitty gritty. Follow your North Star (the funding guidelines). A funder will provide guidelines for their grant that all applicants need to follow to be considered. Think of these as instructions. Guidelines can vary a lot from one grant to another, so it’s important to never take them for granted (see what we did there?). Download, print, read, and reread the guidelines. Prepare your narrative skeleton. Every grant should tell a story, but sitting down to write a prizewinning story on a blank page is a lot easier said than done. Give yourself an easier start by outlining your proposal based on the funding guidelines themselves. These are the questions you’ll have to answer, so bake them into your story from the very start. Simple bullet points will do here—no need to lock down full sentences just yet. Host a kick-off meeting. Gather everyone involved in the project to get on the same page. These are all the people who’ll provide you with the information you need for the grant as well as those who’ll be involved in running the project that it funds. Remember, everyone loves an organized meeting—send an agenda and your narrative skeleton in advance, then a summary of action items after, plus an invite to a progress check-in meeting. Finalize your grant budget. Next, you need to know how much the project you’re proposing will cost to complete—this budget will impact all other parts of your application. For example, funders often ask for a “budget narrative” that explains how you determined your final numbers. Some grants are structured to provide a percentage of your total costs rather than a flat sum. Grab a copy of our free grant budget template when you’re ready! Write your narrative fast and furiously. With your budget in hand, now’s the time to start putting pen to paper (or fingers to keys). Review your grant guidelines again, and start filling in your narrative skeleton with the details it needs to paint a compelling picture. We could go on and on with all the tips and hacks we’ve learned—check them out in Step 5 of our grant writing process guide. Prep your key attachments. Funders usually want more than just your perfectly written document. They often ask for additional attachments like separate budget documents, a resolution, and letters of support. Some attachments, like resolutions, can take a long time to get finalized, which is why understanding your guidelines early is so important so that you can get the ball rolling quickly. Review and submit your grant! Phew—you made it! But you’re not done yet. Reviewing and double-checking your proposal is a must, and it should be done by an independent reviewer who hasn’t been knee-deep in the process like you. Collect and discuss their feedback, make changes, review one last time, and then hit submit (ideally a day or two before the deadline). After the adrenaline wears off, take the afternoon off. There’s no magic formula for writing a winning grant—your proposal should always be tailored to that unique grant and funder—but there are best practices and principles that give you a reliable roadmap to follow each time. Our 7-step grant writing process condenses a ton of them into one digestible process, but for an even closer look, join our free grant writing class! Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Essential Grant Writing Tips for Newcomers Once you’ve mastered the steps above, you’re probably wondering how to actually put rubber to the road and get started. Here are our top 5 recommendations: Find a real project to work on! Try identifying a real grant opportunity and approaching a nonprofit in your community. Or if that idea terrifies you—we get it—you can start slower with sample projects and training courses. Commit to excellence in project management. Grant writing is complicated, no way around it. Familiarize yourself with project management best practices and you can stay organized and energized. Fake it until you make it. Imposter syndrome is very real, and even experienced grant writers deal with it. But don’t let it hold you back. When you invest in your grant writing skills and get real-world practice, you have something worth sharing. Build some momentum and see how far you can go! Have a process mindset. When you pull the mask off the big hairy grant writing monster, you’ll find it’s really just a big stack of steps and processes—learnable steps and processes. Master these, and you’ll have a reliable framework for success. Don’t be stubborn (said with love). Trying to go it alone when learning grant writing leads to more mistakes and wasted time and money. Grant writing is a craft, after all, and there’s a lot to be gained from connecting with fellow grant writers. P.S. Want more grant writing videos like this one? There’s more where that came from. Check out our YouTube channel and give us a follow! Understanding the Grant Fundraising Landscape If you’re new to grant writing (or even considering turning it into a side hustle), it’s important to understand the big picture. Why do grants matter? Grants make up a considerable chunk of nonprofits’ operating revenue. According to Nonprofit Impact Matters, the nonprofit sector generates roughly 31.8% of its revenue from government sources (including both grants and paid contracts) and 2.9% from foundations in the form of grants. It’s generally recommended that grant funding should provide 10-20% of a nonprofit’s total annual budget.\nFunding from foundations is growing.\nTotal giving from foundations reached $105.21 billion in 2022, a 2.5% increase from the year before, and it’s part of a continued upward trend. Put another way, foundations provided 21% of total giving to nonprofits, or $1 of every $5 given to charity. This is one of only a few areas that saw growth when adjusted for inflation. Family foundations (founded by families as a way to better manage their philanthropic activities) and corporate foundations have led the charge. Grants are an important part of a safe revenue mix.\nNonprofits need to have diversified revenue streams so that they can rely on other ways to generate money when one shrinks or dries up. Grants are an essential part of this equation, especially as a turbulent economy causes individual donors to rein in their spending. Case in point—the 2023 Giving USA Report found that giving from individuals declined 6.4% in 2022 (or 13.4%, when adjusted for inflation), a finding that sent shockwaves through the nonprofit world. But when a nonprofit has a sturdy fundraising program, grant writing process, and an active grant opportunity pipeline, it becomes much easier to weather the storms and keep on doing the good work their communities need. This leads us to a logical conclusion (which you might have already caught onto)...\nWhy Grant Writing is Such a Valuable Skill Grant writing is an incredibly valuable skill because:\nIt’s always in demand. It helps nonprofits secure the diverse funding they need to thrive. It drives on-the-ground good by funding projects and programs. Competition for grants will only get tougher as giving from foundations grows and donor habits keep changing in the coming years. The right unicorn of a grant writer can make a world of difference for nonprofit missions of all sizes and build the fulfilling career they want: a win-win! Study up on grant writing best practices. Stretch your grant writing muscles by taking a free class or investing in more lessons, coaching, and community (like through the Global Grant Writers Collective®). Whether you’re looking to win more funding for your nonprofit or break out into a new freelance field, anyone can succeed with grant writing with the right preparation and practice. Want to learn more? We know you do. We recommend these additional resources:\nCan I Make Money as a Grant Writer? Three Possible Career Paths Through Grant Writing Training Why Start a Side Hustle Grant Writing? Grant Writing for Nonprofits: Our Top 10 Tips Tips for Writing Your First Draft of a Grant Narrative Top Mistakes Grant Applicants Make (And How to Avoid Them) A Review of the Top 10 Grant Databases ","date":"2023-12-19","description":"What is grant writing? Why does it matter, and how do you get started? Whether you’re new to\ngrant writing or looking for a refresher, we’ve got you covered.\n","formatted_date":"December 19, 2023","image":"/lgw/images/blog/grant-writing-ultimate-guide_hu_f8d8030ffb4ae8f2.jpg","permalink":"/grant-writing-basics/","slug":"2023.12.27_grant-writing-basics","summary":"What is grant writing? Why does it matter, and how do you get started? Whether you’re new to\ngrant writing or looking for a refresher, we’ve got you covered.\n","title":"Grant Writing 101: What is it \u0026 how do you get started?"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" You know that you’re interested in learning more about grant writing and that online courses and classes can help. We love that! Welcome to the party! Now, where do you go from there? Which courses are relevant for you and worth investing in?\nKnowing where to begin can be tricky because the field is so diverse. Grant writing courses and certifications come in all shapes and sizes, and different options are best for different learners. This blog post aims to give you a solid overview of the grant writing education options available online. We’ve gathered the top grant writing resources, reviewed them, and sorted them into these categories: Free grant writing classes and resources Best for grant writing freelancers Best for nonprofit professionals Best for federal grant seekers University-based grant writing programs The Ultimate Resource for Grant Learners! Learn Grant Writing has something for everyone\nLet's start winning your next grant Quick Picks: The Absolute Best Grant Writing Classes Maybe you’re in a hurry—we get it. Let’s cut to the chase. Here are our top recommendations for grant writing learners with different goals: Do you want to check out a free grant writing class? 👉 Consider Learn Grant Writing Free Grant Writing Class, Coursera, or Peak Proposals. Do you want to start a freelance grant writing business or side hustle? 👉 Consider Learn Grant Writing Free Grant Writing Class or Grant Writing \u0026 Funding by Holly Rustik. Do you want to improve your grant writing skills for your current nonprofit role? 👉 Consider the Global Grant Writers Collective® by Learn Grant Writing, Ed2Go, or the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee’s Introduction to Grant Writing course. Do you want to gain more specialized skills for federal grant seeking? 👉 Consider DH Leonard Consulting \u0026 Grant Writing Services, LLC, Grant Professionals Association’s Next Level Grant Training, or a wide array of university-based programs. We’ll take a closer look at each of these options and more in the categories below. Think we missed a valuable program that should be included? Let us know. Best Free Online Grant Writing Classes Back to Top Whether you’re just getting started, working on a budget, or aren’t ready to make a paid commitment to learning grant writing, there are tons of options available. These free grant writing resources can help: 1. Learn Grant Writing's Free Introductory Class Our free grant writing class covers all the essentials and explains how you can build a career in grant writing without the fear of where you will find clients or feeling like a failure if your grant doesn’t win. We cover the top three mistakes that keep people stuck, how to get paid to learn grant writing, and strategy for pulling off a career transition. Following that broad overview, you are then guided through our tried and tested seven steps to writing winning grant applications: Step 1: Prepare for success Step 2: Host kickoff meeting Step 3: Develop your budget (you’ll also get a free copy of our grant budget template!) Step 4: Preparing key attachments (including a resolution and letters of support) Step 5: Write your narrative Step 6: Persuasive writing Step 7: Submitting your application This free resource is best for those interested in learning about grant writing without the burden of financial or time commitment. It’s for all of you who want to get your feet wet. Learn all the essentials for free - Sign up now 2. Coursera: Fundraising \u0026 Development Foundations Coursera is home to a free intermediate-level course created by the University of California Davis. The course carries a fee if you wish to earn a course certificate, but you can audit all of the course content for free. This four-module course provides an in-depth background on nonprofit fundraising and development, giving grant writers invaluable context for how grant funding fits into the bigger picture of running a nonprofit. While not all of the content is directly related to grant writing, it will help you learn: Nonprofit and fundraising lingo The nonprofit fundraising process How to develop a case for support (an essential skill for grant writers!) Current issues and trends in the fundraising world This class is best for folks who already have a general understanding of grant writing and want to learn more about the nitty gritty, technical aspects of the nonprofit world. 3. Peak Proposals: The Basics of Finding \u0026 Applying for Grants Getting Started: The Basics of Finding \u0026 Applying for Grants is a free course consisting of three modules. It covers how to find potential funders, an overview of writing a grant proposal, and the process of submitting a proposal. Each of the 17 lessons in the course contains an assignment to help students apply the lessons learned. Peak Proposals is best for those wanting even more hands-on training without making a financial commitment.\n4. MIT: Advanced Writing Seminar MIT’s graduate-level Advanced Writing Seminar covers much more than grant writing, but you'll find lessons on grants plus tons of writing and presentation tips that can improve your general skills. There is no enrollment or registration fee for this self-paced course. Note that while this seminar is useful for improving writing skills as a whole and includes a grant writing-specific lesson, it won’t be a thorough dive into the grant writing process. But it’s still an extremely helpful course for those looking to sharpen their professional writing skills, which are (of course) essential for successful grant writing. The course materials and reading list provide interesting sources to guide your self-study of writing, including The Oxford Essential Guide to Writing by Thomas Kane and The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. ***P.S. If you read only one book about writing, make it The Elements of Style! It’s a classic for a reason. This three-minute video highlights our favorite (and arguably the most valuable) takeaway from the book. 5. Almost Free Grant Writing Courses on Udemy Udemy is an eLearning platform where experts create and sell courses on a wide variety of subjects. It offers dozens of grant writing courses on different aspects of the process. Options range from introductions to grant writing to more specialized classes on nonprofits and NIH grants. While these courses aren’t free, they are relatively inexpensive and can help you bolster your skills in more specific areas. Course costs average around $80, but they frequently go on sale—keep an eye out for big discounts down to $15 or less! Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Freelancers and Side-Hustlers Back to Top Tons of people are drawn to grant writing as a way to generate extra income, start a freelancing business, or make bigger career changes—and for good reason! Grant writing is a learnable, specialized skill that’s always in demand, and it helps nonprofit organizations make bigger impacts in their communities. Here are some of our favorite resources for those interested in investing more time and energy into grant writing as a business: Grant Writing Career Blueprint If you want to make an extra $5K+ per month with a grant writing side hustle, let\u0026rsquo;s talk. Enter your email to get your free blueprint delivered to your inbox.\nGet The Blueprint 1. The Global Grant Writers Collective® from Learn Grant Writing The Global Grant Writers Collective® is a year-long membership that includes online instructional videos, community, certification, and coaching to teach you a step-by-step system for building a flexible career in grant writing. In addition to an ever-growing community and mentorship, there are live trainings offered twice a month. The Collective is structured in seven phases:\nPhase 1: Get Started (learn how to get paid to learn + tons of freebies!) Phase 2: Find Grants (our tried and true grant research method) Phase 3: Write Grants (a step by step approach) In just 45 days, you can receive your Professional Grant Writer and Funding Strategist Certificates - yay! With industry-recognized credentials and real-world experience, you can now confidently interview for higher-paying, quality jobs. Enjoyed the freelancing? We’ll also show you how to work for yourself and build a vibrant grant writing consulting business in the final modules of the program. Phase 4: Make Your First $15,000 (no need to set up a business yet) After Phase 4, you can start thinking about your next career path: full-time freelance or new job. Either way, you have $15,000 worth of freelance expertise under your belt. It’s time to grow! You can take your portfolio to land a new job or scale your freelance practice to a $250,000 per year business. Phase 5: Growing to $50,000 (form your LLC) Phase 6: Growing to $100K-$250K Annually (join the 5% club and make 6 figures!) Phase 7: Advanced Grant Writing Members of the Collective also have access to an entire community of fellow grant writers, coaching and mentorship, and bonus trainings. These include logic and evaluation models, resume writing, fiscal sponsorship, federal grant training, contracting \u0026 retainer pricing, and more! Membership in the Collective costs $500 per month or $6,000 annually. Check out these reviews and member spotlights to see how our community has changed members’ lives and unlocked lucrative new careers! This Collective was created for those looking for a career change and are interested in freelance grant writing or landing a new job—plus, it brings the added benefits of a vibrant community and steadfast peer support. You can get paid as a grant writer - Learn more here 2. Holly Rustik’s Grant Writing \u0026 Funding Course Grant Writing \u0026 Funding, founded by Holly Rustik, offers several grant writing courses: Grant Writing Master Course; and Freelance Grant Writing Master Course. In 39 videos, the Grant Writing Master Course covers the basics of grants, finding grants, identifying needs and problems, developing a grant proposal, and building a budget. The course is self-paced and can be purchased for $697 or in six payments at $129 each. Included in the cost of this membership are sample grants and community engagement. The Freelance Grant Writing Master Course is for folks who want to start a grant writing business but don’t know how to find clients, build a brand, and get started with marketing. The cost of this course is $997 or six installments of $183.20. 3. Resources from the American Grant Writers Association Review The American Grant Writers Association (AGWA) is a common resource for people to consider when researching their first steps for a grant writing side business or career change. However, it’s important to note that AGWA converted their live workshops into an online format without intentionally building it for online learning, which might negatively impact your experience with the program. Sarah* approached the team at Learn Grant Writing after having an unpleasant and floundering experience with a grant writing course offered through AGWA. We’ve published the review she offered to write so you can have the best information possible when deciding where to learn about grant writing. Give it a read here. *We have changed the name of the individual to protect her privacy. In every other regard, the linked article is a true and honest review. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Best Grant Writing Certifications \u0026 Courses for Nonprofit Professionals Back to Top In the nonprofit world, it’s super common for fundraisers and program staff to wear many hats. Maybe you’ve just been handed the grant writing hat for the first time and have no idea where to start—we’ve got you covered. Here are our favorite online resources for nonprofit professionals to learn grant writing or sharpen their skills to help their organizations secure more funding: 1. The Global Grant Writers Collective® Yep, we serve nonprofit professionals as well. The Global Grant Writers Collective® helps you become a confident grant writer with a peer-proven step-by-step system for writing winning grants. Never navigate a sticky situation alone again. This self-study online course and community help you take the guesswork out of managing all the moving parts involved in writing winning grant applications. The Collective is structured into five seven phases: Phase 1: Get Ready (become irresistible to funders + tons of freebies!) Phase 2: Find Grants (our tried and true grant research method) Phase 3: Write Grants (a step-by-step approach) Phase 4: Career Paths (build your career for portfolio experience and income) Phase 5: Business Development (Bonuses) Phase 6: Continued Education (never stop learning!) Access to the Collective and ongoing membership costs $500 per month or $6,000 annually. With it, you get the full library of training content and coaching, plus inclusion in a thriving community of fellow grant writers eager to share and learn from each other—no question goes unanswered! Plus, our program earns you 91 CFRE continuing education credit hours—nearly all the hours you need to obtain certification and take your career to the next level! For comparison, other grant writing training programs only offer 30 credit hours. Ready to secure more funding for your nonprofit? Let's double your win rate. 2. Ed2Go Ed2Go offers a variety of courses on grant writing, from overview classes for beginners to more detailed, advanced options. Classes vary in hourly requirements and costs, but for most of the six-week, 24-class courses, the cost hovers around $150. The majority of these courses are geared towards nonprofit professionals involved in grant writing.\n3. University of Wisconsin: Introduction to Grant Writing The University of Wisconsin Milwaukee offers an Introduction to Grant Writing course for $150. The course covers fundraising strategies and explores the six stages of grant writing. The stages include identifying a need for funding, researching grantmakers, relationship cultivation, the grant writing process, and appropriate follow-up after winning or losing a grant award. This course is designed for those seeking to gain a basic understanding of nonprofit management.\n4. Holly Rustik: Strategic Planning Master Course \u0026 Start-Up Academy We’re throwing Holly Rustik’s courses on here again because she has two offerings specific to nonprofits. Grant Writing \u0026 Funding offers two courses focusing on grant writing in the nonprofit sector including: Nonprofit Strategic Planning Master Course; and Nonprofit Start-Up Academy. The Nonprofit Strategic Planning Master Course is designed for both nonprofit leaders and freelance consultants. The course will help nonprofits get their fiscal and program health organized. You can buy this course for $697 or make six payments of $127 each. The Nonprofit Start-Up Academy covers how to create a working board, outline a strategic plan, find funding streams, and cultivate branding and messaging. This self-paced course is priced at $297. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template Best Grant Writing Classes for Federal Grant Seekers Back to Top Securing grants from federal agencies and funding bodies is its own unique beast to tackle. It’s highly competitive and draws on special sets of tactics and best practices (like using Freedom of Information Act inquiries). Sounds tough, but rest assured it’s all learnable with the right support. Here are our recommendations for grant writing courses and resources specifically designed to help you better compete for federal funding: 1. DH Leonard Consulting: Fast Track Learning to Write Federal Grants DH Leonard Consulting \u0026 Grant Writing Services, LLC, offers a Federal Grant Writing Boot Camp. This training webcast, spread over four half-days, covers how to successfully apply for and secure federal grants. It’s taught by Diane Leonard GPC in conjunction with My Fed Trainer. Early bird pricing is $495 while last-minute pricing is $795 while tickets last. This Boot Camp course is offered numerous times each year — click here for the schedule. DH Leonard Consulting \u0026 Grant Writing Services frequently offers a range of other Federal Grant Writing Training courses throughout the year as listed on their course listing. Many of these courses cost around $87. Catch webinar replays of their all-time faves, Federal Grants 101: Securing Millions for Your Organization and Federal Grants 201: How to Feel Confident and Competitive as You Click Submit, for $60 for $50, respectively. These resources are best for individuals interested in improving their federal grant writing skills by watching webinars. 2. Grant Professionals Association: Next Level Grant Training Next Level Grant Training is live online training to help folks advance their grant careers. The 2024 Next Level Grant Training topics include federal grants, research prospecting, best practices for reporting, and more. Next Level Grant Training features include:\nOne monthly class for 12 months One-hour sessions including Q\u0026A Online-archived class content for later reference; and A constant cohort of participants, led by Grant Professional Certified and GPA-approved trainers Cyndi MacKenzie and Scot Scala. Each session focuses on reinforcing the GPA Code of Ethics and related GPC Competencies, along with providing participants the opportunity to earn up to 12 CEUs. This series is priced at $240 for members or $299 for non-members for the entire offering. These sessions are best for those especially interested in the ethical ins and outs of grant writing, those seeking to earn credits, and those already in established grant writing careers. Best University-Based Grant Writing Certifications Back to Top A handful of grant resources created by universities have already been mentioned in this list, but there are more where those came from! If you’re looking for more structured certificate programs and courses taught by professional educators, higher ed has a lot to offer. Here our are top recommendations for grant writing classes and certification programs offered by universities:\n1. University of Georgia The University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education offers two grant writing courses: an introductory-level course called Fundamentals of Grant Writing I, and a higher-level course called Advanced Grant Proposal Writing. Each course provides 24 hours of instruction for a cost of $159. 2. University of South Carolina University of South Carolina’s Grant Writing Certificate Program involves 30 hours of classes covering four courses: Introduction to Grant Writing, Needs Based Assessment, Intermediate Grant Writing, and Program Development and Evaluation. Both online and classroom options are available for a fee of $1,322. The goal of this program is to prepare new and established professionals for the practical and conceptual aspects that are critical to the grant writing process. 3. Arizona State University Arizona State University offers two levels of grant writing certificates: Grant Development—State and Foundation Proposal Certificate for $999 (early bird price) and Advanced Grant Development—Federal Proposal Certificate for $1,050 (early bird price). Both courses are fast-paced and intensive for those ready to make a serious investment in their grant writing skills. The courses take seven weeks to complete, and students can expect to spend 12 to 15 hours a week on coursework. 4. University of Colorado at Colorado Springs UCCS has an intensive credit-bearing certificate program, Graduate Certificate in Grant Writing, Management, and Program Evaluation. To apply for the program, students must hold a bachelor's degree. Completion of the certificate requires a grade of B- or better in four courses: Evaluation, Grant Writing, Grant Management, and an elective. The certificate is designed for people interested in professional careers in or related to grant writing, grant management, and/or nonprofit program evaluation. Non-degree, non-Colorado resident graduate students completing the required 12 hours of coursework can expect to pay roughly $9,700 plus a $60 application fee for an online UCCS certificate program. For Colorado residents, the fees are roughly $8,300. 5. Fort Hays State University Fort Hays State University offers an eight-week University Grant Writing Certification Program for $175. Available for students in the United States only, the class meets online for two months. While this is an introduction to grant proposal writing, many students enroll for a review and refresher course. The areas of focus include title page, abstract, statement of need, goal, objectives, procedures, budget, qualifications, evaluation, sustainability, dissemination, sources cited, and appendix. The Ultimate Resource for Grant Learners! Learn Grant Writing has something for everyone\nLet's start winning your next grant Choosing the Right Grant Writing Classes for Your Goals There is a whole internet of opportunity for you to learn more about grant writing. We hope this list guided you through your search and gave you a clearer idea of the wide range of options available online today. As you get started, please keep this one important takeaway in mind: A grant writing course will only serve you well if it's aligned with your goals and needs. No matter your goal, whether it’s getting your feet wet, improving skills for your nonprofit, learning more about federal grants, or starting a business, the Global Grant Writers Collective® is chock-full of support for any grant writer. With curriculum, coaching, mentorship, and community, the Collective is a one-stop shop for learning about grant writing and how to adjust your mindset to achieve your goals. For more tips and tricks on grant funding and writing a proposal, be sure to check out our FREE Grant Writing Class. You can also contact us anytime with your questions—we’ll be happy to help! But no matter your goals, we hope you keep learning more. Keep the ball rolling by checking out these additional resources from the Learn Grant Writing blog: Can I Make Money as a Grant Writer? How to Become a Freelance Grant Writer How to Write a Grant in 7 Easy Steps Project Management for Nonprofits and Grant Writers Let\u0026#39;s Kickstart Your Grant Writing Journey Learn Grant Writing has something for everyone \u0026ndash; all backgrounds, goals, and skill levels are welcome!\nLet\u0026#39;s start winning your next grant ","date":"2023-12-13","description":"Need online grant writing classes or certifications? Whether you’re a nonprofit professional, side hustler, or just\ncurious, we’ve rounded up all the top picks.\n","formatted_date":"December 13, 2023","image":"/lgw/images/blog/online-program-main_hu_4e29179a768e7731.jpg","permalink":"/blog/best-online-grant-writing-classes/","slug":"best-online-grant-writing-classes","summary":"There is a whole internet of opportunity for you to learn more about grant writing.\n","title":"The 19 Best Online Grant Writing Classes for Every Learner"},{"author":"Rose Hedberg","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/rose_heberg_hu_22b2ee2246d8c3a4.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Intro Celebrating wins is a core value at Learn Grant Writing. Big or small wins, we take the act of celebrating seriously. In fact, the entire Global Grant Writers Collective® does. Within our community group, Circle, we have a channel dedicated to “Wins + Gratitude”. You’d be hard pressed to find a post sharing a win where someone neglects to comment: “How are you celebrating?” Why Celebration Matters Celebrating wins - regardless of how small - matters a great deal. This value was born and bred from co-founder Alex Lustig. Why? Celebrating creates a culture of recognition. It feels good to take a moment to recognize the time, energy, and hard work we put into achieving a task, overcoming a fear, creating a mindset shift, or pushing through imposter syndrome. It can also be a little uncomfortable to take the moment to actually recognize our own hard work. Celebrating is an amazing tool in our self-worth toolbox. How often would we take a friend out for coffee because she did something that she worked really hard for? How often have we sent flowers or a card to a friend to mark a special moment? You deserve this kind of love too. When we ask ourselves: “How will I celebrate this moment in my journey?” It’s also saying: “I deserve to feel worthy of the thing that I just accomplished.” “I am worthy of celebration.” If that last statement makes you feel uncomfortable, I dare you to celebrate yourself this week. Lean into the discomfort. I promise you, it’s worth it. Celebrating wins is the next step after completing a hard thing. Taking the moment to mark the achievement helps us to get through the next hard thing. Through reflection and remembrance, we know we’ve done hard things in the past. Therefore, we know we can do them in the future. How empowering?! How Unicorns Celebrate Wins We asked Unicorns to share how they celebrate wins. Here are their answers and a few of our own:\nAttending Disney on Ice Food rewards - especially trying brand new restaurants An outing for Boba tea Planning a short camping trip for when I get my first funding strategy Chocolate torte at my favorite pizza place Chocolate bar in general Getting a fiction book and reading it A home improvement gift like extra amazing throw pillows New candle In-house dance party to Beyonce when I get a signed contract Dinner with a view Sushi Buying a new book I want, but don't need Day at the spa Purple lipstick because I can I cook myself something yummy Go out to a new restaurant that I've been wanting to try Do something fun with my partner or a friend A few hours off the next day after finishing a big grant to go for an extra long walk with the dog A backcountry ski A bike ride Buying a cappuccino and a baked good from a favorite bakery Buying something I want, but don't need Champagne or a dinner out at a nice restaurant (or both)! A picnic in the park Writing a gratitude journal entry Creating a vision board for my future goals Watching the sunrise Treating myself to a day at the art museum Treating myself to a new gadget or tech toy Total decadence with a massage Adventure day on the zip-line Wine tasting at a vineyard Booking a weekend at a cozy cabin in the Rocky Mountains Writing a heartfelt letter (yes, words are my love language!) A day in the garden to plant and play Volunteering in the community Taking a well-deserved day off work to relax Lighting up the BBQ for a backyard cookout A night around the firepit and under the stars Organizing a themed costume party, well why not? Trying a new craft An adventure at one of those Locked Room places Booking a yoga retreat Sending thank-you notes to those who supported you Creating a playlist of songs that totally rock and remind me I’m awesome! Booking a professional headshot photoshoot Participating in a charity run A scenic hike Attending a seminar I’ve been lurking at Taking a cooking class Exploring a new city for a stay-cation Taking a mixology class A poolside day of sun A DIY craft day Attending a cultural festival Booking a family photo session Camping in the great outdoors Booking a getaway to a tropical paradise Taking a wine or whiskey tasting tour Having a dance party in my living room Wearing a lavish costume all day Belting my favorite song at the top of my lungs (What’s Up by Four Non Blondes) Tossing confetti in the air and letting it rain down on me Eating brinner (breakfast for dinner) Making a celebratory TikTok dance video Writing a cheesy victory speech and delivering it to a mirror Having a water balloon fight with my kiddos Playing a round of mini-golf or putt-putt with my partner Buying myself a bouquet of flowers Having marshmallows over the fire Creating a chalk mural on the sidewalk A playlist of my guilty pleasure songs Picking up some exotic sweet treats Having a picnic with all my favorite childhood snacks Wearing a crown all day Decorating my space with balloons Building a blanket fort and binge-watching my favorite shows A spontaneous dance party in my living room A day of pajamas and ice cream A backyard slip 'n slide A \"Silent Disco\" where everyone dances with wireless headphones Taking an aerial yoga class Attending an improv workshop Upgrading my business setup with some new tech A relaxing bubble bath Buying a unicorn onesie Mocktail party to celebrate An afternoon of nothing but cuddling up with a good book and a delicious beverage Joining a flash mob Wiggling on the rooftop to my favorite jams Packing a picnic for a sunset celebration Checking out the Meow Wolf in my city Buying coffee for a stranger (pay it forward) Getting my nails done Going to the beach Trying one of those Hibachi grill restaurants Ordering the biggest, most outrageously decorated, and over the top beverage at Starbucks Buying myself an adult coloring book Baking unicorn cupcakes Types Of Wins Unicorns Celebrate Unicorns have a lot to celebrate! In the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we make sure to pull out the confetti to mark different milestones along the journey such as making the first $3K, getting certified, landing a full time job, or getting to $50K as a consultant. Unicorns bring their own flare and celebrate all manner of their journey. Celebrating wins like\nJoining the Collective Sending out informational interview requests First informational interview First paid client First Funding Strategy Passing certification First grant Winning a grant Landing a job Landing a new client Financial markers Coming up out of the valley of despair Attending a workshop Attending a coaching call You can check out more wins and celebrations on our reviews page here. Conclusion Change is slow and clunky, at times uncomfortable, but necessary if you want to archetype a life you love. Keeping your path full of momentum requires a bit of patience and a whole lot of celebration! Wins big or small deserve your attention! Grant Writing Resources Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one illustrates the necessity of diversity, equity, and inclusion as a grant writer . This post highlights three possible career paths for grant writers. Also, if you’re not sure whether grant writing is a good fit, click here for our 3-minute personality quiz and find out. Ever wondered where the unicorn came from? here's the story! Become a grant writing unicorn 🦄 ","date":"2023-10-29","description":"Boost success by celebrating your wins, both big and small. To conquer new things (write grants),\nrecognize you are worthy of self-celebration along the journey.\n","formatted_date":"October 29, 2023","image":"/lgw/images/blog/2023.10.20blog_celebrating_wins_hu_99c8861909643732.jpeg","permalink":"/blog/celebrating-grant-writing-wins/","slug":"celebrating-grant-writing-wins","summary":"Boost success by celebrating your wins, both big and small. To conquer new things (write grants),\nrecognize you are worthy of self-celebration along the journey.\n","title":"100+ Ways Grant Writing Unicorns Celebrate Wins!"},{"author":"Carolina S.","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/carolina-s_hu_d68587f30134122e.png","card_title":null,"content":" Carolina is a member of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. She joined after spending hours and hours of time scouring the internet trying different grant writing certifications and courses. The Learn Grant Writing team knew her learned experience was wisdom that must be shared with others. We’re publishing her review she offered to write so you can have the best information possible when deciding where to learn about grant writing. Carolina's Review of Grant Writing Courses I have a Doctorate and left a very high-paying field due to family circumstances. I still wanted to give to the common good and saw grant writing as a force multiplier. I set out to learn how to write grants and break into this fascinating, fulfilling, and meaningful profession. I’ve read five books and will review four online courses in my quest to break into grant writing. I did the due diligence and spent lots of hard-earned money and found only one course led to true success. Want my review of the four courses? Let’s get to it! Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Grant Central USA (Rodney Walker) I am not out to bash anyone, but as a consumer, I feel it is important to share my experience with Grant Central USA. This was the only red flag experience I had. After I paid my money, a video popped up saying, “Congratulations”. No receipt, no email with instructions, nada. Ever. This turned into a three-month headache (unanswered emails, no response from phone calls) as we worked with our credit card company and lodged a complaint with the BBB to stop persistent credit card charges. Caveat emptor! Or, in layman's terms: “let the buyer beware”.\nThe University of Washington, Tacoma Who wouldn’t want a certificate from a University, I thought?\nThis was for a combination package of two online courses (each with its own certificate). The total cost for both courses was $259. The first course, Introduction to Grant Writing, described a very basic overview of the relationship between nonprofits and funding sources. It outlined six stages of grant writing. The Advanced Grant Writing course simply went deeper into the six stages. It did a nice job of explaining the logic model. The courses were fairly engaging and interactive with games and such. However, it didn’t move the needle for breaking into grant writing. Maybe if you were already an in-house grant writer it would strengthen some aspects of writing, like the logic model, but I was entering a new field and needed more than the intermediate writing mechanics of a grant application. I thought it would be better to join a group and have some community, so I next tried my regional Grant Writers Association… P.S. Check out this blog post about deficit-based versus strength-based writing for our explanation of logic models. My Regional Grant Writers Association I joined my regional association to learn and hopefully gain people connections. They have webinars and host monthly meetings. While I have gained tidbits of information here and there and have met other grant writers, there is no cohesive path for a new grant writer to learn the field to actually break into grant writing. Folks are friendly enough and will answer direct questions through listserv emails or monthly meetings, but I didn’t gain any real mentoring or knowledge on how to write grants. I did not gain traction on breaking into the field. This association is probably best for those grant writers who are established with clients and mostly want connections or access to occasional regional flavored webinars. The Final Two Courses The last two courses to review and compare are Learn Grant Writing (Meredith Noble) and Grant Writing Master Course (Holly Rustick). After a few general comments, I will compare two main areas: education and community. Recall that my main goal was to break into grant writing as a career, not just learn about it. There are so many names for grant writing courses out there that it’s easy to confuse what’s what, so I will simply refer to the courses as Holly Rustick’s course or Meredith Noble’s course. Easy peasy. Grant Writing Master Course (Holly Rustick) I first signed up for Holly Rustick’s course for the price of $697. Holly Rustick is a very sweet person! Holly Rustick definitely has a proven track record for writing grants! Her course has lots of videos and many templates. It includes a Facebook group. I thought this was going to be it! Since I had also joined a regional grant writers association I reasoned that between the two, I was finally going to break into grant writing! But I had better be sure because there was no refund and no trial period if I didn’t like it . I didn’t gain the success I was after from Holly Rustick’s grant writing course. I concluded that Holly Rustick’s course could be useful if you already have clients as a freelancer or you are an in-house grant writer. But I had no clients, and her course does not address how to get them. So, I was smarter but still a batter up standing at home plate. Learn Grant Writing (Meredith Noble) My last ditch try was Meredith Noble’s course, the Global Grant Writers Collective®. It should have been my first try! If this was the best course, why didn’t I go for it first? One main reason is that from her early emails and YouTube videos, I was under the impression that I would not fit into the group’s culture. What I perceived was a group of super young women who loved all things outdoors. I could not have been more wrong. I am happy to see that current marketing has done a better job of reflecting the amazing diversity of community members in the Collective. I’m not just talking about diversity, equity, and inclusion (that’s certainly there too), but there are folks with and without professional degrees, stay-at-home-moms and dads, retirees, in-house grant writers, and freelance grant writers. There are artists, musicians, farmers, healthcare professionals, lawyers, college students, civic employees, and more. Note that with Meredith Noble’s Course there is a limited-time refund possible when very reasonable requirements are met versus a no refund policy with Holly Rustick’s course. Education Holly Rustick’s course: It is suggested to do one module per week. I completed everything in two days. The teachings were all done by Holly, and she gives a good overview of grant writing. There is a good general discussion of the different types of grants (Federal, State, foundations, etc). There is a good general discussion on finding grants using Google, grants.gov, etc. There is a good discussion of the importance of looking for alignment between the funder’s mission and the nonprofit’s ask (what they want to fund). The course offered useful templates as well as discussion about nonprofit organization structure. Holly also discusses in a general fashion the topic of becoming a freelance grant writer. Meredith Noble’s course: the education component is engaging, wide-ranging, ongoing, and very granular compared to Holly Rustick’s Course. This is because in addition to all the video modules of the curriculum included in the membership and more extensive templates, there are regular Coaching Calls (usually biweekly) and Bonus Trainings. All are recorded for future viewing. Holly’s ‘equivalent’ Facebook Q\u0026A sessions are only monthly and only address general questions. This means you can ask questions about teachings you don’t understand, but you can’t ask specific questions on, say, a specific grant application you are having trouble with (Holly said she would have to charge money for that). Contrast that with Meredith Noble’s Coaching Calls (live Zoom and recorded) where you are encouraged to submit detailed questions in advance on your grant applications (even Federal applications), funding strategies, interviewing techniques, sticky situations, you name it. All questions are thoughtfully read/researched ahead of time, so the answers are very detailed and useful. Meredith Noble’s course continues to add Bonus Trainings often as live Zoom workshops that are also recorded for later review. Offerings have included; Working with Startup Nonprofits-What You Really Need to Know; Fiscal Sponsorships, Resume Writing, Power Prospectus Workshop, Instrumentl (a premiere grant research database), Federal Grants, and more. There was a recent addition of a Budget Workshop, complete with examples, detailed discussion, links to a useful organizing spreadsheet, and even practice questions! This YouTube video covers what Instrumentl is and how you can use it to uplevel your grant prospecting. It’s our favorite, but we also have a blog post of a review of the top 10 grant databases so you can make the best choice for your needs. A major educational difference is that while Holly Rustick’s emphasis is on how to write a grant, Meredith Noble’s course focuses on how to land clients, how to do funding strategies, how to write grants, and how to keep it all going with project management skills (also taught). Shall we say that Holly Rustick gives a slice or two of pie, but Meredith Noble gives you the whole pie? Community This is the secret sauce: COMMUNITY! There is really no comparison between Meredith Noble’s course and what anyone else has to offer. Seriously. Holly Rustick’s Facebook group: The two Facebook group live chats I viewed were heavily skewed to attendees interested in building up their nonprofit organization. The first chat I listened to had no questions on grant writing at all while the second chat had a couple of general grant writing questions. The rest of the questions were about how to build up your nonprofit. This is not a criticism, but an observation that Facebook chat attendees skew to nonprofit organization talk. Perhaps they are also self-selecting since Holly Rustick also offers courses on building up nonprofits but only one Facebook group is used for both interests. That didn’t help me out, since I wanted to learn all I could about grant writing. Further, I did not feel any real sense of community in the Holly Rustick Facebook group. I noted less than 20 Facebook posts in one month. Meredith Noble’s course uses the Circle platform for member communication. I counted 40 posts in one week, and that doesn’t even consider all the responses. Circle is also superior to Facebook for member communication due to the ability to have topics organized and a search function. Meredith Noble’s community (the Global Grant Writers Collective®) is robust due to the diversity of its membership, engaging, respectful, and fun. If you have a pressing question that doesn’t time well for the Coaching Calls, just post in Circle. Members have found teammates for the long haul or subcontractors for just one project. Grant writing opportunities are posted often. There’s even a monthly Book Club and opportunities to practice interview skills. Meredith Noble’s curriculum, coaching, and community will lead to success if you put in the work. I have written my first grant, gained paid project work from others in the community, and spoken confidently with funders and nonprofit Executive Directors alike. I continue to learn and enjoy the support of the co-founders, coaches, and other members. I have finally found real success and will continue to grow in this wonderful journey to make a difference to others. I will be able to scale up my freelance venture or join an organization if I choose. Working part-time remotely feels more like me, however, so I can enjoy my hobbies and tend my small three-acre homestead. The tools, knowledge, and support all exist in the Global Grant Writers Collective®. I am earning while I’m learning and so can you. I’m not kidding! Carolina's Big Takeaways Grant writing is a force multiplier for the common good. I am passionate and excited to help others in this way. In any field of work, it is essential to gain the best education including ongoing education in order to excel. I’ve learned that grant writing is a relationship journey, whether grant writer to nonprofit, grant writer to funder (though the funder relationship belongs primarily with the organization seeking the funding), or grant writer to other grant writers for community support and building teams. Learn Grant Writing has absolutely the best community and the best and most complete online curriculum through the Global Grant Writers Collective®. Another major takeaway is that none of this happens without consistent effort from me! Without my actions, nothing is going to happen. That seems so obvious, but sometimes it’s easy to lose sight of. My most important takeaway from this journey is that I have found a way to continue to give to the common good and I am deeply grateful for that. It’s really all about being a conduit so that those needing our help, whether folks or Mother Earth, can receive benefits through grant awards that will change lives and our planet. It will allow people and our environment to thrive, not just survive. Grant Writing Resources Learn more about the Global Grant Writers Collective® here. To hear from others in the Collective, check out these new reviews, success stories, and wins. Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one is a review of the top 10 grant databases, this one is a Collective member’s honest review of American Grant Writers’ Association v. Learn Grant Writing , and this one covers why you should consider starting a side hustle grant writing. Also, don’t miss our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! ","date":"2023-02-19","description":"A review of four grant writing courses. The verdict? Ongoing education and community make Learn\nGrant Writing the winner. We teach you how to earn while you learn.\n","formatted_date":"February 19, 2023","image":"/lgw/images/blog/learn-grant-writing-course-review_hu_976bc89d7fca8d49.jpg","permalink":"/blog/learn-grant-writing-course-review/","slug":"learn-grant-writing-course-review","summary":"A review of four grant writing courses. The verdict? Ongoing education and community make Learn\nGrant Writing the winner. We teach you how to earn while you learn.\n","title":"Carolina’s Review of 4 Online Grant Writing Courses"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" Kiera is a member of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. We’ve learned so much from her! When she suggested a blog topic around the topic of soul care and part-time entrepreneurship, we knew we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to publish it. Everyone has something going on—whether they choose to share it widely or not. This is a topic we resonate with deeply, and think you will too. We have changed the name of the individual to protect her privacy. In every other regard, this article is true and honest from her perspective. Entrepreneurship In Real Life Entrepreneurship is a big, intimidating word. It can seem like it is reserved for the privileged few who can afford to invest in themselves. When I first heard the term “side hustle” I thought, are you kidding me? I am struggling with my regular hustle. Some days it felt more like a shuffle, or a stumble, or falling flat on my face. In early motherhood, I once sent a friend a cartoon of a stick figure on the floor reaching toward the coffee maker, but sadly, not close enough to get to the relief. I was surviving, but just barely. Many of us have a challenge in life that expands to take up all of our spare energy. These struggles can be hidden. They are not widely shared on social media. The facade of having it all together is just that: a front. The reality is that we have small kids who make crumbs - and other messes - everywhere. A family member is chronically ill and needs significant support. There are unglamorous parts of life that require attention. This can sometimes mean that working full-time hours is not a viable option. So, can entrepreneurship truly work for new moms? Adult children caring for elderly parents? Someone living with disability or chronic illness? What if the realization sets in that a soul sucking day job is actually going to kill you? What if a medical emergency has made it clear that it is actively trying to? Even in the midst of those challenges, we find ourselves drawn to the idea of entrepreneurship. What if we want to support ourselves financially in a meaningful way and make a contribution to the world? Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz The Roadmap To A Leap of Faith For the past year or so, I’ve been watching people make this shift toward entrepreneurship. I want to say they are talented and energetic people. They are. However, there is something else happening too. This shift toward entrepreneurship is incremental. There are stumbling blocks along the way. We get discouraged. Life happens. We wonder how we will manage it all. So far I haven’t seen anyone make one giant leap from a day job to a thriving six figure business. I wouldn’t believe it if I did “see” it. I know that’s not how it happens. What I have seen is balancing, negotiation, and most of all naming fears in order to move past them. I don’t want to be my own boss and then find out I am terrible to work for. I don’t want to be the boss that makes me work when my kid is sick or when I am sick. Being an entrepreneur means being a boss. I want to be a good boss because as an employee, I need a lot of accommodations. In fact, I’m only able to work part-time because of health issues. I’m not the only one.\nSometimes we think of the flexibility of grant writing being for that young adventurer, traveling with just a laptop and wifi connection and living out of a carry-on suitcase. But others are drawn to flexible work because a family situation made them realize it is not worth it to leave a loved one unless the work is meaningful enough to also fulfill emotional needs. Some of us ended up here because we felt called to serve in a bigger way, and then we learned what powers that lever is growing personally in order to grow a thriving business. A recurring theme I see in our Global Grant Writers Collective® community is letting go of something - a stressful job or a bad client - which makes room for a better opportunity. We share these as “wins” and they are spine-tingling. Here’s just a small sampling: I hear an update on the job search: “I’ve been praying and searching for a while and thank God I didn't settle. I am so grateful!!!” An update from a new community member: “Deposited the check from my first client today. Even though it’s been slow going as a SAHM, I’m making progress.” An announcement from a grant writer who prospected 50 companies before she found a company that can grow with her and was willing to negotiate pay for her work and equity in the business: “I did it. I finally freaking did it. I landed a full time grant writing job.” A heartfelt thank you to the community and team members who helped one grant writer secure almost 2 million in funding just this year. The focus was on service and support, but one fellow grant writer had to ask: “Do your kids know what a rockstar their mom is?” I see members of the Collective demonstrating letting go of unworthiness, of needing the progress to be fast, of being limited by what others think is possible, and of doing it all alone. Soul Work If we are going to be honest about how these friends of mine are working their magic, we need to talk about soul work. There is work-work, house-work, childcare-work, volunteer work, and a plethora of other types of work I’ll just call grunt work. They can be tedious and never ending in their demands. A hungry kid wants another snack. We are out of clean socks again. Mom needs another dose of her medication to be taken with food. Here comes another meeting or appointment or deadline. All of these demands require that we give them energy. Soul work is different. Soul work feeds you. I know when I am doing it because I look up and a lot of time has passed. I feel good about my connection to the world. It fills me up. It is a little different from self care, although that is part of it. It looks like progress on something meaningful. At its very core, it feels like flow. Soul work gives me more patience when my past self would have lashed out or snapped at someone. Soul work builds my internal reserves and my resilience. It also gives me more clarity on the projects and clients that align with my values and the ones that don’t. Work is a source of identity. Often it is a primary source of self esteem. And yet work is not life. There is a reason it is called work life balance. These forces can feel diametrically opposed. They don’t have to be. Your true calling - work with purpose - creates a reason to get out of bed in the morning. When you are ready to explore this concept, know that you don’t have to do it alone. Having a community of people who believe it is possible is an essential ingredient. So are the practical habits that, little by little, with daily application, build a life you love. Gentle Habit Building: Ch’weghtsen Point System Building new habits with gentleness toward yourself can take some getting used to. When she was working with Indigenous Alaskans, Meredith discovered a new-to-her word, Ch’weghtsen. This roughly translates as self love. Of course Meredith’s way of measuring how well she is loving herself involves a laminated checklist and a little line graph in the back of a notebook. The basic premise is to measure some simple daily actions and see if you are really doing them daily. The achiever in me loves the idea of a to do list that I can check off. This gentle habit building system is a little bit different because I can add in anything that I know would be caring for myself, but I don’t always do. Some habits, like drinking water first thing in the morning are already ingrained in my mind, but I still like checking them off. These are easy things that don’t have to add more work to my already long list. Sometimes taking a moment of gratitude for things that are working gives me a sense that I have more space to think and be. A lovely idea I’ve just added to my Ch’weghtsen is to do something sensory that is pleasurable, like aroma therapy, or taking a moment to notice a soft material that I’m wearing. Finding time for joy and appreciation of a simple pleasure each day can be a powerful counterpoint to the heaviness of grief and loss. It’s a little time travel trick I use to transport myself back to the present moment. As a person living with chronic pain and chronic fatigue, these moments keep me grounded in the reality that my life can be joyful. Even if I don’t use it everyday, there is so much power in brainstorming a list of simple, positive actions I can take for myself whenever I choose. I’m training my brain to look for opportunities. Watch the video where Meredith breaks down all the details about the Ch’weghtsen Point System. Fill Your Own Cup First I’m going to use motherhood as an example here, but stay with me. The analogy works for other kinds of challenges that draw on our energy less directly as well. When I was pregnant, I was astonishingly hungry. In fact, someone was eating my food right out of my bloodstream. Now this can happen as drive by theft off of my plate at the kitchen table. Kids are growing and learning so they need nourishment. Mine just takes it, especially during growth spurts. Any project I take on requires energy. So many times I have ended up feeling depleted. Even in my young life, I would work until I hit a physical breaking point - exhaustion or illness. It is really no way to live. Now I know better, so I can do better. I can’t keep saying yes to others at the expense of my own care. I’m much more pleasant to be around and I do better work when I’m rested and fed. My belly doesn’t skip meals anymore. I’m getting better at regularly feeding my soul, too. If you just want a better life, stop reading here and go practice your soul work. That can be enough for one human in one lifetime. If you are still curious about this entrepreneurship idea, let’s dive into the application. Supercharge Your Gifts Igaki is a Japanese word that roughly translates to your personal “zone of genius.” It is the intersection of what you love, what you are good at, what the world needs, and what you can get paid to do. It’s basically the definition of a dream job, so for an entrepreneur, it pays to get very specific about what this is for you. Once I started investing in myself, I found I really had something to offer. I had to build my foundation first, before I had much to show for my efforts. This is true in my garden, too, and in all of nature. When I plant a seed, it seems like nothing is happening at first. It is all underground. The seed splits open. It sends a root down. It searches for nutrients. On the surface, nothing is happening for weeks, sometimes. This is frustrating if I’m expecting to plant a tomato seed on Monday and harvest tomatoes on Wednesday. The easiest way to think about how to reach my goals in business and in life has been to break things down into smaller and smaller chunks until they are manageable. Sometimes this gets really granular. It is different from being in the hamster wheel because all the tiny actions are moving me toward a bigger vision. Plant the seeds. Water the garden. Send the requests. Follow up. Check in again. Ask for reviews. Ask for referrals. Plant more seeds. Keep watering them. For example, Learn Grant Writing uses the organic networking framework. This is all about connecting with people in an industry where you want to get your foot in the door. The goal is to make a meaningful connection with a person through an informational interview. A daily goal could be to reach out to one person to request this type of meeting. Give this video a watch for more information on what the organic networking framework is all about. Now this may seem small or insignificant because the first person you talk to is not going to offer the perfect opportunity the first time you talk to them. In cases where this does happen, there was groundwork already set up. If that’s you, grab that opportunity, my friend. For mere mortals like me, it just takes these small daily actions until my opportunities show up. In the meantime, I’m working on my mindset and imposter syndrome so that when an ideal client asks me to help them, I say yes with confidence. When the phone rings, or that dream client finally emails me back, I want to be ready with a full tank. To show up the way I want to, I need to be cool, calm, and collected. For me, that means I’m well rested and fed. Instead of worrying about things beyond my control, I’ve been doing the things I can. I’m free from distraction or at least I feel supported in managing the things that easily overwhelm me. Asking For Help It’s not fun to ask for help. And yet, we all need help from time to time. Sometimes it seems like less hassle to do it all ourselves. It is not. Doing everything prevents you from doing your thing well. It is the thing that only you can do. It makes people grin broadly or nod, wide-eyed. It gets you invited into rooms where you are surrounded by talented and accomplished people that make your imposter syndrome scream. You have a moral imperative to give your attention to it and nurture it. Ask for help with everything else so you can keep your focus where it belongs. Asking for help can provide such relief. It is best to start with easy but time consuming tasks that you could pay someone else to do. How much head space is laundry taking up every week? How much better could you focus if someone packed up a healthy lunch? The first hire for a budding business is often a bookkeeper, but if domestic help is taking up energy, outsource it. Help does not always have to cost you financially, but when I pay for outside help, I use the time buy back principle to free up my time for activities that provide higher value to myself and others. A book that is frequently given as a gift within The Global Grant Writers Collective® is “We Should All Be Millionaires: A Woman’s Guide to Earning More, Building Wealth, and Gaining Economic Power” by Rachel Rogers. If you have not read it, do yourself a favor and gift it to yourself. She gives step by step instructions for what to hire out and how to find your helper. She is adamant that you can not wait until you can “afford it” to get help. We need help first so that we can earn more. She’s also refreshingly straightforward about why you should not be embarrassed to do so. Trust me, a person who is looking for a job washing laundry is expecting it to be dirty. If you are more of a podcast person, you can catch her belly laugh and spot on advice on Hello Seven. Yes, that refers to seven figures. Boundaries This term came into the lexicon in the 1980s when therapy was normalized and seen as a tool everyone could use. Boundaries establish safety. They are actions and behaviors you can control - because they are the things you do - not expectations of others. Examples of healthy boundaries include:\nI will only make big decisions on days that I am well rested. I will reschedule an appointment or meeting if the other person is XX minutes late. I will not reschedule with someone who chronically disrespects my time. Boundaries protect your energy and keep you safe. No one can do it all. Somehow we are fed this idea that we can and should. The fear of disappointing others can keep us trapped here. We deserve to live lives with joy from our accomplishments, not just a sense of obligation to someone else’s priorities. This framework is encapsulated concisely by the phrase “body first, business second.” I have to respect my energy because I know that my body will set boundaries for me if I don’t. When I do have time to dedicate to paid work, it has to be something that fills me spiritually. I know I am on the right path when I am eager to make my contribution to the world. I can feel it in my body. If it is something I’m resisting, I look a little more closely to see if it is someone else’s priority, or if it is out of alignment with my values. Part-Time Work With Full-Time Pay How can this all add up to part-time work with full time pay? The short answer is value based pricing. A successful entrepreneur is always on a learning curve to find their highest point of contribution. Charging for the value of work delivered allows the entrepreneur to create efficiencies behind the scenes. A well rested mind and body do higher quality work that is worth more. Alignment with soul purpose makes the good projects and good clients easy to spot. Asking for help and eventually hiring help keeps the focus on activities that bring the highest value. Setting limits for ourselves sets us free. We don’t have to do it all, we just have to do the next right thing. Slowly but surely, you will find your niche, that igaki that is the nexus of interest, ability, contribution, and marketable skill. This is your calling, your soul purpose, your life’s work. Identify and protect this asset. The world needs all of us to be making our highest and best contribution. Everyone. Parents and caretakers. Athletes, special Olympian’s, and the bedridden. Scientists and social workers. Teachers and Attorneys. Recent grads of Smarty Pants University and the School of Hard Knocks. We all have something to contribute that is of value. Believe it. Claim it. Protect it. Charge for it.\nGrant Writing Resources Learn more about the Global Grant Writers Collective® here where entrepreneurs are learning new skills and supporting one another as they grow. You don’t have to do this alone. Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one is all about how stay-at-home moms pursue grant writing as a career . To hear from others in the Collective, check out these new reviews and wins. Also, don’t miss our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! ","date":"2023-01-18","description":"Is entrepreneurship possible without selling your soul? What if you can only work part-time? This post talks about how to be an entrepreneur while taking care of yourself well.\n","formatted_date":"January 18, 2023","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-parttime-entrepreneurship_hu_97df72522854480b.jpg","permalink":"/blog/part-time-entrepreneurship/","slug":"part-time-entrepreneurship","summary":"Is entrepreneurship possible without selling your soul? What if you can only work part-time? This post talks about how to be an entrepreneur while taking care of yourself well.\n","title":"Part-Time Entrepreneurship By Necessity"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" Write Together Hey there!\nThanks for your interest in writing a guest post for Learn Grant Writing. Learn Grant Writing is the #1 ranked blog on Google for grant writing. If you would like to leave a review on Learn Grant Writing, future members would love to hear from you. Or perhaps you are a partner that has valuable expertise to contribute. Before submitting your pitch, please closely review this page—it details all the elements a successful guest post should include and walks you through our submission process. Why write for us? Finest Audience We attract an intelligent and engaging audience. Partnership We are always on the lookout for win-win collaborations. Guest writing helps us get to know you better. Link Juice Get a little link juice lovin’ from our website to yours. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Our Readership Our blog audience is made up of aspiring grant writing consultants, nonprofit professions, and what we call - the grant curious! Our readers are looking for tangible, actionable advice to the questions they have. What we are particularly known for is helping those burnt out in their careers launch an entirely new profession as a grant writer. We are highly interested in introducing grant writing as a career option to an audience that might not have considered it. We find our blog posts that do the best are those that compare different products (i.e. review of top 10 grant databases or top 20 online courses) or answer a long tail keyword search. Here are some of those popular posts to give you an idea of content and aesthetic:\nReview of Top 20 Online Grant Writing Classes Review of the Top 10 Grant Databases What is Match Funding for Grants? Grant Writing for Non-Profits: Our Top 10 Tips How to Become a Freelance Grant Writer What Every Guest Post Should Have Successful guest post contributions to Learn Grant Writing are comprehensive pieces on grant writing, careers in grant writing, or reviews of products. While these are most aligned with our blog, we are also open to reviewing guest post pitches on adjacent areas outside of the indicated scope. If your submission is accepted, you will receive a blog post template and additional guidelines. The typical structure that works well for us includes: Opportunity - Future state after reading this blog. Myth/Challenges - Address top 1-3 myths that we know the reader has, like “Don’t I have to volunteer before I can get hired as a grant writer to gain experience?” Expert Story Positioning - Why are you/LGW suited to tell this story/teach this content? Winning Framework - i.e. 7 habits of highly effective grant writers, Grant writing unicorn method, etc. A framework/engine/process that is the vehicle for teaching what you are going to teach. Thing Needed to Unlock the Framework - Can you provide a template, PDF, visual image - something that helps make the framework actionable? For instance, if we have a blog post about grant budgeting, we provide our grant budget template for free. Multi-Media Content - Not everyone learns by reading. Can you add in a YouTube video or podcast? Review - Restack everything you just wrote and and tell it again. Call to Action - Call to action as appropriate per the blog post. Your post must tick all these boxes: An original piece of content with high-quality writing. We are looking for around 2,000 words. The article reflects the voice and tone of the Learn Grant Writing blog. We are fun, conversational, and adding real value. Include proper citation of any data and resources (e.g. images) added to the article. ‍Note: Data references ideally originate from within the last 2 years. No more than two links to your own blog or website to place in the body or footer of the guest post. Before submitting your pitch, please do thorough research on the Learn Grant Writing blog to ensure the content you planned is not already covered on the blog. While not mandatory, other suggestions we have for you to align with our writing style includes:\nUsing the oxford comma. We’re fans. Following APA style for the most part. No double spaces between sentences. No indent to indicate the start of a new paragraph. Use a space between paragraphs to indicate the break. Ready to write? Wahoo! Start by submitting the short form below. Please include the word “unicorn” in your pitch so we know you read all these guidelines. If your guest post outline meets our editorial requirements and reflects our content strategy, we’ll notify you within the next 2 weeks. Then you can get started on the best part—writing your guest post! Between receiving a positive response from our blogging team to publishing your guest post, you’ll have two weeks to bring your content to its best shape. Thank you for your excitement and energy to contribute! Pitch your idea ","date":"2022-10-22","description":"Learn Grant Writing is the #1 ranked blog on Google for grant writing.\nIf you have a similar audience to ours, wed love to see your pitch! A\nblog post can just be the beginning of a beautiful partnership.\n","formatted_date":"October 22, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-guest-blog-post_hu_9c6f1ff089d27747.jpg","permalink":"/blog/guest-post/","slug":"guest-post","summary":null,"title":"Guest Blog Post Guidelines for Learn Grant Writing"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Career Change in Your 20s or 30s Making a career change in your 20s or 30s can be challenging. Or, if not challenging, it might be teensy bit scary! At this point, you’ve likely either earned a degree to work in what you thought would be your end-all-be-all career or you’ve been working in a specific field for years. Now, you’re thinking about switching things up. And not in a casual way. You’re thinking about making a drastic professional change. It’s serious. A little too serious for your comfort level, maybe? I encourage you to stick with it - there’s a reason you’re thinking about it! Perhaps there’s a small part of you that wonders if there might be something better out there for you. You don’t know what it is, but what if there really is something better suited for you? This blog post will offer guidance on how to find your ideal career and walk you through how five members of the Global Grant Writers Collective® made the career change from social work to grant writing. How To Find Your Ideal Career What is your ideal career and how do you find it? Talk about overwhelming, huh? Simply thinking about the sheer number of decisions I would need to make to answer that question are making my palms sweat. Bleh. Let’s try a different tactic. I love to reframe big decisions into little decisions. I do it like this. I ask myself, “Alexis, what is your next right thing?” That question is a variation of a line that many authors and speakers have used. I heard it first from Emily P. Freeman who has spent years talking and writing about decision fatigue, confident decision making, and how to determine the next right thing. This question helps me to get out of my head. There is no need to be thinking 10 or 20 years down the road or honestly, even 10 or 20 decisions down the road from this immediate moment. I’m of the mindset that truly, deeply, in our bones, we know what is the best decision for us. Whether that’s calling it quits on a relationship or turning in our two-week notice or transitioning from exercising for weight loss to movement for joy, we know the right choice for ourselves. As a social worker and person in the world, you know a lot. You’ve seen a lot. You’ve done a lot. If you haven’t heard this yet today: I’m grateful for you and the effort you’ve put in. I say all that because you need to give yourself credit where credit is due. That confidence is necessary when you start toying with the idea that there might be a better career choice for you. Dreaming Big What do you want? Answer this quickly—before your imposter syndrome self takes the mic.\nWhat else do you want? What is your passion? What kind of work do you enjoy doing? Why are you here, now, considering a career change? What don’t you want? It can be helpful to see how others made moves to align their career with their lifestyles and values. I’m so grateful a few members of the Collective agreed to share their experiences! When Kimberly Henry, LMSW of The GOLD Beacon, PLLC, started thinking about this, she realized she wanted to have a greater impact. “Although working one-on-one with trauma survivors is crucial in recovery of that trauma, I wanted to be a part of the bigger picture, preventing trauma from happening in the first place. Writing grants and developing nonprofits is a great way to do that.” Sometimes, your life situation changes and necessitates a career change. Kate Elliott, MSW, is the Program and Grant Coordinator at Autism Society of Southern Arizona. She needed to step away from social work after having kids who required extra hands on from her while also caring for her parents who were both sick. “When my daughter got to the point where she was spending full days at school, I started thinking about what I could do as a career that would give me the flexibility that I needed but still allow me to be able to do good in the world.” With a degree in journalism and a bit of experience with grants as a social worker, Kate decided to dive in further to the idea of becoming a grant writer. “This combination led me to grant writing as I saw it as a nice balance of still being involved in social service in some capacity but still having the flexibility I needed,” Kate said. Watch Kate share her grant writing journey:\nFor Joey Stoyas, a grant writer at MySpeech and MSW student, what led him to grant writing was wanting to “improve the resources for people who stutter at the macro level to influence the quality of resources at the mezzo and micro levels.” Essentially, he was already doing work to support the stuttering community, he just wanted to do more of it and make a bigger impact. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz You Can Make Money as a Grant Writer Similarities Between Social Work And Grant Writing Needs Focused At the end of the day, both fields require the identification, analysis, and addressing of a need. In grant writing, research prowess and strategic thinking are essential. “Social work relies on research, connections, problem identification, and strategic solving of those problems,” Madison Hopkins, MSW said. “Social workers research therapeutic interventions, resources, and cultural norms at the micro-level to best serve their clients. On the Macro level, staff members analyze community patterns, deal in numbers and statistics, utilize a robust social network, and plan long-term multifaceted projects.” Thinking Big Picture Both social workers and grant writers must demonstrate cultural understanding and be sensitive to the people they’re working to serve. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is a major focus of what we teach our grant writers. We encourage grant writers to ask: “how do I confront and unpack my own [racism, sexism, classism, saviorism, colonialism, religious prejudice, heteronormativism... to name a few] so that my work has a positive impact?” Check out this blog post for more on why DEI matters as a grant writer: “A good grant writer must also understand and respect the cultural needs of agencies, think dynamically about community characteristics, and have the social savvy to meet and work with a wide range of people,” Madison said. Meredith’s book, How To Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn, dives even deeper into what Madison highlighted. It is absolutely essential to a grant writer’s success to be aware of the many different stories at play in the communities they (or their clients) serve and across the funding landscape. Grant writers must also understand the bigger picture. Tapping into grant funding can be game-changing for nonprofits and communities. Grants literally help to change the world—one dollar and one community at a time. “To a real social worker, a grant isn't just a way to get funding,” Kimberly said. “A grant demonstrates someone else's confidence and support in your efforts to make the world a better place. Sounds cheesy, but social workers know we are doing our best to improve this world. Being validated in the way of funding from an external organization speaks volumes.” Neesa Sunar, LMSW, linked the two fields together by the knowledge required for both. “The common thread of these roles is that a social worker must be aware of community resources, political trends, and ethical practice to offer competent service. On a more personal level, such knowledge helps a social worker understand the complex lives of the people they serve, including the systemic barriers they face. Grant writing is a career that is excellently served by this same knowledge.” Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now Firsthand Experience With The Needs As a social worker, you have home court advantage in that you can personally bear witness to the actual work being done. You know what it looks like. Therefore, you can craft a narrative speaking directly to that effort and desired outcome. “Social workers understand what working in social services is actually like. They have the opportunity to interact with the populations that they serve in a very unique way and work from the basis of meeting them where they are at,” Kate said. When you can approach a grant application with hard won wisdom, it shows. Grant funders respond to that level of confidence and awareness. Neesa said that social work expertise lends to “the ability to read proposals and intuitively understand exactly how [funders] want to be approached”. It’s also pretty likely that as a social worker, you’ve come close to grants or even grant writing. Whether your position is grant funded or the program you coordinate is, there’s no doubt about it: grants are everywhere in the field of social work. Simply put, the two fields pair nicely together. Versatility Both social workers and grant writers have lots of variety when it comes down to who they serve and what they actually do. “Social work is a highly versatile field that places workers in a variety of contexts, whether it be as a clinical therapist in private practice, or perhaps at a community center,” Neesa said. Or, perhaps one is a non-profit business administrator, a community organizer, or hospital staff that coordinates discharge of patients.” Grant writing is a versatile field as well. Some grant writers choose to niche to only serving tribal organizations, writing SBIR grants, or specialize in one particular Federal grant program. Conversely, other grants writers may choose to never niche. They work with small and large organizations in all industries, from human services to agriculture. “Although this advice may not be relevant in other sectors, it still bears an important concept: follow your passion,” Neesa said. “If you serve a population or sector that you inherently love, your clients will be more than clients. They can be people you learn and share with, where you mutually inspire one another. Inspiration is the bedrock of creativity, which is what leads to innovative solutions that address today's problems.” Career Change From Social Work Making the leap can be scary, so it’s important to revisit your decision making framework and remind yourself of what you ultimately want. This thought process will look different for everyone. For Madison, the necessity for boundaries was a key motivator in her career change. As a Family Service Specialist for a state Division of Family Services, she experienced burnout and deep discouragement after merely one year. “I took children from hospital rooms and their families' arms in the middle of the night to hand them over to strangers,” Madison said. “I listened while parents my age told me about the systems that hurt them. I watched the system fail. I didn’t feel capable of contributing positively to the people groups and institutions I passionately studied to serve. I quit with nowhere to go.” When she was ready to serve others again, she returned to that absolute of needing boundaries to filter the idea of grant writing as her next career move. “I've always wanted to help people, but as I grow and expand my family, I see that it is vital to have emotional, mental, and time boundaries around my pursuits,” Madison said. “At this point in my life, my ideal career is work that allows me to balance investing in my family and serving communities that I feel called to. It is dynamic scheduling that allows for balance and breaks when needed. It includes a community that encourages me to dream big, acknowledge my abilities and value, and reminds me that failure is okay.” From a pragmatic standpoint, you need to know that learning grant writing and doing the work is not a cake walk. It’s not rocket science difficult, but it can be challenging at times. In the Global Grant Writers Collective®, our curriculum is based on a tried and tested system to gain clients, write winning grants, and feel confident doing both. Essentially, if you work the system, the system works. Whether you choose to go the freelance and consulting route or to pursue employment, the Collective will be beneficial to you. “I have only been grant writing for about a month, and I have found that grant writing is a skill that has opened many new doors for me as a social worker,” Joey said. “While grant writing is hard, it is incredibly worth the time and effort for social workers to learn grant writing.” Differences Between Social Work And Grant Writing Pay Difference The elephant in the room, er, screen, here is pay. You know I had to go there!\nIt is extraordinarily reasonable for a grant writer to earn $5,000 a month. Keep in mind this is a conservative number. The average salary for a grant writer is $69,000. That average means there are people making less and people making more than $69,000 a year. In all honesty, I know grant writers who make $150,000 a year. When you choose to scale a consulting business, the sky truly is the limit. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual salary for social workers is $50,390, as of May 2021. “Social workers are notoriously underpaid, and the work is quite strenuous,” Neesa said. “There are times that one may want to transition to fee-for-service work as a clinician, working part-time, or perhaps step away from the career due to burnout. Grant writing is an excellent way to retain income in such times.” Education Requirement To operate as a social worker in the United States, you need a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. Oftentimes, social workers pursue further education to do more and unlock higher pay at their place of employment. Did you read that with dollar signs flashing in your mind? Yep, that education is a whole lot of cha-ching. On top of that, social workers also may need a license; specific requirements vary by state. You guessed it, there is a fee to take the licensure exam. For grant writing, you do not need to go to school and shell out tens of thousands of dollars. You can instead earn your grant writing certification through The Global Grant Writers Collective® or take a self study course via Grant Writing: From Start to Funded. A membership to the Collective offers beginner and advanced curriculum, community, and coaching while Start to Funded primarily features curriculum. At $3,000 per year and $750 per year respectively, both programs are a fraction of the cost of a degree. That and the Collective shows you how to make your money back in 4-6 months and then go on to 10x from there. Schedule Flexibility Most social workers are employed full time. They sometimes work evenings, weekends, and holidays to see clients or attend meetings, and they may be on call. The hours can be grueling, especially coupled with compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma. According to a study done by social workers by Darcy Clay Siebert, PhD in 2006, there is a burnout rate of 39% and a lifetime burnout rate of 75% for social workers. Sure, sometimes grant writers work evenings and weekends but that is usually because they took time off in the middle of the week! Why? Because they chose to. Grant writer Rose Hedberg lives abroad in Casa Blanca, Morocco and works Monday through Thursday. She takes Fridays off to travel. That’s the long and short of why she became a grant writer. Full transparency: burnout is also possible for grant writers. Of course it is! In any profession, the risk of burnout is present. That’s why in our program, we work hard to emphasize the importance of taking regular breaks to support your health and feel energized by your work. Is grant writing a good move for you? It is a top choice for many social workers considering a career change. That said, it’s not for everybody. The age old, annoying advice applies here still: it depends. If you’re considering making the switch, take a beat to truly reflect and consider your situation, strengths, weaknesses, likes, and dislikes. “There are many, many, many different layers and elements of social work,” Kimberly said. “There are different forms, practices, and missions of social work and it is important for a social worker to identify what their passion is and why they are in the position to be considering a career change in the first place.” Learn Grant Writing is not about just taking your money for the heck of it. From the bottom of our hearts, we want you to be wise and thoughtful with your money. We recognize making the investment in learning with us is significant and we don’t take that lightly. Our program also teaches you how to make your initial investment back quickly. That’s ultimately what we want: for you to experience financial success and have a lifestyle that brings you joy. Take a few minutes to watch this video to learn more about if grant writing is a good fit for you.\n“I think it’s a great option,” Kate said. “Social workers have a unique understanding of the nonprofit and social service world but that understanding comes with a lot of burn out that makes it a hard career to maintain for long. Grant writing offers the ability to use their knowledge to continue to engage in social service while providing a more sustainable lifestyle.” “Grant writing is a macro-level option that pays well and allows social workers to work with a diverse clientele that interests social workers,” Joey said. “For instance, I was worried about not being able to find grant writing options within the stuttering community. But, once I began networking, I found many people to work with to expand resources for the stuttering community.” Best Career Change For Social Workers Is grant writing interesting to you? Does it have some of the elements you’re looking for? You don’t need to go all in immediately if you’re not sure yet. In fact, even if you are sure, it’s wise to instead start pursuing grant writing as a side hustle. Get a feel for the work and pocket some extra cash on the side. Side hustling is the best of both worlds. Heck, we wrote a blog post all about why side hustling with grant writing is a killer strategic move. Check it out here: “If you're like me and the thought of changing careers is terrifying, consider grant writing another tool on your tool belt,” Madison said “After all, grant writing will allow you to impact individuals, families, communities, and systems using strategic planning and action. At a personal level, you make it your own.” Final Takeaway Change can be scary. Not changing can be even more frightening. If you’re looking for a career that is flexible, profitable, rewarding, and moves you closer to your dream lifestyle, grant writing might be it. What do you think? Is grant writing your next right thing? Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Grant Writing Resources Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one talks about the perks of grant writing for stay-at-home moms and this one highlights how so many teachers have made the switch to grant writing. Also, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! More questions? Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 ","date":"2022-08-12","description":"Are you a social worker looking to make a career change in your 20s or 30s? Grant writing might be for you. Learn about why grant writing might be your ideal career and how to get started.","formatted_date":"August 12, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-ideal-career-change-for-social-workers_hu_aa1418e5a6721445.jpg","permalink":"/blog/ideal-career-change-for-social-workers/","slug":"ideal-career-change-for-social-workers","summary":"Are you a social worker looking to make a career change?\nGrant writing might be the right career pivot for you.\nLearn more in this post.\n","title":"The Ideal Career Change for Social Workers - Grant Writing!"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":"Honest Review - How Learn Grant Writing Compares to AGWA","content":" Review of American Grant Writers’ Association versus Learn Grant Writing Online Courses Sarah* approached the team at Learn Grant Writing after having an unpleasant and floundering experience with a different grant writing course offered through American Grant Writers’ Association (AGWA). We know the difference between AGWA and Learn Grant Writing, but we understand it’s not immediately evident when you are looking at all of your options for grant writing education. (P.S. Here is a review of the top 20 online grant writing courses). We’re publishing the review she offered to write so you can have the best information possible when deciding where to learn about grant writing. *We have changed the name of the individual to protect her privacy. In every other regard, this article is a true and honest review. Sarah’s Firsthand Review Ah, to be a Grant Writing Unicorn! I’m underway because of Learn Grant Writing (LGW) but only after a self-esteem-crushing experience with American Grant Writers’ Association, Inc. (AGWA). How I Found American Grant Writers’ Association I had anticipated becoming a grant writer at some vague future date when I would have to leave my then-current job because of a long-anticipated move. COVID changed everything. I felt compelled to leave my job and that accelerated my grant writing plan. I knew I needed some education to learn the grant writing process and enrolled in AGWA’s “Program Development and Proposal Writing” course. I chose AGWA because a co-worker had recently attended one of their beginner grant writing courses so I took it on faith that they would be good. Because of that I skipped performing any due diligence and that turned out to be a mistake. Maybe AGWA is better in person, but I can tell you that the online experience was incredibly lacking. It was a poor attempt by AGWA to make their traditional materials and old-school approach work in the digital realm. The course left me just barely more knowledgeable about grant writing than when I started. How I Found Learn Grant Writing As I was coming to the end of AGWA’s course, I had some questions about the lesson on budget models and emailed the instructor(s) accordingly. I received unhelpful and rude responses. In an attempt to better understand the lesson I went looking for \"outside\" help on the internet. While poking around, I came across Meredith Noble's book How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn. I added this book to my toolbox which proved to be a very smart move. The LGW budget format discussed in the book, and the URL shared for a budget template made sense to me. Meredith’s email address was in the book so I reached out with a question or two. Not only did Meredith respond (awesome!) but she also answered my questions. LGW got me over the finish line for the last section of AGWA’s course. Meredith and I had additional exchanges during which she introduced me to LGW’s course and the Global Grant Writers Collective® , encouraging me to consider giving LGW a chance. Lucky me! I completed AGWA’s course, earning my certification but feeling like I was no further along in my grant writing education than where I’d been when I started. The difference was that now I had an ace up my sleeve: Learn Grant Writing. I took a short break between courses to reset my mind before diving in. Then, I took the leap that made all the difference. Come along with me as I compare my experiences between AGWA and LGW. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Comparing AGWA and Learn Grant Writing The short answer is that there is no comparison between AGWA and LGW! From the skills I walked away with, lesson structure, manageability needed to complete the course, communication, and pricing, the two programs are vastly different. Theory Vs. Practical Skills At the end of AGWA’s course, I didn’t feel like I had learned how to write a compelling narrative, track workflow, optimize grant research, or even how to pursue grant writing work. Don’t get me wrong, there was plenty of content in lesson materials, but no real-world practice or application. There were fill-in-the-blank pages for “how to write a grant narrative” or LOI but no examples of how successful narratives or LOIs should read. Their methodology was that students learn the process vs. developing the actual skill. I completed the course never learning how to research a grant or the concept of vetting them - funders or grants - to ensure alignment. This reminded me of when I was in college earning a teaching degree. There was class after class on all of the theory behind teaching, which is important. Then, I got out of the world of theory and into the classroom as a student-teacher. This made all the difference! Getting to do the practical work made a huge difference. AGWA’s course was theory-heavy; their students are never afforded a true opportunity to get practical practice. Submitting and resubmitting a narrative with no constructive feedback does not build experience. LGW offers a practical and hands-on model for learning the skills to be a successful grant writer. LGW also provides guidance and tools for launching oneself into the business of grant writing. Every gap I experienced in AGWA’s course is addressed by LGW. Students are first guided on how to begin making connections. Then, LGW recommends a grant database and teaches how to vet those grants, how to write a compelling narrative, and teaches all the steps to completing an award-winning grant application. What a relief! Lessons And Red Flags AGWA would release each lesson only upon the submission and the subsequent approval of each assignment. I suppose that makes some sense - master the lesson before moving on - but it also felt very secretive and proprietary, as if their students couldn’t be trusted with the information. I wondered if I would be taught the secret handshake at the end! The lesson materials were only provided in Word Doc or PDF format via email. Not ideal, but okay. No videos here! When you open the lesson files you’re faced with long, dense documents that are hard to digest and don’t facilitate note-taking. This was disappointing at the most basic level since I felt I’d paid enough money for the course that if this was their chosen format the materials should have been shipped to me as a part of the cost of the course (red flag). As I worked my way through the lessons, other things quickly became apparent: these materials were dated, poorly proofread, and clearly intended for in-person training. The first thing AGWA stresses is the need for one’s writing and grammar to be meticulous. Ironically, their work was not. Every lesson contained errors (red flag). The screenshot below is from that first lesson. These types of mistakes were made consistently throughout the materials. Did these mistakes impede my learning? No. However, it gave me pause that if they were stressing the importance of being meticulous with one’s work, shouldn’t it track that their work would be meticulous? There were informational gaps in the materials which made it apparent they were meant to be more fully developed during the give-and-take of an in-person training session. One example was AGWA’s assignment to write a letter of inquiry (LOI). There was no example given or guidance on how to best approach this. I expected there to be guidelines on formatting, phrasing, what kind of information to include, how to reference the organization (are acronyms ever okay?), etc. The sample LOI in the course materials is nothing more than a template. Literally, fill-in-the-blank. The notes on what to write are a jumping-off point, but for someone who’s learning grant writing, this is a missed teaching opportunity. As I completed the assignment and submitted it, I received only negative feedback – don’t do that, don’t say it that way, don’t, don’t, don’t – but never any constructive criticism. After repeated attempts to recraft my LOI, I was still getting only negative feedback. Eventually, I asked if they could provide me with an example for reference. I was firmly referred back to the very document that was already not answering my questions (red flag). I felt like I was beating my head against a wall. I wanted to learn! I wanted to get this right! I wanted to understand! At LGW, grant writing isn’t treated as a club with a secret language that one must survive hazing before being allowed to get to the real tools and understanding of just how it’s successfully done. Each lesson is laid out in methodical steps using videos, along with samples of work and templates. Videos? Hello, 21st century! The lessons are provided in videos and can also be accessed through the Kajabi app if straight-up listening is your jam. If you have questions, there’s a place for that right on the page of each lesson. And. They. Respond. Even better, they host three coaching calls per month. These afford everyone in the LGW community the opportunity to submit questions or work you might want reviewed, and get live (constructive) feedback. They even have a community group on Circle, a community platform, for connecting with others in the LGW community directly with questions at every level of grant writing experience. The group always yields thoughtful and helpful responses. Here’s an example of a coaching call. In this call, we dedicated much of the hour to a specific topic: how to navigate sticky situations as a grant writer. Not every coaching call has a particular topic to focus on, but you can get a taste of the energy present in these calls from this one! You can take a quick peek into a few other coaching calls too: here we’re talking about how to charge for your services and here we cover why we advocate for not volunteering your time. Manageable vs. Unmanageable Back to AGWA’s Word Doc and PDF lesson materials. These documents were sent attached in emails without any notes, explanations, or information. It was: download the attachments, do assignments, submit. When there’s such a density of materials that are poorly explained, it’s overwhelming. You immediately feel outside of the process and the implied mysteries. The first lesson is strictly vocabulary based. Yes, there are terms that are important to know as a part of the grant writing process. I think that anyone worth their salt that’s doing grant writing would have the good sense to do a term search. A vocabulary lesson is a very juvenile approach. Supply the terms but don’t waste my time on a whole lesson! There are far meatier things to be learning about the grant writing process. The Grant Writing Unicorn Method immediately draws you into the process, making grant writing doable and achievable. LGW’s way of presenting the lessons speaks to their core belief that anyone who has made the choice to learn grant writing has the stuff to make that happen. Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Communication (Or, Lack Thereof) AGWA required enrollees to email any questions and submit completed assignments to one general email address. While this sounds fine, the communication was terrible. Responses were sluggish, and when they arrived, they were often too terse to be helpful. Responses were frequently conflicting. It was easy to surmise that there had to be at least two people responding to questions as well as reviewing completed assignments. One instructor was a bit flippant to the point of rudeness when answering questions, and the feedback was rarely helpful. The other instructor was only marginally more helpful. The gist of more than one email response I received to a question was, “If you have to ask these questions, did you really do the work?” Wait, what? Here’s a screenshot of another inappropriate response: The inconsistency in responses became glaring in the assessment of completed assignments. One instructor would reply with notes asking me to rewrite something while withholding the next lesson. A second email would arrive saying, “Nice work. See next lesson attached.” To confirm what I suspected, I asked if more than one instructor was reviewing assignments and responding to students, which they confirmed. More than one perspective can be a good thing, but not when they are in direct conflict. There was no common standard. The lack of coordination among their instructors resulted in differing expectations and responses and thus creating a confusing and disjointed learning experience. LGW has a clear point of view with a team that speaks with a consistent message. They engage with their enrollees. That added human connection makes the learning experience all the richer. Do Your Homework I ultimately did a little digging about AGWA (the due diligence step I had skipped early on) and found I wasn’t alone in my frustration and disappointment. I wasn’t imagining it! I found others who had taken AGWA’s courses, either in-person or online, all with the same concerns and complaints. I then circled back with that old co-worker of mine who’d taken AGWA’s course in-person and she provided additional insights. It tracked with what I was reading and experiencing. If I’d performed this step before giving them my money, I would have spent those dollars more wisely elsewhere. Learn Grant Writing is all about building up, creating a positive learning environment, and encouraging each person on this path of grant writing! Old School Vs. New School AGWA is very old school in how they present the material, how they teach, and in that they play their cards close to the vest. No one is getting the secret sauce. There was not one opportunity to personally connect with an instructor. LGW feels like sunshine and fresh air by comparison! Not only are they ready and willing to help and answer questions, but the community they have created is so supportive. This is readily evidenced when participating in the community coaching sessions, in addition to the videos that are used to present each lesson. There’s literally a face with the name! Bang For Your Buck Let’s talk dollars and cents. When I registered for AGWA’s course it was being offered at a discounted rate of $800 for a 4-6 week course. For that price, I came away having spent too many hours in frustration trying to discern what exactly they were teaching, receiving the bare minimum of help, left feeling unsure of exactly how to proceed in finding resources, and ultimately doubting my abilities. For my troubles, I came out on the other side poorly prepared to go forward with grant writing, with no community and no support. With AGWA I not only felt alone but also completely isolated. Access to LGW’s Global Grant Writers Collective® is $6,000 upfront for a year membership or $500/month for 12 months that then goes month to month as long as you’d like to remain a member. I was apprehensive about spending more money on more training after having such a terrible experience with AGWA, but this time I did my due diligence. I was able to determine that LGW would provide the learning environment I was looking for. Plus, rather than a 4-6 week program, LGW provides an ongoing year-round membership for support through the entire life cycle of a career transition. LGW teaches a unique method to gain (paid) experience as a freelancer. Their goal is for their students to pay for our investment in the program within 3-4 months of joining. What other program shows you how to make your money back and then some?! I love having access to all of the learning modules and those lovely templates, links, and comment sections at the bottom of each lesson. But wait, there’s more! Don’t forget the community coaching sessions and access to an interactive community of grant writers that are supporting each other. With Learn Grant Writing, I never feel like I’m out here alone. I hope you found this review helpful as you consider your options for getting professionally trained as a grant writer. Let my experience save you time, money, and heartache! Final Takeaway As we mentioned before, a primary goal at Learn Grant Writing is to make learning the skill of grant writing fun, modern, and approachable. We know this is so needed. We’re grateful for the opportunity to do that for Sarah. Thank you Sarah for sharing your experience and thoughtful reflection! Global Grant Writers Collective™ The only modern membership for grant writers providing extensive curriculum, coaching, and community.\nLearn More Grant Writing Resources Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one is a review of the top 20 online grant writing courses. Or, you can catch the video version of the review! Also, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! Still have questions about the Global Grant Writers Collective®? Check out this elaborate FAQ page: https://www.learngrantwriting.org/faq/ Did you know we have a self study online grant writing class for nonprofit professionals? Or for those that aren’t sure they will like grant writing. You can learn more about Grant Writing: From Start to Funded here:https://www.learngrantwriting.org/grant-writing-class/ Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 We’ll help you decide if our courses are right for you. ","date":"2022-07-10","description":"Considering getting professionally trained as a grant writer? Sarah reviews her experience with the American Grant Writers’ Association vs. Learn Grant Writing. Keep reading to save time, money, and heartache!","formatted_date":"July 10, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-review-online-grant-writing-courses_hu_47673453c7fa235a.jpg","permalink":"/blog/review-lgw-versus-agwa/","slug":"review-lgw-versus-agwa","summary":"Sarah reviews her experience with the American Grant Writers’\nAssociation vs. Learn Grant Writing. Keep reading to save time,\nmoney, and heartache!\n","title":"Honest Review of American Grant Writers’ Association vs. Learn Grant Writing"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Best Job For Moms I have been working remotely as a writer for three years from the nooks and crannies of my apartment. One of the reasons I started a business was to set myself up with a flexible schedule as I prepared to grow my family. I’m still a new mom by all counts and figures. At the time of this writing, I have a six month old baby girl. She’s just starting solids and I am not prepared for the changes this food will have on her digestive system. I digress. Watch this video for more about how I made the transition to grant writing. When my daughter was about three months old, I started working again…in addition to caring for her nearly 100% of the time during the standard “work week”. Read: I haven’t slept five hours straight since before my daughter was born. Read: thank goodness for mute on Zoom calls. Read: praise hands for email scheduling when I’m up at 2:00 a.m. Any of this relatable? Are you a stay-at-home mom interested in re-joining the workforce? Or, maybe you’re trying to find a flexible at-home career that will allow you to scale up and down as you grow your family? Well, as the title of this post suggests, we think grant writing consulting is a wonderful career for stay-at-home moms! It’s the best job because grant writing consulting is flexible, profitable, and life-giving. These three things are non-negotiables for stay-at-home moms who want to work. You’re in for a treat as a host of other mothers (veteran moms, in my opinion!) in the Collective have agreed to share their perspective in this blog post as well. One of the best parts of the Global Grant Writers Collective® is the incredible community! Challenges of Being a Work-at-Home and Stay-at-Home Mom Just because grant writing consulting is the best job for stay-at-home moms, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t hard work. Working from home and raising a child (or children) isn’t easy…neither is working outside the home and raising a child or focusing all your efforts on raising a child. It’s all challenging and I have nothing but respect for anyone doing their very best to love and raise their children well. Plain and simple, it’s hard, good work all around. For Emma Kramer, grant writer by profession and mother of a high school senior and college freshman, it can be frustrating to figure out how to split your time. “Some days it feels like I never get down to my own business, too much house cleaning, cooking, pet needs, gardening, chicken chores, wood to split \u0026 stack etc! I live off-grid in Alaska so there’s tons of chores to be done. I am pretty good at breaking up computer work with physical work but some days it’s all one or the other.” I knew when I started working 15-20 hours a week from home with a three month old it would be difficult. What I didn’t expect was the utter chaos, stress, and constant overwhelm that were waiting to greet me the first two weeks back to work. I also didn’t expect an eight minute workout to take 30 minutes while sung to the tune of “Old McDonald Had a Farm”. When I went back to work, my family was on the heels of celebrating Christmas and being sick with no schedule to speak of. My baby wasn’t sleeping due to an early case of the “4 month sleep regression/leap” which meant that I wasn’t sleeping. It was rough. It still is hard, frankly. Especially when my baby has a cold or is teething and the only thing that gets her to fall back asleep at 3:30 a.m. is a 40 minute drive around the neighborhood. As tempting as it is to say “If I just try harder or get up earlier, then I can get some work done”, it isn’t fair or realistic. Getting up earlier wasn’t (and still isn’t) the problem - I was already awake at 10 p.m., 12:20 a.m., 2:45 a.m., and 4:30 a.m. Forgive me, but I just couldn’t figure out how to “get up early” after a mere four hours of broken sleep. I tried to joke about it as a way of explaining to people and clients I’m close with that I was doing my best - I mean, who doesn’t love a wholesome self-deprecating joke? And I’m just so good at them! Eventually, I started wondering how many times I could use my sleep-deprivation as a joke to my clients before they stop trusting me with their very serious, non-jokey grant writing pursuits? I mean, I’m a professional, right? No doubt, there are a lot of challenges to being a stay-at-home/work-at-home mom. For my family, grant writing consulting is one of the main things allowing me to stay home with my daughter. I’ve found that the work has a lot of great perks for the stay-at-home mom. Yes, even on the really tough days of mommin’. So, let’s get into it. Grant Writing Consulting is Flexible The profession by design is flexible, at least more than the average job. You can choose your hours and even set aside certain days for meetings. You can also choose a niche. You can opt to become an expert in a specific field where grant deadlines are at the same time each year. Then, plan around that. For example, if you’re a fan of elk hunting, maybe don’t pick a field with lots of September deadlines. If you only get sunshine three months of the year (hello, my home state of Minnesota!), choose a field with winter deadlines. If you had a particularly rough night, like the kind where you didn’t sleep, being a grant writer means you can adjust your schedule. You don’t have to clock into the office if you’re struggling. Or, maybe you choose to do a more mindless task instead of some major narrative writing. The point is: your schedule is flexible. In this day and age it can feel like schools or daycares are closing down constantly due to COVID. Grant writing consulting while being home with your kids means you’re not at the mercy of those closures. “Being home with my kids meant that I didn’t have to stress about paying for summer camps or daycare during the summer,” said Abby Gromlich, mother of four elementary-aged kids. “If someone woke up sick, I didn’t have to worry about getting a babysitter; I could just snuggle with my sick kid. Kids with fevers are the best snugglers and nappers. They’re every at-home mom’s dream!” The physical act of grant writing appeals to many as well. Grant writing is a fun blend of storytelling and technical writing. Depending on the types of grants you’re pursuing, the application narrative can lean more one way than the other. A favorite part about grant writing for Imani Ackerman, homeschooling mother of a kindergartner and toddler, is “not having to think too hard about writing creatively. I just use what the nonprofit gives me to write exactly what the grant application requires.” I think it’s safe to say that a sleep deprived mom (or any person, kids or no kids!) can appreciate a clear set of instructions and expectations. Can I get a hallelujah for funding guidelines?! Especially, dare I say, Federal funding guidelines - *gasp*! Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz You Can Make Money as a Grant Writer Can you actually make money as a grant writer? Yes, you can. It is reasonable for a grant writer to earn $5,000 a month. Say what?! The average salary is $69,000. Plus, you don't have to get a master's degree to get this technical training! So, as a grant writer, you can make money without having to go into debt to get started. Also, you don’t even need to work full-time hours to pull in a decent paycheck. Want more details on how much you can make as a grant writer? Check out this video. I won’t lie. It feels good to make money and contribute financially to my family’s income. Beyond that, I have enjoyed working hard and watching my business grow over the years. With grant writing, the sky truly is the limit for how much revenue you can generate. Aside from the money, having a side hustle as a grant writer has other benefits. Knowing how to successfully operate a side hustle is a critical skill to thrive in today's economy. Did you know that over 50% of the workers in the US will be freelancing by 2027? Other pros to a side hustle:\nContinuing education including how to market yourself and basic business skills. Knowing how to make money (no matter what happens!). Strategically leveraging your side hustle to create freelance experience that you can use to land a job down the road. Adjusting your side hustle to reach your lifestyle goals. Check out this video on why you should start a side hustle. As you grow and build out a team (grant writing is the perfect job to build out a team with), you can choose your role in the grant writing process and play even further to your strengths, capacity, and interests. Are you more interested in writing? Consider hiring a Project Manager or someone to help with your email inbox. Not a fan of research? Hire a subcontractor to take that initial research off your plate. Grant Writing is Life-Giving As a mom, your time is precious. There’s just not as much time to mess around or hem and haw over decisions. The last thing I want to do is spend my precious time working on something or for someone that doesn’t make me feel excited or valued! When you choose to work for organizations with missions you’re passionate about, you can rest easy knowing that you’re literally making a positive difference in real lives. And, you’re feeding your soul. This is deeply important to Emily Dodge, mother of three boys ages 7, 9, and 14, and a baby girl, almost 1. “The work translates well to the kind of parent I want to be,” said Emily. “I want to teach my kids kindness, compassion, sharing, equity, empathy. These are all things that really are at the root of most grant applications – helping other people obtain funding for projects that will have a positive impact for their communities. It’s work that feels good and helps start a lot of important conversations with my kids.” Another mom in the Collective invites the whole family into her grant writing work. “I don’t have co-workers, so we celebrate wins as a family. We’ve had breakfast dance parties when something exciting happens for my business. These are fun moments I think we all enjoy.” Celebrating wins is a huge part of Learn Grant Writing and the Unicorn lifestyle! It’s one of our core values. Listen in on this podcast episode for more about what the Unicorn lifestyle is. The work itself is life-giving, but perhaps equally important is the way the work allows moms to cultivate joy and encourage their own personal growth. “I do think that the adventure of being an ‘at home working mom’ has proven to be a matter of feeling like your authentic self,” said Emma. “As a 45 year old, I’m now fully comfortable with who I am. This allows me to not build some constructed image of myself that would be stressful to uphold. I have learned to embrace all my quirky differences in lifestyle and personality, and when I can work with folks that are open and accepting, we can have great times and success!” Furthermore, when we choose to say no to “mom guilt”, we are open to seeing the incredible impact we have on our little ones. “This is a rewarding career and a great example for the kids,” said Imani. “I used to feel like maybe my kids just thought I was on the computer all day and could not understand what I was doing, but my older daughter sometimes pretends to work on the computer and says she’s ‘grant working.’” Does it really get any sweeter than that?\nOther Free Grant Writing Resources Free Grant Writing Trainings These how-to videos offer a smattering of webinar replays from our online grant writing training and feature topics such as working remotely, project management, fundraising, and how to utilize the Freedom of Information Act for federal funding.\nAccess Free Trainings Our Top Tips to Make it Work First, always start with the basics. Have I been fed? Have I been watered? Do I need to be taken for a walk? Then, troubleshoot. Our Collective moms have tons of great real-world advice. This isn’t a random list on the internet. These are real moms who are totally rocking their grant writing businesses! They’re doing it with the help of others, with grace, and with hard-won tenacity. Keep “Hours” in Your “Office” Have a dedicated workspace in your home. Bonus if this place has a door! Then, make the space your own. Fill it with things that inspire you: colors, sounds, smells, chocolate! As Shanna said, “no kids toys allowed!” Clocking in and out of work is crucial to your sanity as well. “It took months of irritability and Nutella to figure out that I had to work while the kids were in school or sleeping,” said Abby. If I tried to run into my home office while the kids were home, to check email or sneak in some narrative drafting, I’d get swept up in work. Inevitably, the kids would fight to get my attention – either with me or with each other. I was setting myself up to get angry at my family for my poor boundaries.” Boundaries with your clients are just as important. “If you don’t want to work past 5 p.m. because you reserve evenings for your kids, then don’t answer emails or pick up the phone past 5 p.m.,” said Shanna. “For your own sanity, take this seriously!” Finally, do your absolute best to get enough sleep. When you’re well rested, you work better and you’re a kinder mom. “Either give yourself permission to stop working and go to bed at a decent time, or make up for the late nights by sleeping in and letting the kids watch extra TV in the morning,” said Imani. Remember Your Why Being a stay-at-home and work-at-home mom can be extremely trying at times. Like, what happened to me and how is it possible to have this much emotion in my body?! When things get tough, Emma recommends you “remind yourself why you chose this lifestyle/occupation and check in with those intentions to see if they still resonate.” What are your values and is your current course of action in alignment with them? If applicable, are those values and actions also in alignment with your partners’ and your family as a whole? Furthermore, find your cheerleaders. When you’re questioning if you should stick with your choices, find folks that support you. “Let them share why they believe in you and this career choice,” said Emma. If they don’t believe in you, listen and consider what they say, but look for other people (maybe more adventurous or independent friends/mentors) that do support you.” Consider joining the Global Grant Writers Collective® for a virtual community with like-minded professionals. The Collective also invites and encourages you to continually invest in your development. You’re a mom, but that’s not your entire identity. You’re a whole person and investing in yourself matters! Check out this awesome FAQ page for more info. For another mom in the Collective, having a supportive partner who believes her professional success and satisfaction is no less important than his is a requirement. She said that “people think of the SAHM as the “supporter” of the main breadwinner. But, when you’re in a working role that also has more childcare hours, you have to have a partner who understands your work needs are going to be sporadic because of that. When a deadline is approaching, and I need all evening or part of a weekend to work, it’s understood and together we work out a plan.” Adjust Your Expectations If I’m being honest, I’m constantly lowering my expectations of what I can achieve in one day. Yes, I wish I could work for 5 or 6 or just a regular 4 hours every day. But, some days, most days, it’s just not possible. Having a daily three helps me keep my expectations in check. By simply setting three goals at a time, we can avoid burnout, make time for rest, and commit to meaningful work. How are the daily three objectives determined? In the Unicorn Way, of course! This video talks all about how to step away from stress, quarterly plan, and implement the daily three. I’ve also learned that there are certain things I can only do when the baby naps. When the baby is awake, I can usually get in a 15 minute workout (*usually), go for a walk, run a load of laundry, and even cook a meal. On the flip side, I reserve her nap times for my computer work. I try to really get focused and do deep work during those times. Emily achieves the much coveted “balance” by setting realistic expectations for herself as a working mother by simply trying to not drop the same ball every day. “It is rarely possible to keep all the balls in the air every single day,” said Emily. “They wake up sick on the morning you told yourself you’d finally get that narrative written and suddenly you’re cleaning up barf instead of working. Or, on a day you planned to be more present with your kids you get a call that this deliverable is needed ASAP, so you commit to focusing your energy on that and they don’t get their bedtime story tonight. Does that mean you failed? No. It means duty called, and you did what needed to be done today.” I’ve often joked that motherhood is synonymous with flexibility. Consider getting flexible with your work schedule by setting aside time that works in conjunction with your family. “Even if you hate mornings, or can’t focus at night, working while the kids sleep can lead to great productivity and Super Mom status,” said Emma. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template Ask For Help I know this is such an annoying cliche, but stick with me. I don’t do this alone. I don’t think I could do this alone. I have hired a 13 year old who is homeschooled to come into my home twice a week to play with my baby. During this time, I have a productive work session and have the ability to schedule important meetings as well. I also hire out help with some pretty incredible subcontractors I’ve connected with in the Collective! These subcontractors are preserving my sanity (what’s left of it - ha!) and helping me grow my business. At the same time, they’re getting great experience. Win-win-win! Emily swears by hiring a house cleaner. You had to have known this was going to come up. “Are you perfectly capable of cleaning your own house? Yes you are,” said Emily. “Are you also perfectly capable of earning $80 an hour with your writing talents while paying someone else $30 an hour of that wage to clean your house so when you sit down tonight you can actually relax? Yes you are. It’s a luxury, sure. But it’s one that will literally save your sanity.” Embrace the Chaos \u0026 Try Softer I know this is such an annoying cliche, but stick with me. I don’t do this alone. I don’t think I could do this alone. I have hired a 13 year old who is homeschooled to come into my home twice a week to play with my baby. During this time, I have a productive work session and have the ability to schedule important meetings as well. I also hire out help with some pretty incredible subcontractors I’ve connected with in the Collective! These subcontractors are preserving my sanity (what’s left of it - ha!) and helping me grow my business. At the same time, they’re getting great experience. Win-win-win! Emily swears by hiring a house cleaner. You had to have known this was going to come up. “Are you perfectly capable of cleaning your own house? Yes you are,” said Emily. “Are you also perfectly capable of earning $80 an hour with your writing talents while paying someone else $30 an hour of that wage to clean your house so when you sit down tonight you can actually relax? Yes you are. It’s a luxury, sure. But it’s one that will literally save your sanity.” TL;DR As a stay-at-home mom, you want work that is flexible, profitable, and live-giving. You deserve it. Call me biased, but grant writing consulting checks all the boxes. Grant writing consulting allows you to stay at home with your littles, earn good money, and make a positive impact in your community. By managing your time and expectations along with saying no to guilt, you can be present whole-heartedly - whether that is with your kids or when you’re working. Grant writing is flexible enough to make that possible for you! Grant Writing Resources Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one outlines a plan for how to become a freelance grant writer. This post highlights diversity, equity, and inclusion as a grant writer. And, Jess Stack is a mom who has found great success with grant writing. Also, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! More questions about the Collective? You can send us an email at info@senworks.org.\nOr, shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄\n","date":"2022-04-20","description":"Stay-at-home mom interested in re-joining the workforce? Want a flexible at-home career while you grow your family? Grant writing is one of the best jobs because it’s flexible, profitable, and life-giving.","formatted_date":"April 20, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/grant-writing-best-job-for-stay-at-home-moms_hu_4d7a11170c2d830e.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-best-job-for-stay-at-home-moms/","slug":"grant-writing-best-job-for-stay-at-home-moms","summary":"Want a flexible at-home career while you grow your family?\nGrant writing is one of the best jobs because it’s flexible,\nprofitable, and life-giving.\n","title":"Why Grant Writing is The Best Job For Stay-at-Home Moms"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" How to Pivot Careers Tom Kenny had his first taste of grant writing while working in nonprofit leadership. He managed a large team and held some hefty responsibility. One responsibility was grant writing. It didn’t take long before he realized that he was pretty good at it. He didn’t immediately switch careers to pursue grant writing consulting full-time, but steadily built up to it until the timing was right. “I had been reading books on grant writing for a couple years to try to polish my skills,” Tom said. “And I was thinking maybe I could do that someday. Finally, I was presented with this opportunity where I could go out and do that. I felt like the universe pushed me into it.” It was stressful to consider the logistics of making such a major career pivot, but Tom knew that the change was right for him. While he liked leading a big team and being a changemaker in his leadership position, after a few years of doing that he realized he had lost himself in it. “I didn't really know what I liked to do anymore,” Tom said. “I was so caught up in work that I didn’t have hobbies. I really wanted to make some changes. I wanted to have more time and be able to do things that I enjoy, but also still have a big impact on my community and the world.” 👉 Check out this video for our top 7 tips to launch your successful transition from full-time grant writer to consultant. Making the change involved a lot of small steps, a supportive community, and some major mental shifts for Tom. Tom came to understand that if he was going to make this career change, he couldn’t expect a regular paycheck every two weeks. He decided to do what was necessary to make his dream work. This included selling his Jeep Wrangler to buy something more economical. “With the way that used car prices were, it was worth a lot more than what I owed on it,” Tom said. “I was stressing myself out for something I didn't even really need. An economical car was worth the peace of mind while I got my business rolling. Every day doing something to further that vision to being a reality. Consistency and remembering why I wanted to do it was huge.” A nice car can be a sign of success of sorts, but Tom quickly scrapped that mentality to focus on building his business and gaining momentum. This new perspective helped to clarify decision-making for Tom. He was able to make decisions that were for the good of growing his business. Grant Writing Consulting In his first year of grant writing consulting, Tom landed several clients and a growing pipeline of work. Working as a grant writing consultant is a perfect fit for Tom because he enjoys helping people and knowing that his efforts are meaningful. Also, Tom has been able to build a more flexible schedule with greater work-life balance. Tom has found clients in a number of ways, including through LinkedIn. He did the free premium trial on LinkedIn and that provided him a few really great contracts. Tom also stresses the importance of getting your name out there and having a simple website. The website and his LinkedIn profile are both concrete evidence for people to look at and see his tangible skills.Consistency has been crucial for Tom. For example, one client lead submitted a new contact form on his website from a business card Tom handed out a full year prior. “I've really enjoyed LinkedIn so far. It seems like everyone's there for that same reason of learning and being professional,” Tom said. “It's a really good environment. I go on there a lot more now than I ever did before. I actually enjoy it more than other social media now because people post inspiring quotes and articles and it’s a learning environment.” 👉 Check out this video for How to Get Clients as a Grant Writing Consultant. At this point in time, the demand for Tom’s work is on the brink of being more than he can handle as an individual. With such strong momentum behind him, he’s toying with the idea of building out a team. “The stuff that I started being consistent with about a year ago is starting to gain momentum,” said Tom. “Now everything's sort of happening all at once. How can I make this happen? I'm brainstorming who I know that could maybe help me. I can definitely see myself building a team whether big or small.” Fortunately for Tom, he has access to hundreds of peer grant writers to expand his team and find the right collaborators. As Tom continues to hone his grant writing expertise, he took a part time job as a grant writer for a local organization that has helped to expand his knowledge in an unfamiliar focus area. “I feel really good about my path to where I am,” said Tom. “I enjoy my job and my business is also growing steadily.” How Healthy Is Your Consulting Business? Take our 4 minute consulting business test to quickly diagnose your sticking points and get you moving, with more joy and ease.\nTake The Test Grant Writing Course and Community To those considering joining the Global Grant Writers Collective® , Tom would say “do it.” He joined after leaving his position in nonprofit leadership and when he was unsure about how to make grant writing consulting a reality. He stumbled across the Collective while searching on Google and signed up that same day. Tom hasn’t looked back. “When I was driving around town, I was listening to the podcast version of the book and I loved it,” Tom said. “Wow, this is the bee's knees! This is what I needed. I had a really solid foundation with grants, had written a bunch, and I was pretty successful at it. The Collective really reinforced what I was doing and it put me in an entrepreneurial mind of what to do, and how to frame my business.” Having the wisdom and support of the Collective has been beneficial for Tom. The Collective is for people who are new to grant writing and have experience with the skill. 👉 Wondering if the Collective is only for beginners? What if you’re an expert grant writer? Watch this video for answers. “It’s so nice to have a community to ask questions to,” Tom said. “The members of the Collective are great too, because there's such a variety of experience. Even people that are newer and maybe don't have a lot of grant writing experience, have other experiences. It's great to have a community and a place where you belong.” The Collective has also encouraged Tom to celebrate his wins more regularly (yay, celebration is one of our core values!). One of his major wins was learning his client was awarded $620,000 to expand telecounseling to kiddos in schools. His biggest win to date was his client being awarded a $900,000 state grant to help establish health equity among BIPOC and immigrant communities. In his second year of grant writing consulting, Tom has won close to $2 million in grant funding mostly from private foundations. In the beginning he would often call family and friends to share the good news, but his celebration has evolved since then. “Now I kind of do some different things to celebrate like going for walks or rewarding myself in different ways like that. I guess sometimes a mountain of nachos can be involved.” Grant Writing Resources Watch our interviews with other Collective members here: Grant Writing Unicorn Spotlights. Read this blog post to learn more about making a career change to grant writing. Interested in getting your feet wet with grant writing? Check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Want to speak with someone in the Global Grant Writers Collective® to get their perspective? Shoot us a DM on Instagram and we can connect you: DM us on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2022-03-18","description":"Tom Kenny became interested in grant writing after writing (and winning!) many grants in a nonprofit leadership position. He decided to change careers to grant writing consulting for greater time and geographic flexibility. Grant writing consulting is proving to be a perfect blend of his skills, interests, and personality.","formatted_date":"March 18, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/tom-kenny-makes-career-change-to-grant-writing-consultant_hu_b3bbabd7b49581bf.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/tom-kenny-career-change-to-grant-writing-consulting/","slug":"tom-kenny-career-change-to-grant-writing-consulting","summary":"Tom Kenny transitions from nonprofit grant writing to grant writing consulting.\nBecoming a freelancer was scary, but Tom made the leap successfully.\n","title":"Tom Kenny: Nonprofit Grant Writer to Grant Writing Consultant"},{"author":"Marianne Evans","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/marianne-evans_hu_33da9c5fd0ed1f90.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Are you making progress on your 2022 goals? Are you where you thought you’d be by this time of the year?\nWe’re heading into quarter two soon (April - June), and if you’re like most people, you’re already feeling behind on something you wanted to do. Maybe your boss at your 9-5 dropped a big project on you that’s taking all your time and energy. Perhaps post-holiday family drama is eating up your energy, even well after Valentine’s Day. Or maybe the kids have been home from school for one too many snow/covid-19 days and disrupted your plans. Grant writers know well that good planning is not only needed, it’s essential. How we plan in our own lives often leaves us feeling overwhelmed from the start and defeated once real life happens. Spoiler alert: it always does. Alex knows just what this feels like. “I used to work at this job where I had a million tasks,” she said. “It always felt like I was that person who just responded to emails and let that dictate what I spent my time on. I would have this everlasting sticky note of tasks. So even if I checked off ten of those tasks, I felt unproductive and incomplete because I had thirty on the list. When you pick three things to focus on in a day, you can finish them. If you can’t get all three, you can usually get two, and two out of three is a way better feeling than ten out of thirty!” Meredith and Alex want to walk you through the transformational planning framework they use throughout the year to plan for success and achieve it. Let’s dive in! Listening or Watching More Up Your Alley? Listen to the podcast episode here:\nOr, head on over to this video to watch the conversation unfold: Step Away From the Stress and Set Up 2022 the Unicorn Way...Through Quarterly Planning! 🦄 📆 Why Do You Plan? Plan your quarterly calendar for success. Success doesn’t have to just mean bottom-line, revenue, or profit. Whatever success looks like it to you, research shows that planning for it increases your follow-through and the likelihood of achievement. Planning is “the way out of acting like everything is on fire all of the time,” Alex said. “One of the things that calms my nervous system when I’m stressed and not sleeping well is just making a plan,” Meredith added. Set Your Intention Setting an intention is much more than a goal, and it’s much more than woo-woo jargon. It’s a mindfulness tool to develop your goals and reflect on as the quarter progresses. An intention focuses you on what matters most in your life. Use it as a starting point to get granular with your time so that you can attain your big picture objectives. Meredith and Alex start their quarterly planning session with the question, “How do you want to feel at the end of next quarter?” This intention (or one like it) moves the focus from quantitative objectives (“I want 12,000 Instagram followers”) to qualitative objectives (“I want more rest in my weekdays”). Unicorns live robust lives: outdoors, travel, service, relationships, and leisure are all priorities to folks inside our Collective. It’s important that our goals reflect that. Setting an intention allows space for thinking holistically about your life and what you want to achieve in it. As Seneca, philosopher and playwright, said, “Life is long if you know how to live it.” At the end of quarter one, “I want to feel so accomplished and know there’s no huge laundry list of things we need to do. That we’ve hit a major milestone in rolling out [The Global Grant Writers Collective® updates]. I know I will get a huge amount of satisfaction from that—knowing we’ve done everything in our power to make that the most amazing transformative experience in our power,\" Meredith said. “I want to do all that while taking time to ski, be outside, and know that we are not killing ourselves. Let’s finish the quarter really clean so that [Alex] and I are energized.” Alex added, “When I thought about this question, it was that our members and our Collective feel so supported. That makes me feel supported, energized, and excited,” for the next quarter. How Healthy Is Your Consulting Business? Take our 4 minute consulting business test to quickly diagnose your sticking points and get you moving, with more joy and ease.\nTake The Test The Big 3 Framework The Big 3 Framework for goal planning is not original to Meredith and Alex. They learned it from their mentor and coach and have added some Unicorn-flavor to it over the last year and a half. By consistently implementing this formula for planning, and modifying it as needed (since Unicorns are adaptable), they consistently achieve success without losing themselves in the process. “Too often we take whatever our inbox sends our way and go with that as our priority, and not the priorities we are setting,” Meredith said. In the Big 3 Framework, you set three goals for a year, three for each quarter, and three for each week. These three goals are ideally one new idea and two maintenance projects. However, entrepreneurial frontierswomen, Alex and Meredith, sometimes have trouble sticking to this formula themselves. “We are chronically over ambitious,” Alex said. “We often have two new ideas, and one maintenance project (which is hardly just a maintenance project),” Meredith added. “We really encourage you to stick to the one new idea, two maintenance projects formula as it’s a much more sustainable cadence.” Importance of Work Life Balance Start by setting your year’s Big 3 rocks. Setting your goals can happen at any time of the year, so don’t worry about it not being anywhere near December or January. In fact, Meredith and Alex do their yearly planning in July. This way they avoid the added stress and activity at the end of the year. They can go into a period of rest knowing they have already set their Big 3 goals for the next year and enjoy time off. They enter the new year refreshed and ready to implement their quarter one goals. All your planning needs to zoom up to one question. For Meredith and Alex this question is, “Does this activity help me meet the goal I’ve set?” The Big 3 Framework is a decision-making framework to decide if each activity and opportunity that comes your way in a week, quarter, or year are a good use of your time. It’s not the Big “30 Rocks” “The problem we often see with goal setting is that people are too ambitious,” Meredith said. “When you have Big 5 goals, you can’t do it. The context switching is too high. You get to the end of the quarter and you haven’t gotten anything done and you feel bad.” To decide on what three rocks you want to pursue, Meredith and Alex recommend the pen and paper approach first. Write them all down. Look at what you’ve written and consider when they fit best into your year, how they align with your priorities, and which things may be nice but not necessary. “Sometimes these ideas feed into each other and become more consolidated in the Big 3. Then we pick the three rocks that matter the most and feed directly to our annual goals,” Alex said. Be aware that this step is hard! Meredith and Alex often spend a few days debating what the three rocks should be. This requires letting go of other goals they want to complete and either parking for another quarter or releasing entirely from their ambitions. Less truly is more. Free Grant Budget Template If preparing a grant budget scares you, those days are about to be over! Download the free grant budget template below and take our free grant writing class to learn how to use it.\nFree Template Set your Quarterly Rocks Yearly goals are necessary but sometimes they are so big you can’t connect your day-to-day actions and routine to them. Quarterly goals give you a roadmap for three straight months so that you can minimize the need to constantly respond to your inbox, slack, and messages. “Quarterly goals allow you to stay focused on where you want to be at the end of the quarter, and on pace for where we want to be by year end,” Alex said. “I don’t want to be running around like a chicken with my head cut off. It’s exhausting and draining.” Exhausting and draining are not values of a Unicorn!\nOnce the Big 3 Rocks are in place for the quarter, it’s time to get super practical. With the appointments and commitments in place, we can plan the specifics of what is needed to do. “This year Meredith bought a beautiful calendar, and we write our Big 3 on sticky notes and we go week by week,” Alex said. “Ideally, you will have three goals for each week,” Alex said. Weekly planning “is where the rubber meets the road to really negotiate and talk about where things go,” Meredith added. You need to consider whether you have allowed enough time for something, negotiate the priority level and energy required, and plan in your rest. After this paper planning is done, it’s time to apply some project management magic to these plans. Meredith and Alex drill down on the plans and use their favorite project management tool, Asana, to develop tasks for each week, schedule due dates, and assign them to the appropriate team members. Want to learn how Meredith and Alex use Asana? Check out this video to organize your day, week, and quarter. These assigned tasks then become the Daily 3 of a team member. Each day everyone knows exactly what three tasks they need to focus on for the day. Yes, even before checking their phone, email, or Slack! This energetic team of three full-time employees and about 12 part-timers is moving fast toward their goals by using the Big 3 Framework for planning. Let’s look behind the curtain and show you what this looks like for Meredith and Alex, in quarter one of 2022.\nRock 1: Grant Writing Cohorts Meredith and Alex refreshed the original grant writing course, Grant Writing: From Start to Funded. They aligned with organizations they are passionate about to bring grant writing technical training to these audiences through customized, enterprise cohort models. Doing this allowed them to relaunch the original grant writing program, Grant Writing: From Start to Funded, on National Unicorn Day for folks who want stellar grant writing training at a lower price point than the Collective. Rock 2: Training for Advanced Grant Writers in the Collective The Collective includes an online course, community, and coaching calls. Phases 1 – 4 of the online course shows you how to get paid as a grant writer so you can build a portfolio of experience. Phase two is all about grant research and finding the right grants to pursue. Phase three is where you learn the 7-steps to writing winning grants. Phase four teaches how to hit $15,000 in revenue. By that point, you will know if you want to land a job as a grant writer or go the freelance grant writing route. Phase five is all about growing to $50,000 in revenue or landing a salaried job. On the agenda for this quarter is scripting, filming and editing Phase 6 for those building their business to 6-figures of annual revenue. Rock 3: Community Development This one is, theoretically, the maintenance project. The Unicorn Grant Writing Collective transitioned from Facebook to a new, clean, user-friendly platform called Circle. Circle allows Meredith and Alex to separate out their audience alongside allowing for more customization and personalization of the experience of students. It’s simply gorgeous compared to other online community platforms. You can see that a whole lot can be packed into each rock! Yet, with all these goals in place, there’s still time for family, camping, and real-life when you use the Big 3 Framework. A full life is the Unicorn way! How to Plan Quarterly - The Unicorn Method To recap how to plan quarterly, follow this high-level overview:\nSet your big-picture vision for the year. Set an intention by asking yourself: “How do I want to feel at the end of next quarter?” Identify your Big Three Quarterly Rocks. What one new project and two maintenance projects will get you closer to achieving the three goals you set out to meet this year? Ask yourself, “Does every activity you’re pursuing lead you closer to your three quarterly goals?” when planning when the work will get done on the calendar. Define your Daily Three Rocks. What are the three most important (not the most urgent) things you need to do today to move toward your weekly goal? Set an appointment with yourself and try using this tool in your life or business for the next three months, and let us know how it goes! “Just plan a quarter and don’t overwhelm yourself,” Meredith encouraged. Grant Writing Resources If you’re looking for meaningful work without sacrificing your meaningful life, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grantsto decide if grant writing is your next right step! More questions? Shoot us a DM on Instagram!🦄 Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2022-03-15","description":"On The Unicorn Living Podcast, Meredith Noble and Alex Lustig teach purposeful planning, Unicorn-style. Learn how to plan your quarter for business and life. Stop the cycle of overcommitting and move your most important goals forward.","formatted_date":"March 15, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/Blog-HowtoPlanQuarterlyforbusinessandlife,theunicornway_hu_43eac5c94b0f6ddf.jpg","permalink":"/blog/quarterly-planning-for-business-the-unicorn-way/","slug":"quarterly-planning-for-business-the-unicorn-way","summary":"On The Unicorn Living Podcast, Meredith Noble and Alex Lustig teach purposeful\nplanning, Unicorn-style. Learn how to plan your quarter for business and life.\n","title":"How to Plan Your Quarter for Business and Life - The Unicorn Way"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":"The Yarnalls Write Nonprofit Grants for Veterans","content":" Nonprofit Grants for Veterans Dr. Kim Yarnall and Robert Yarnall founded The Mission Makers to help nonprofits, specifically Veteran organizations, find fundraising success. Robert (Bob) is a Retired Marine Corps Master Gunnery Sergeant having served 25 years. Three of their kids serve or have served as well. This passion for service guides their work today as they lead with a community-first mindset. “We had both been involved in the nonprofit sub-sector as volunteers for many years serving on various boards and committees,” said Kim. “Through that work, we realized that a key factor in the success of any nonprofit is their ability to fund their programs and projects and that winning grants is often a big piece of that puzzle. We felt like we could expand our impact with the organizations that we're passionate about if we could bring that skill to the table.” The Yarnall's are able to bring that impact with The Mission Makers. Kim is also very involved with their local Pocono Family YMCA and currently working as a developmental specialist dealing directly with the grant writing for an $8M capital campaign project. When organizations hire The Mission Makers, the Yarnall's like to joke that it’s a two-for-one deal. Playing on one another’s strengths has been vital to the growth of their business. “When you're hiring us, not only are you getting two of us, you're getting two people that are passionate and are going to bring that passion to everything we do for you,” Bob said. “We’re a team in everything we do. We're so used to working that way throughout our marriage that it's really not that big of a change. I think we play well off of each other's strengths”, Kim said. “Bob really enjoys working with the startups and, and getting all their paperwork in order. I enjoy the program development, grant research, and the grant writing side of things a little bit more. We're figuring out what each other's roles are going to be in our business.” Rather Listen to the Interview? That's cool. We are podcast people as well! You can listen to the fabulous interview with Kim and Bob below or catch it on YouTube here. Grant Writing Consulting Creating and developing partnerships has been the proudest accomplishment of starting The Mission Makers. Kim and Bob's work with nonprofits in the past allowed them to understand the trials that a nonprofit goes through. However, working with an overview perspective has allowed them to connect nonprofits all over the country with similar goals in order to create a bigger impact. “We can help organizations build a strong foundation, get them even grant ready, help them with their fundraising programs so that they have another stream of income besides grants to make them more attractive to funders, and make sure they have strong metrics to measure their outcomes,” Bob said. “Being able to put that together, we know that now we can expand the impact from many different organizations which quadruples the impact that we can have as individuals.” Blending nonprofit consulting with grant writing has not only helped the Yarnall's round out their business, but has secured a retirement plan for them that doesn’t feel like work. “This company gives us a remote type of job that we can do from anywhere,” Bob said. “Because it's our passion, not work, it's something that we fully plan on continuing well into our retirement. It’s something that we can do and have an impact on nonprofits around the country.” Striving for work-life balance is also key for the Yarnall's success—professionally and personally. For Kim and Bob, balance looks like hiking or biking on the weekends, watching a football game or cooking show, or traveling. “Usually around 6:00 PM, we shut it down and, you know, TV goes on, the glass of wine gets poured, and we go back to our personal lives,” Bob said. “Wine tasting is our favorite hobby,” Kim said. “So when we travel, we always seek out great wine experiences. And, we enjoy just sitting by the fire, drinking a glass of wine whenever we get a chance.\" Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Professional Grant Writing The Mission Makers is growing, already having 15 clients, and a major challenge they face is keeping tabs on every project. They overcome this challenge by implementing many of the time management tools taught in Learn Grant Writing and believe that if you implement these tools from the start, you are able to keep your focus on the most important tasks. “As the business has gotten bigger, it's figuring out how to manage all the things to do for all the different clients and all the tasks that are on the list for us to do along with our day jobs and our other responsibilities,” Kim said. “So, being able to realize that we need to just reinvest and utilize some of the tools that are out there to free up our time for doing the work that we are hired to do,” Bob said. In addition to Asana, other tools that have proven essential for the Yarnall's include Calendly and hiring a bookkeeper. Check out this video on how to use Asana to stay organized: Kim and Bob also appreciate Learn Grant Writing's commitment to current grant writing needs. The course content, feedback, and bonus training evolve as the grant writing world continues to grow. The funding strategy, prospectus, coaching calls, and community have been an absolute game-changer for their business! “A funding strategy is a critical piece of the puzzle to being intentional in how you're pursuing your funding opportunities, but it's also a great vehicle to provide that first deliverable to your clients,” Kim said. “Then beyond that, just being part of the collective networking with the other members, coaching calls, especially early on was very helpful.” 👉 Free resources and templates are available on the Learn Grant Writing website here. Grant Writing Resources Watch our interview with Bob and Kim Yarnall here: Unicorn Spotlight: Kim and Bob Yarnall. Read this blog post to learn more about grants for veterans organizations. Interested in getting your feet wet with grant writing? Check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Want to speak with someone in the Global Grant Writers Collective® to get their perspective? Shoot us a DM on Instagram and we can connect you: DM us on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2022-03-04","description":"The Yarnall's founded The Mission Makers to support nonprofits through veteran grants, pursue professional grant writing, and establish a plan for retirement. The husband and wife duo are truly a team in everything they do from serving on boards together, exercising, and being business partners.","formatted_date":"March 4, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/kim-and-bob-yarnall-write-nonprofit-grants-for-veterans_hu_77a39c511e8aa006.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/kim-and-bob-yarnall-write-nonprofit-grants-for-veterans/","slug":"kim-and-bob-yarnall-write-nonprofit-grants-for-veterans","summary":"Kim and Bob Yarnall secure their retirement plan and pursue their passion\nwriting nonprofit grants for veterans through their business The Mission Makers.\n","title":"How the Yarnall’s Got into Writing Nonprofit Grants for Veterans"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Careers for Writers While Kyle had been interested in grant writing for a while, it was several years before he committed to the skill. A few years out of college, Kyle met with a career counselor to ask the timeless question so many young people find themselves asking: “What should I do?” She suggested grant writing based upon his interest in writing. However, the timing wasn’t quite right for Kyle and he wasn’t convinced the project management element of grant writing was a good fit for him. Then, he launched a ghostwriting business a few years later. It was increasingly difficult for him to gain traction in the ghostwriting field living in San Antonio, a city not well known for publishing or marketing. After having kids, he reevaluated his career and lifestyle. He began to more seriously consider grant writing. Kyle was also encouraged by other individuals prompting him to check out grant writing, especially since ghostwriting had provided him many transferable skills relevant to grant writing. “Project management was a big one for me. Even though we are writers, I'd say that most 40% of our time is actual writing,” Kyle said. “After having kids, I felt more confident in my project management skills. And, I can handle budgeting on a basic level. So, I felt like I was good there.” A chance encounter with a nonprofit consultant who offered to help him break into the grant writing field sealed the deal for Kyle. “I was finally in a better mindset to have that opportunity to look more seriously into the Learn Grant Writing program and the Global Grant Writers Collective®,” Kyle said. Grant Writing Certificate After absorbing as much information made available for free from Learn Grant Writing, Kyle earned his grant writing certificate through the Collective. He started reaching out to his network (including the nonprofit consultant!) and conducting informational interviews, a process we teach in the Collective to gain clients. “I would suggest that to anyone; to look not just for super connector in the broad sense, but a nonprofit consultant, because they're usually going to have those connections. If you're near a big city, there's gotta be at least one of those,” Kyle said. Through his efforts, Kyle connected with the CEO of a nonprofit council in San Antonio. Nonprofit job postings routinely emailed from the Council is where Kyle discovered a Grant Writer position for Project MEND. He submitted an application and his freshly established network offered to put in a good word for him as he moved through the interview process. “Not only that, I started researching what kind of grants I could find for them. That was a lot of time spent—really just kind of reading over some grants,” Kyle said. “When I went back for my second interview, I said, ‘Well, I've got about five or six grants that kind of look like they could align. Maybe, maybe not, but at least these would give you an idea of where to go.’” Kyle secured the Grant Writer position which he attributes to a bunch of little things working in sync including the connections he made, his tenacity in researching, and skills gained from the Collective. “I don't feel I could have gotten this job if I hadn't gone through the Collective,” Kyle said. “The connections were obviously integral to that and the motivation was obviously integral, but I feel that without this extra piece, it still wouldn't have happened.\" Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Nonprofit Grant Writing Kyle’s proudest moment of his grant writing journey is landing a full-time Grant Writer job for Project MEND, a nonprofit providing repurposed medical equipment to the San Antonio community. In true Unicorn style, Kyle celebrated this major win! “I got myself a peach milkshake at Chick-fil-A and I stayed home and I watched a couple movies. I just had a nice afternoon for myself,” Kyle said. “Then my family came home and I got to share the news with them. My wife cried. I've cried.” In his current role, he’s proud to have written dozens of grants ranging from $5,000 - $300,000. He also coordinates grants management for those grants the organization plans to reapply to, as well as help identify what grants still need to be identified. The project management lessons offered through the Collective have been integral in Kyle’s current work both for juggling elements of a grant application and for coordinating with fellow employees on finances and reports. “It's great to be writing and just doing all that, but if you can't keep it organized, you're really going to be wasting a lot of energy there,” Kyle said. “I went back and rewatched those project management modules again and again to hopefully get those processes down in my brain. That way when I got there it was kind of a second nature. Now I'm still figuring out that process as it pertains to how I work there uniquely.” Check out this video on how to navigate project management for grant writers. Kyle also continues to use our funding research strategy even after earning his grant writing certificate. “As a freelancer, that's a great way to get into nonprofits and to show your value and what you can do to help them, and you know, build that experience,” Kyle said. “But then, even as a full-time grant writer, that's something that I'm doing.” Based on what is taught in the Collective, Kyle has been inspired to implement efficient and effective processes for his job that can be easily picked up by others in the event of an unforeseen emergency. “It gives me a level of comfort knowing that before I started, instead of having to pick that up,” Kyle said. “Now I feel my questions are a little more high level instead of ‘what do I do?’. I feel it is much more time efficient.” How To Become A Grant Writer Looking back on his grant writing experience thus far, Kyle is particularly grateful for the project management tools and grant research methods that he learned in the Global Grant Writers Collective®. The strategies and systems covered within the course enabled Kyle to easily transition from a freelancer into a full-time position. To those considering joining the Collective, Kyle highlights the strategic advantage to having great education, earning grant writer certification, and having a stellar community supporting you. “It's a way to get your feet wet and build that credibility and get comfortable with the process. You're going to have to learn a lot obviously, but it points you in the right direction. You can leverage that which is great,” Kyle said. “You can say ‘I've learned these skills and I know how to help you specifically with your funding in these specific instances.” Grant Writing Resources Watch our interview with Kyle here. Interested in getting your feet wet with grant writing? Check out free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Want to speak with someone in the Global Grant Writers Collective® to get their perspective? Shoot us a DM on Instagram and we can connect you: DM us on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2022-01-16","description":"Kyle was also encouraged by other individuals prompting him to check out grant writing, especially since ghostwriting had provided him many transferable skills relevant to grant writing.","formatted_date":"January 16, 2022","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-kyle-weckerly-nonprofit-grant-writer_hu_841b6750daa65325.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/kyle-weckerly-nonprofit-grant-writer/","slug":"kyle-weckerly-nonprofit-grant-writer","summary":"Kyle was also encouraged by other individuals prompting him to check out grant\nwriting, especially since ghostwriting had provided him many\ntransferable skills relevant to grant writing.\n","title":"Kyle Weckerly: From Ghostwriter to Full-Time Nonprofit Grant Writer"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Motivated to Uncover the “Elusive” Skill of Grant Writing for Nonprofits Stephanie Soliz’s heart and passion lies with organizations working against domestic violence and sexual assault. Throughout the past five years, she’s put in nearly full-time job hours volunteering with various local nonprofit organizations. In all her experience working with nonprofits, grant writing seemed to be a giant, elusive skill that either no one was equipped or available for. “It was this giant secret skill. So, I thought, well, why not learn how to do that?” Stephanie said. A bit of research later, Stephanie found herself plugged into the Learn Grant Writing community (and we’re so happy to have her!). We definitely don’t keep grant writing a secret and she’s been able to hone her grant writing skills in the short few months she’s been part of the Collective. Since joining the Collective, Stephanie has won over $150,000 for the non-profits she works with.\nIn addition, her grant writing work correlates directly with her husband’s consultant work for emergency services and emergency planning for nonprofit organizations. Together, their work meshes well and they are able to provide a more rounded service offering depending on client needs. Check out this YouTube interview with Stephanie! Becoming a Grant Writer As a freelance grant writer, Stephanie continues to find herself drawn towards her primary passion of helping organizations stop domestic violence and support survivors. Her first client was a brand new mental health organization focused on providing mental health care in a different way. “It’s not just a sit in the office and talk to somebody approach, but take it outside, learn new skills in the process, and make it more of a comfortable place to really find healing,” Stephanie said. “I do tend to find myself more drawn to mental health and the domestic violence survivors and things like that. My heart is wholly toward the survivors and mental health.” This type of work also allows Stephanie to think creatively about how to help survivors. She recently submitted a major league baseball grant and is waiting to hear back on award notification. The kicker is that major league baseball has donated millions of dollars in the past few years to support the work of domestic violence nonprofit organizations. Stephanie’s grant writing skills are both directly and indirectly helping the people her heart is on fire for. Alongside her husband who does a lot of work with a performing arts center, Stephanie has also assisted with grant writing in the arts realm, further expanding her expertise. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Building Connections with Nonprofit Leaders When thinking about her proudest moment of learning grant writing, Stephanie highlighted reaching out to various nonprofit organizations as her primary accomplishment. “I'm very introverted and I don't really care for social situations. Reaching out to nonprofits for the informational interviews, being able to send that email, being able to make that call, and then sitting on a video is not something I would have done before,” Stephanie said. “The fact that I was able to cross that hurdle and conquer that fear of talking to people is my biggest accomplishment.” She’s also incredibly proud of the grants she’s been able to help secure for organizations as well. Stephanie has celebrated winning grant renewals (critical to the continued success of an organization) and new grants—one for $40,000! Building connections with nonprofit staff has also presented unique opportunities to have coworkers of sorts in a world of Zoom meetings and phone conference calls. “I've been working with another person in the office to write the grants,” Stephanie said. “He and I were able to build off each other, proofreading and editing each other’s work. It’s great to have that buddy.” Her Learn Grant Writing Review? Stephanie’s experience with the Collective has been more than she ever expected it to be. The process of learning the skill has been attainable, fun, organized, and highly informative. “It has made it go from this overwhelming idea of a super secret grant world to taking it step-by-step with so much information. It just makes it a lot less scary,” Stephanie said. Stephanie has firsthand experience with a university grant writing course and has found the Collective to be much more in tune with the real world of grant writing. “I got way more information from the Collective and way more help than I ever received from the university,” Stephanie said. “They don’t even compare and the Collective is more affordable. It's incredible. I love it.” Moving forward in her grant writing journey, Stephanie is grateful to have continued support in the form of a “whole pile of people to cheer me on and help me out”. We’re so happy to be part of your journey, Stephanie! Grant Writing Resources If you’d like to learn tips on grant writing for nonprofits, check out our free grant writing course on the 7 Steps to Write Winning Grants. Also, if you’re looking to hire a grant writer for your nonprofit, find your match here. We’d love to connect with you! Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2021-12-12","description":"Stephanie Soliz saw a need for skilled grant writers while volunteering at nonprofit organizations.\nShe decided to take on the challenge herself. After earning her grant writing certificate,\nStephanie has launched a freelance grant writing business and won over $150,000 in grants.\n","formatted_date":"December 12, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grant-writing-for-nonprofits-stephanie-stolz_hu_b4791b38ca8f61b9.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/becoming-a-grant-writer-for-nonprofits/","slug":"becoming-a-grant-writer-for-nonprofits","summary":"After earning her grant writing certificate, Stephanie has\nhelped nonprofits she genuinely cares about win over $150,000 in the last year.\n","title":"Stephanie Soliz: Uncovering the “Elusive” Skill of Grant Writing for Nonprofits"},{"author":"Alex Lustig","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexandra-lustig_hu_29673d9c06922fa5.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Why Focus On DEI As a Grant Writer? When I pursued my master’s degree in International Human Rights, I spent three months as a “voluntourist” in Nepal. Every time a new volunteer came to the nonprofit I was working for, they adapted their project at one of the local schools to match what the volunteer wanted to do. Every. Time. The nonprofit was listening to the needs of the volunteer instead of the needs of the community. I do not blame the nonprofit: I attribute it to conscious and unconscious racism and colonialism. As the U.S. fiscal sponsor and as volunteers, we continued a narrative that put our needs first. Using today’s language, we were not antiracists, even though we had moments of antiracist behavior and our intentions were “good.” A question grant writers should ask is: how do I confront and unpack my own [racism, sexism, classism, saviorism, colonialism, religious prejudice, heteronormativism... to name a few] so that my work has a positive impact? I am Not Racist Versus I am Antiracist There is a difference between saying, “I am not racist” versus saying “I am antiracist.” As Ibram X. Kendi describes in How To Be An Antiracist, the problem with being “not racist” is that it is “a claim that signifies neutrality: “I am not a racist, but neither am I aggressively against racism.” Being antiracist acknowledges that there is racism in all of us and in the systems of our society and that you are actively doing something about it. A critical part of being an antiracist is learning about the impact of policies and the history behind those policies. It is important to note that “racist” and “antiracist” are not permanent tattoos—they are “peelable name tags that are placed and replaced” depending on the action at the moment. As grant writers, we are often faced with community problems that are a result of policies. Undertaking a journey to understand history, institutional racism, and how both are interwoven with today’s societal problems will make us infinitely better community partners and grant writers. Why Do You Want to Become a Grant Writer? It is important that, as grant writers, we have our eyes wide open to our blind spots. We enter this field to do good. Meredith and I have data from over a thousand grant writers discussing motivations for getting into grant writing. The majority come to this space because they want to make the world a better place. They want a meaningful career—one they can be proud of. It is exactly why we are here: because we want to leave the world better than when we found it. Let us celebrate that we arrive in this space heart-led! Let us also celebrate the process of unpacking our motivation to serve in order to ensure that the communities we work with are always at the center of the work. In other words, we work on checking our own egos at the door and prioritize the skills, expertise, and stories of those we are serving. To do so without harm requires introspection, a commitment to learning, and the ability to implement what we learn. In this post, you will find that we lean on our thought leaders. There are many incredible people who can educate you about this subject far better than I can. We offer this to you with vulnerability, humility, and with deep respect for the people who are teaching us. Unpacking Your Motivation to be a Grant Writer: Calling Out White Saviorism Although my intentions were good when I volunteered in Nepal, the ripple effects of my actions as a volunteer had real, potentially harmful, consequences. White saviorism is one of many mindsets that can show up when reflecting on our inner motivations to be grant writers. We decided to write about white saviorism specifically because Meredith and I identify as white, so we have experience unpacking our own white savior complex. Trudi Lebron and Louiza “Weeze” Doran host a podcast called That’s Not How That Works where they explore how diversity, inclusion, and equity show up (or do not) in personal and professional communities. Through their podcast, they shared white saviorism as “the condition where white people go in... to communities, into situations, into places, where they are trying to ‘do good’... and they center themselves in it.” [Episode 87 - “White Saviorism: Final Answer”] We are also calling out white saviorism specifically because it can appear when people, regardless of how they identify, operate from the white-centered perspective or a white-leaning perspective. As Trudi and Weeze point out, this happens because that is what has been normalized. White saviorism comes into play when: “The person who is coming to do the saving believes this community needs, without actually having talked to the community, asked the community, been informed by the community, and is always rooted in ego, and pride, and… how it will benefit that Person.” [Episode 87 - “White Saviorism: Final Answer”] We will start by unpacking our internal motivations through reflection.\nWe subscribe to adrienne maree brown’s philosophy of emergent strategy. Emergent strategy is how we intentionally change in ways that grow our capacity to embody the just and liberated worlds we long for. Growing this capacity can happen through self and/or group reflection. P.S. Did you know this information and a fabulous chapter on Human-Centered Design is in our new book? If you want your own copy, you can grab it at the link below. Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now DEI Resources Whether we are freelance grant writers or employees in the nonprofit sector, having diversity, equity \u0026 inclusion (DEI) resources is critical. Below we outline some of the DEI resources that have been helpful to us. Start with Self Reflection A baseline question could be, does my motivation to “do good” come from a place of wanting to save a community from the pain or problem they are experiencing? The answer to that question might require unpacking the motivations with more specificity. For example: How does my motivation to “do good” interfere with my ability to help receive funding for the community I am working with? What are my current beliefs about this problem, and how do those beliefs impact my ability to listen and learn from the community? How does the fact that I need to make a living by writing this grant impact how I show up for the work? How does my need to share my knowledge impact my work? We have pulled some other questions specific to the grant writing space that we believe are powerful for introspection from Dr. Zosha Stuckey, a professor at Towson University in Baltimore and creator of the G.I.V.E. program (Grantwriting In Valued Environments): “What is my place in the world of philanthropy? What motivates me? How can I become a fuller human being, more actively antiracist, a more engaged citizen, and a better writer? How can I assist without imposing? What is at the essence of writing for versus with?” [Grantwriting Infrastructure for Grassroots Nonprofits]. Here is one more prompt for you as you journal your thoughts. Nikkita Oliver, organizer, educator, lawyer, and poet invites us to ask: How do we acknowledge our multiple identities, both the ones we claim and the ones that have been put onto us? We believe strongly in vulnerability, so I will share my own self-reflection. Because I was pursuing a master’s degree, I had done a ton of research to ensure that my partner and I would not be voluntourists when we selected the organizations to work for in Nepal, and later in India. I met with the Executive Director of the fiscal sponsor and felt confident that we were providing needed work to the communities in Nepal. We were devastated when we found out that by helping to rebuild a school that was destroyed in the earthquake a year prior, we were taking away jobs from local construction workers. While our relationships with the local people in that community will forever hold a piece of my heart, we did not feel it was worth taking jobs away from those who needed them. In hindsight, our time and resources would have probably been better spent giving money directly to the local nonprofit to hire workers to complete that project or by traveling to that local village and spending money to stimulate their local economy. I thought I had worked through my own white savior complex. In action, however, I was very much the definition of a white savior. I was identifying as someone whose need to physically build the school was more important than the actual community need of increased job opportunities and economic growth. This self-reflection, which I processed with my partner, my family, and other volunteers, allowed me to change course. While we decided to stay at the nonprofit, we made an active effort to help in a grant writing capacity—a need that the nonprofit expressed. Knowing that a grant would only serve the nonprofit if the community needed and wanted it, we helped research and write grants for projects that were already in existence or dreamt up by the local nonprofit. Bringing a skillset that the nonprofit did not currently have left room for us to contribute in a meaningful way. It also allowed projects to take precedent over our need to help. The community became the priority and the leader, as it should have been all along. Identifying the motivation behind our desire to be grant writers helps us become more actively aware of the ways in which power and privilege benefit us. Asking these questions ensures that when we are in service to a community. That their needs, stories, and solutions are leading the effort to receive funding. Recognize the Journey Never Ends Self-reflection is simply the beginning. Unpacking the -isms is a lifelong journey as we strive to make the world a more just and equitable place. Here are some ideas for actions you can take right now to help move through this journey: Commit to learning and reflection. We must learn and reflect about ourselves, about society, and about history. It will take effort, research, and intentionality forever. I encourage you to look up podcasts, newsletters, workshops, books, and more that are outside of your comfort zone. When I was 16, my atheist uncle told me to read the bible. While he believes it is a work of fiction, he only knows that he stands in that belief because he actually read it. And when I read it, it allowed me to have robust discussions with people on both sides of the belief spectrum—to empathize and hold compassion for both the atheist and the believer. Here is another example: if you are a yoga lover, I recommend listening to the podcast Yoga Is Dead. Hosted by two Indian-American yoga teachers, they speak at length about who killed yoga by exploring the influence of power, privilege, fair pay, harassment, race, cultural appropriation, and capitalism. It is a radically different experience than stepping into your average yoga class. I love how adrienne maree brown describes her journey: “Another part of walking this path has been the practice of humility—enough humility to learn, to be taught, to have teachers.” We undertake this journey with humility and profound respect for our teachers. Below are some of the people that have taught us through their work: How to be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi Anti-Racism Daily with Nicole Cardoza Trudi Lebron and Louisa “Weeze” Doran’s podcast, That’s Not How That Works Trudi Lebron’s Conference, Show Up and Serve 2021 Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by adrienne maree brown Brené Brown’s podcast, Unlocking Us In a world where so much of our information is just an affirmation of what we already believe, we need to actively strike out and find the information that brings us outside of our normal operating mode! Find Groups to Study and Learn Together Find appropriate people and groups to help you reflect and process. I asked one of our Grant Writing Unicorns, Katie, to read this post and her feedback was spot on. “Dunning and Kruger inform us that we overestimate our ability to self-assess. How does this make us think we are more antiracist than we really are?” Wow. You can see why we are so lucky to have Katie in our community. To address Katie’s point, let us talk about reflecting with others. When I was processing our Nepal experiences, I spoke with my great aunt who identifies as white and is married to a man from Bangladesh. She has worked, lived, and taught all over Southeast Asia. She has spent years unpacking her own -isms by being immersed in these other cultures. She was able to help me process in a way that held me accountable and moved me forward. Our local town actually started an antiracist book club led by a community activist. Maybe yours has too? Find local events or workshops where you can connect with others who also want to understand their own power and privilege. Ask your friends to join you on this journey of learning and reflecting. If you are a part of an organization or professional association, ask if there are groups that you can join. On this topic, it is important for me, as a white woman, to say that white people should not expect our friends or leaders of color to hold space for us or teach us on this journey. In the same regard, heterosexual people cannot expect our LGBTQ+ friends and leaders to teach us about homophobia. This can be applied to ableism, sexism, and more. In the words of Audre Lorde, an American poet, essayist, and autobiographer: “It is not the responsibility of the oppressed to teach the oppressors.” There is a great article in the Washington Post that I encourage you to read entitled, “I’m your black friend, but I won’t educate you about racism. That’s on you.” You Won’t Be Perfect, and That’s Okay Be open to making mistakes and receiving constructive criticism. Like you, we are continuously confronting our own -isms. This chapter is—and could never be—perfect. I am sure we will receive crucial feedback on what we have written that will push us forward in our own journey of unpacking privilege. I am slightly addicted to the magic of vulnerability. I thrive at dinner parties where we open our raw selves up and offer a lesson learned or a hardship experienced. Vulnerability enables a deeper connection to the people, animals, and environment around us. In that spirit, we come to you with our souls exposed and ask you to hold us accountable. As we close, we recognize this may seem daunting and overwhelming. We live in a messy world. What we are offering is an invitation to join us in this work. Together, we can help one another not let the fear of making mistakes paralyze us with inaction. We can also hold one another accountable to increase our capacity “to embody the just and liberated world” (to quote adrienne maree brown) we dream of. Grant Writing Resources If you're interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change. In the Collective, we will help you through Human-Centered Design and other resources so that you can ensure that the community is always the priority in your grant writing endeavors. If you want to talk with us about this blog post or about the Global Grant Writers Collective®, shoot an email to info@senworks.org or DM us on Instagram! Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2021-12-05","description":"Learn how to unpack your motivation, combat white saviorism, and be an anti-racist through a selection of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) resources.","formatted_date":"December 5, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-diversity-equity-inclusion-grant-writing_hu_34fbaab5e3e877c6.jpg","permalink":"/blog/diversity-equity-inclusion-grant-writing/","slug":"diversity-equity-inclusion-grant-writing","summary":"Learn how to unpack your motivation, combat white saviorism, and\nbe an anti-racist through a selection of Diversity,\nEquity and Inclusion (DEI) resources.\n","title":"Diversity, Equity, \u0026 Inclusion as a Grant Writer"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":"Jess Stack, From Teacher to Grant Writing Consultant in 6 Months","content":" A Natural Career Change For a Teacher As an elementary school teacher and mom, Jess was more than familiar with the need for grant funding to be able to carry out important programs. She was often on the backend side of receiving grants and managing the funding appropriately. While Jess was excited about the creativity of the grants and being part of the process, she wasn’t in the role of grant writer. While at home during the height of the pandemic, Jess did some serious soul searching. “I wondered if I should come back to the classroom or figure out a way to homeschool my kids. I fell into this wonderful community after I saw one of your great videos on YouTube. And I said, ‘Hey, I can do that’,” Jess said. Making the transition from teaching to grant writing was very logical for Jess. She was able to take her educator-like pragmatic, solutions-oriented approach to her grant writing work. “As grant writers, we're trying to find the perfect match for the need. It's a wonderful way of matchmaking and educators are very used to that,” Jess said. Perks of Becoming a Grant Writing Consultant Working as a grant writing freelancer allows Jess the freedom to carry out her days as she pleases. From the flexibility of choosing who to work for, what projects to work on, and when to work on them, Jess is able to cohesively integrate her entire schedule. Instead of clocking in to work everyday and engaging in a regimented schedule, Jess is thriving with her newfound adaptability. “It really has transformed my life because it enables me to take my different interests, put them all together, and make these passions come to life. My daily work has become so organic and natural. I don’t need to push myself or motivate myself to get up anymore,” Jess said. “I’m excited to wake up in the morning!” In addition to writing grants, Jess has also had the opportunity to serve on a grant review panel for a local arts organization. The experience helped clarify her writing and prompted her to be more assessment and rubric driven to ensure she’s clearly answering the grant application questions. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Developing a Program \u0026 Winning a $300,000 Grant Jess has had many small and big successes warranting celebration along the way, including winning a highly competitive $300,000 federal grant only months after becoming a grant writing unicorn. The client needed a kitchen renovation, but Jess went a step further to leverage more ideas and obstacles to create an innovative solution - a solution that would attract more funding opportunities and serve the community more robustly. As a self-proclaimed foodie, Jess pitched a farm to table concept with a culinary weekend where local chefs are invited to look, eat, drink, and enjoy the land. This new take on the client’s needs would fund a kitchen, garden, and necessary staff. “It wasn't just that we were going to renovate this kitchen, but that we are going to make this a program that brings our community together in a time when togetherness is really needed. Food really matters,” said Jess. “The participant gets to take home not only the program, ideas, and knowledge, but also an actual seed that they can plant in their own home gardens. It's really evolved and I’m so proud of this whole program.” Learn Grant Writing Review Jess is proud of the accomplishment of founding and growing a legitimate business within six months of joining the Global Grant Writers Collective®. “Meredith said you can just hit the ground running and you really can,” Jess said. “I totally binge-watched all of the content and started informational interviews right away with schools that I was connected with. Through the interview process you teach, I was able to transform those relationships into paying clients.” Jess has also greatly appreciated how being part of the Collective has helped her to reframe limiting beliefs. She now sees obstacles as creative opportunities to seek new collaborators and ways of thinking. “When we think outside of the box we can create so much value in relationships and in actual dollar amounts. The Collective hits the nail in so many different ways with this opening up of possibilities to capture what is needed for these organizations,” Jess said. With her background in education, Jess was accustomed to being told how much her work is worth and not setting her own value. Completing the program has helped Jess immensely with recognizing the value of her work (more than she thought initially!). “You can read all these books about the technical skills of grant writing and do all these different professional development courses, but truly that inner growth of personal development is so key. It helps you to feel good, make things happen, get the ball rolling. The Collective is so holistic in that sense where you are developing this grant writing unicorn from the inside out,” Jess said. “The community is really awesome and solid. It's been a great way to have the sense of coworkers: people who have very similar interests and who want to do good in the world. We can do it together. It's just very inspiring,” Jess said. Thank you, Jess, for bringing so much magic and light into this world—we can’t wait to see it spread in your grant writing journey! If you’d like to become a grant writing unicorn, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Curious if grant writing might be a career for you? DM us on Instagram. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2021-11-20","description":"For Jess Stack, the transition from teaching to grant writing was extremely intuitive. A mere six months into her grant writing journey, Jess has built a grant writing business, has five clients, and won a $300,000 grant! Best of all, Jess’s schedule is no longer regimented out, but more fully integrated with her passions.","formatted_date":"November 20, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/jess-stack-teacher-grant-writer_hu_3c93ce6bdc6118c.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/teacher-to-grant-writer/","slug":"teacher-to-grant-writer","summary":"A mere six months into her grant writing journey, Jess has built a\ngrant writing business, has five clients, and won a $300,000 grant!\n","title":"Teacher to Grant Writing Consultant in 6 Months"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Looking for a Job After College Sarah was first introduced to grant writing in college when she switched to a Professional Communication major and a Professional Technical Writing minor. Through a college grant writing course coupled with her dad’s prompting to pursue grant writing, Sarah became more curious about the field. “I wanted to do something a little bit different and to work with nonprofits,” Sarah said. “When I found the [Grant Writing Unicorn] Collective, I thought it would be a great way to advance my education. I knew it was a great skill to have as someone involved in nonprofits. And, I ended up loving it.\" As Sarah considered how to go after a grant writing career, she liked the idea of gaining additional professional grant writing experience. She landed a local part-time grant writing job and grew her freelance grant writing business. She propelled her career forward, despite having no prior grant writing experience through her training taught in the Collective. Grant Writing = Perfect Communications Degree Career For Sarah, grant writing is the perfect blend of technical and creative writing. Even better is that grant writing allows her to combine her love for marketing and journalism with the overarching goal of helping others. Other perks include living anywhere she wants as she works remotely and the freedom to change her lifestyle and routines at her discretion. From working part-time at her local Salvation Army to freelancing for a botanical garden nonprofit and a nonprofit journalism organization, Sarah has deeply appreciated the challenge and excitement of learning about different fields. It has definitely proven to be a great option for those looking for jobs with a communications degree. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Becoming a Grant Writing Consultant Due to the divergence from the typical young college graduate experience and not having much experience initially, Sarah has experienced her fair share of imposter syndrome. Most of her peers are pursuing full-time jobs as she builds a grant writing business. Pushing through imposter syndrome has become a bit easier since Sarah first started her grant writing journey. Having the Collective to rely on as a support system has been essential in her increased confidence. While getting her first client was filled with shaky nerves and buckets of second-guessing, Sarah soon had her second client lined up, then another, and has continued to build upon that momentum. Sarah got her first client through word of mouth, much to her pleasant surprise. Her second client came from an informational interview (the process we teach in the Collective!), and the third client was developed through LinkedIn. For Sarah, reaching out to people, through LinkedIn and email, has been an amazing way of finding clients. Thus far, Sarah has had 15-20 informational interviews in the process of building up her client base. “I've learned something from each of them and I think it's good to talk to people. I know that later on down the road they could lead to something. They could pass the word onto someone else or something like that. So, I love informational interviews,” Sarah said. (If you're wondering what she means by informational interviews, watch this free training where we break down how it helps you land opportunity after opportunity.) Writing and Winning a $100,000 Grant Sarah is most proud of the steady, consistent progress she’s made in her grant writing journey. It has proven to be a great career for her communications degree. She also celebrated a huge win as a $100,000 grant she wrote was awarded to one of her clients! “The whole thing has been an accomplishment. I just graduated with my undergraduate degree in communications and I was able to start a business like this. It's slowly growing—nothing crazy can happen overnight,” Sarah said. “Putting myself out of my comfort zone and doing those informational interviews when they can be kind of tricky has led to great things. Doing those also helps with imposter syndrome and confidence.” Her Learn Grant Writing Review? While Sarah is grateful for her initial exposure to grant writing through her college grant writing course, the grant writing class she has taken with Learn Grant Writing has provided her with a more comprehensive exposure to the technical and business aspects of grant writing. “I've learned so much more through the Unicorn Collective with all the topics that you cover like how to find clients, how to write a grant, and doing a budget. It has been so useful, especially as a freelance grant writer. If I run into something that I can't solve, I can go to the Collective and get those questions answered. I also learn from everyone else too. The return on investment is so big. It's all one learning experience that never ends really,” Sarah said. We love the bravery Sarah has cultivated throughout her grant writing journey and can’t wait to see where her business takes her next! “I am so happy I did it and my life has changed so much in the past year too. I don't know where I would be if I didn't learn grant writing through the Collective,” Sarah said. If you’d like to become a grant writing unicorn, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Curious if grant writing might be a career for you? DM us on Instagram. ","date":"2021-11-10","description":"After graduating with her communications degree and pursuing a marketing internship, Sarah realized she wanted to work with nonprofits. She wanted to combine her love for marketing and journalism into a way that could benefit and help others, while also working remotely. She found freelance grant writing to be exactly that!","formatted_date":"November 10, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-sarah-mueller_hu_57816927055041ab.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/sarah-mueller-grant-writer/","slug":"sarah-mueller-grant-writer","summary":"Sarah wanted to combine her love for marketing and journalism into a way that could benefit and help others, while also working remotely.","title":"Communications Graduate Becomes Grant Writer"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":"Why Start a Side Hustle","content":" Introduction At Learn Grant Writing, we love working for ourselves and living the entrepreneurial lifestyle, but sometimes quitting your full-time job cold turkey is a bit more of a risk than is feasible or practical. What can folks do who are not in a position to quit their full-time job, but do want to work for themselves or add an income stream? Drum roll please… Enter: the side hustle. Why Side Hustling is a Smart Move We are 100% convinced that side hustling and freelancing are amazing skill sets to have. Essentially, a side hustle is an additional job that a person takes in addition to their primary job. A lot of people have side hustles to supplement their primary income, but there are other reasons too such as being plain ol’ passionate about that work or wanting to continue learning or building up a financial safety net. With a side hustle you can earn money and even give yourself a raise without quitting your full-time job. Is it a stretch to say that 2020 reminded us just how little control we have over the world around us? Knowing how to successfully operate a side hustle is a critical skill we want you to acquire. We believe everyone should have a side hustle—especially since there are so many successful side hustles from home you can do. Here’s why in a nutshell: continuing education, you’ll know how to make money, and you can adjust your side hustle to reach your lifestyle goals. Moreover, at some point in your life you might discover that you are in a place where you absolutely need something to make ends meet. A side hustle can help you get there. This blog post will inform (and hopefully convince) you why starting a side hustle is a killer strategic move. Side Hustles From Home Every person—yes, we’re looking at you, cupcake!—has unique talents and skills to offer the world. Brainstorm some side hustle ideas that you can do from your home. This article in Entrepreneur.com lists 50 different side hustle ideas to help you get started thinking creatively about your side gig. Otherwise, think about what you are naturally gifted at. What do you want to learn more about? There is undoubtedly an online course for that. We live in the world of the internet these days. Our grandparents have email addresses and social media accounts and there is a YouTube channel to learn anything you desire. Take us for example. We teach grant writing online. We do it in a fun, practical way because we learned the craft the hard way and the hard way can be soul sucking. Meredith spent years honing her grant writing skills, i.e. making a million mistakes, investing in expensive sub par grant writing training, and feeling stressed. After that whirlwind, she, alongside co-founder Alex, decided to save the rest of us from all that heartache with the Global Grant Writers Collective®. (And aren’t you so grateful?!). There are hundreds of other online courses designed to teach you more about the side hustle you want. We pinky promise that dedicating three months to learn or cultivate a skill is well worth the investment into yourself. Our money bets that you’ll even have fun! A side hustle can act like continuing education credits, if you will. We mentioned that we want you to never stop learning or growing. Well, a side hustle can make that possible for you. Regardless of what your specific side gig is, you’ll learn more about that particular field along with communication, marketing, and other business development skills. Bonus: when you’re side hustling from home, there are often few start-up costs associated. That’s definitely true for grant writing, at least. In today’s world, many times you only need a laptop, internet connection, and a client willing to pay for your service or product. If you can invest in yourself in a worthwhile way, make money, and get going for just a little bit of money, why wouldn’t you start a side hustle? Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Side Hustles to Make Money Side hustles are great for making you a little extra cash. They can be the source of fun money, a fall back, or serve as the good, humble beginnings of a career launch. For example, what if the economy tanks, there are major layoffs at your place of employment, or you suddenly need to make money on your own (for whatever reason)? Again, if 2020 revealed anything to us, it’s that we can’t predict the future with accuracy. Relying on someone else to keep our best interest and our family’s best interest in mind isn’t always the safest or smartest course of action. Knowing how to make money—good money—isn’t rocket science, but it does require a certain degree of investment and commitment to learning. Starting a side hustle while you still have the stability of a steady income is a great way to learn how to make money. The pressure is off in this scenario and if you’d like, you can think of your side hustle as practice. The project management, financial know-how, communication prowess, and business acumen you cultivate through your side hustle are transferable and applicable skills you can take anywhere. This means if you decide your side hustle needs to be tabled for a season or two in your life, you can feel free to set it aside with the confidence that your time was not wasted in the slightest. Lucrative Side Hustle Some side gigs are more lucrative than others. Selling your needle art projects might not have as high of a return on investment (ROI) as certain writing niches. You’d likely be interested to learn that freelance grant writing is one of the highest paying freelance writing jobs. It can be a very lucrative side hustle if that’s what you’re after. It is within reason for a grant writer to earn $5,000 a month and easily grow that to 5-figures monthly. Keep in mind this is our sensible, conservative perspective. The average salary for a grant writer is $69,000. That average means there are people making less and people making more than $69,000 a year. But, really, the sky's the limit! We have Unicorns in the Collective making $150,000 a year with benefits! For specific rates on what grant writing consultants charge, check out our free training and take a screenshot of the pay rates slide. Our course is all about turning you into a grant writing unicorn and setting you up for success whether you want grant writing to be a side hustle, a full-time business, or help you land a salaried position. In our course, our goal is to teach students how to earn the cost of our course back through grant writing projects within the first six months. After that, it’s gravy. Profit for you. Depending on what your goal is, through your side hustle you can pay off debt, save for your ideal dream lifestyle, set yourself up to launch a new career, or just have a bit of extra fun money. Check out these success stories for more about how a grant writing side hustle has impacted real people. Side Hustle Jobs Sometimes, starting a side hustle is a necessity. In an article in Forbes magazine, results from a study from GoBankingRates.com are highlighted and reveal that more than half of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings, at a time when the average indebted household owes more than $16,000 on credit cards. That’s a bit bleak, huh? What can a person do? Perhaps the best investment is a side hustle.\nAuthor and entrepreneur Chris Guillebeau believes side hustles could be the best answer. He has been studying the concept of side hustles for years as a result. After completing numerous case studies, Guillebeau has found that nearly anyone can take an idea and make it profitable if they’re thoughtful, strategic, and realistic enough. He wrote a book all about the process he developed: Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days. For Guillebeau, the perks of a side hustle are substantial.\n“A side hustle is more than just another stream of income, it’s also the new job security. When you receive paychecks from different sources, it allows you to take more chances in your regular career. More income means more options. More options equals freedom. You don’t need entrepreneurial experience to launch a profitable side hustle. You don’t have to have an MBA, or know how to code, or be an expert marketer. You don’t need employees or investors, ” Guillebeau said. As Guillebeau mentioned, with multiple income streams, you’re able to take more chances in your regular career. A side hustle can operate as a sort of confidence booster. You might be willing to take more risks than you ever thought possible. That is certainly appealing. What sorts of risks would you take if you knew you had a little extra cash in your pocket? Isn’t it so fun to dream?! Side Hustles: The New Reality Again, a side hustle may just be your best investment ever and, if we’re being honest, side hustles are kind of the way of the world nowadays. Most people don’t want to be entrepreneurs, they just want (or need) more money. In a CBC article, “'The millennial side hustle,' not stable job, is the new reality for university grads”. This trend is particularly interesting and a bit concerning if we’re being honest. Essentially, this article sheds light on how recent graduates are discovering that having a post-secondary education is no longer a guarantee of stable employment. So, recent grads are turning to side hustles to make things work. This “millennial side hustle” or “gig economy” means no steady job and no safety net. That is clearly not a sustainable long term solution. Another tough piece of this complex issue is that so many employers want to hire an individual with field experience not just a degree. How does a recent grad gain experience when seemingly no one is willing to hire them? Round and round we go. If you are in the position that so many recent grads are in you could strategically leverage a side hustle into a more steady position whether you land a salaried position (with your freelance experience!) or go into consultancy full-time. Point blank: we don’t want you to be without a safety net nor do we want you to invest tens of thousands of dollars into a career that may not guarantee you stable employment. We are pro side hustles that move the needle on your long term goals and give you freedom to build a life you love. Final Takeaway Side hustles make sense for a lot of different reasons. You can do them from home, they teach you how to make money so you aren’t dependent on any one employer, they can propel you toward a lucrative income, and they grant you more freedom in your regular 9-5 career. When you’re strategic with your side hustle whether due to necessity or your intrinsic motivation, you have the opportunity to make steps toward your dream lifestyle. Folks who start a side hustle may choose to keep it as a side hustle, start a business, or gain experience to switch careers. Ultimately, what do you want your lifestyle to look like? Can a side hustle bolster your vision? We said this once already, but you are chock full of talent and skills that are unique to you. A side gig could be the perfect place to explore what you might offer. Please share your gifts with the world! If you’re interested in developing a grant writing side hustle, you can take online classes to get started in the right direction and save tons of energy, time, and money in the long run. Here’s a blog post with our top recommendations for online grant writing classes. Interested in pursuing a side-hustle? Come say hi and chat with us on Instagram. Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now ","date":"2021-11-04","description":"At Learn Grant Writing, we love working for ourselves and living the entrepreneurial lifestyle, but sometimes quitting your full-time job cold turkey is a bit more of a risk than is feasible or practical.","formatted_date":"November 4, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-why-start-a-side-hustle_hu_1bb54c7d5a54f8ba.jpg","permalink":"/blog/why-start-a-side-hustle/","slug":"why-start-a-side-hustle","summary":"What can folks do who are not in a position to quit their full-time job,\nbut do want to work for themselves or add an income stream? Drum roll\nplease… Enter: the side hustle.\n","title":"Why Start a Side Hustle Grant Writing?"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Three Possible Career Paths Through Grant Writing Training Why Students Choose to Join the Collective We have students join our Collective for many different reasons. Each reason is as different as each person—how beautiful is it that we are all so unique! Recently, three of our students have stepped into perfectly customized-for-them career paths. Coupled with their persistence, the skills they learned from our course helped make their goals and dreams become a reality. This blog post highlights their unique student experiences and shows you three different career paths you can take when armed with the tried and true Grant Writing Unicorn Method. Specifically, we’re celebrating Celia who landed a salaried job, Barbara who is a nonprofit changemaker extraordinaire, and Joanna who is a consultant and is capitalizing on her fundraising expertise. Again, these are only three different career paths that high quality grant writing training can offer. Specifically, we are convinced that first becoming a freelance grant writer will give you all the tools you need to make your dreams a reality. Here’s a quick video overview showing you exactly what we mean. As you read through this post, think about what you want in a career. Let these three incredible women inspire your path! Celia: Eight Months From Zero to Grant Writing Unicorn In the course of eight months Celia Mendez went from having never written a grant to several small paid freelancing gigs, that ultimately led to a full-time salaried position! Celia left the corporate world some time ago to raise her family and was looking to re-enter the workforce, but she wanted to explore a career change. She had precise parameters when selecting a new career. These included great pay, flexible hours, flexible location, and she wanted to contribute to something meaningful for her personally. Lastly, Celia looked for something that wouldn't take years to learn before making an income. Grant writing checked all of those boxes! Celia has a background in graphic design and has found that skill particularly helpful when building out prospectus' for clients (part of our funding strategy process!). Having Meredith and Alex as mentors have increased her confidence as she was starting out as a grant writer. Now, eight months later, Celia feels she really can say, \"I am a grant writer!\" A huge part of learning grant writing and finding success for Celia was found in the community aspect of the Collective. “The key takeaway from the Collective that I have learned is that you can learn stuff by yourself, but you learn exponentially quicker and it's a whole lot more fun when you do it with a group of people who share your interests and are like-minded,” said Celia. And, if 2020 taught us anything, it’s that staying connected with others matters significantly. “I meet a lot of really nice people too, and it keeps you involved in your community. And I think as you get older, that's really important. You don't want to get too isolated. You want to stay involved and engaged in life. And this is really a great way to do it. So, I think it's a career that you could do at any age,” said Celia. We were so excited to hear when Celia landed a full-time salaried position with a grant writing consulting firm! Her growth has been incredible, and we can't wait to see where her grant writing journey continues to take her. How Healthy Is Your Consulting Business? Take our 4 minute consulting business test to quickly diagnose your sticking points and get you moving, with more joy and ease.\nTake The Test Barbara: Nonprofit Changemaker Extraordinaire Barbara is a community activist in rural North Carolina who operates a community outreach and wellness center nonprofit. She also has a passion for helping others create and organize their nonprofits. Lastly, Barbara assists nonprofits in finding funding and grant writing as a freelance grant writer. Of those three roles, her primary focus is developing her nonprofit. Barbara was first interested in learning more about grant writing to better seek funding for her nonprofit. She wanted to learn grant writing to continue developing her business and nonprofit management skills. Barbara’s work and passion includes assisting people who are leaving incarceration. She works to give them a voice, help with reentry efforts, and coordinate relevant resources. Working for a nonprofit, it can be difficult to want to help and not have adequate resources to do so. Through her education from the course and working knowledge of her region, Barbara is most proud to have entered into conversations with a local community college interested in providing possible funding and seed funding to support her nonprofit. We know that securing even a small amount of funding can be game-changing for a nonprofit, not to mention that it boosts a grant writer’s confidence. We are here to celebrate that! Barbara has thrived in the Collective because of the hands-on support and community with people from different backgrounds starting at different places in their grant writing journey. “It goes a long way for myself and others in the field to have others who kind of understand what you're going through and understand the highs and lows,” said Barbara. Barbara’s biggest piece of advice for those interested in joining or having just joined the Collective is to be active. “Make sure you get in the community group and be active. Just joining and just being there is not enough in order to get something out of it. You get out what you put in. You have the resources, you have the community; so you have to utilize it,” said Barbara. We’re so excited for you, Barabara! We can’t wait to keep cheering you on.\nJoanna: Adding Grant Writing to her Consulting Portfolio Joanna has extensive experience as a fundraiser for internationally and nationally based nonprofits. She’s always liked to write and with her self-described “analytical mind”, she was naturally drawn to learning more about grant writing. Grant writing was a perfect additional service to offer her clients. “I wanted to learn a new skill and apply my understanding of various contexts of social needs to help organizations secure funding. So, really to develop a new skill set within fundraising and to continue to expand the ways that I can support organizations,” said Joanna. Another major appeal to grant writing consultant work included the flexible work environment. For someone who thrives in an independent, autonomous setting, this was perfect for Joanna. She’d been working full-time for her entire career when the COVID-19 pandemic caused a shift in her outlook on life. “I was able to really consider what it is that I wanted from my career and fulfill sort of a higher purpose that I have of how I can use my consulting business as a jumping off point to support other smaller projects,” said Joanna. Through her newfound knowledge of grant writing, Joanna was able to support a friend of hers working with individuals with disabilities in Guatemala. She helped her friend’s organization secure a small micro-grant from the United States. Joanna served as the organization’s representative in the United States to vouch for their project. Joanna has also helped to secure $60,000 for another Guatemalan organization. With this funding, the Guatemalan organization can continue to provide education to Maya indigenous girls. With her unique position and skill set, Joanna bridges the gap between an important need in Guatemala and available dollars in the United States. Joanna’s biggest challenge in learning grant writing was pushing through imposter syndrome. The Collective helped Joanna navigate many logistical pieces of grant writing such as setting up a website and investing in important initial costs. The most valuable step Joanna learned about confronting and overcoming imposter syndrome is that, “to get over imposter syndrome, you just have to go for it. You just have to start and, and in time, you'll see like, ‘Oh, I really can actually do this,” said Joanna. Imposter syndrome is something we talk about often at Learn Grant Writing. Here’s a video of our top seven tips to overcome it. We all encounter it at some point (yes, even the writers and editors behind this very blog post!). Our hope is that by being honest about our challenges with imposter syndrome with members, we can work together to push through it. That is, after all, the Unicorn Way: the opportunity before us seems scary, yet we still say yes. And, you know what? We are all better for it. Career Options for Grant Writers Celia, Barbara, and Joanna are real people and offer just three examples of the world of opportunities that opens up when you bet on yourself. For each individual, they used grant writing to build upon the natural skill sets they already had acquired to continue helping others. They’ve created lives they proudly take ownership of and have surrounded themselves with a stellar community of cheerleaders who’ll offer honest feedback. The only question remaining now is what do you wish to achieve? How can grant writing fit into your life? How could it change your life to bring you closer to your goals? With honed in grant writing skills, your career options are endless. Among other paths, you can land a salaried position, work as a grant writing consultant combining other technical skills such as fundraising, graphic design, and relationship building, or help nonprofits develop their strategic fundraising plan. No matter what your end goals are, we’re here to support you.\nGrant Writing Resources Serious about becoming a grant writer? Learn about how to build a career in grant writing in our 1-hour free training. If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template ","date":"2021-10-30","description":"Here are three success stories of how certified grant writers have designed their dream career paths. Learn how they did it and what advice they have for you.","formatted_date":"October 30, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/customer-story-three-possible-career-paths_hu_79e3a8a670c1d8cd.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/three-possible-career-paths/","slug":"three-possible-career-paths","summary":"We’re celebrating Celia who landed a salaried job, Barbara who is a nonprofit changemaker extraordinaire,\nand Joanna who is a consultant and is capitalizing on her fundraising expertise!\n","title":"Three Possible Career Paths Through Grant Writing Training"},{"author":"Meredith Noble and Alex Lustig","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble-and-alex-lustig_hu_122ef3eabff14743.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Project Management For Nonprofits and Grant Writers Grant writers that thrive are the ones that are excellent project managers. Getting started with a new grant application or managing clients as a freelance grant writer, even as an experienced grant writer, can be overwhelming. Honing your project management skills can decrease stress and increase your productivity. So how can you use project management in your nonprofit or as a freelance grant writer? In this post, we share our top project management tips for kicking off a new grant pursuit! It’s All in the Prep Here’s the thing… good meetings are really all about good preparation. When you, as the lead grant writer, are ready to go, everyone else can feel your confidence and the project will be off to a solid start. Read the funding guidelines and prep a narrative skeleton: To prepare for the kick-off meeting, always read the funding guidelines so that you are an expert on what the grant application requires. After you’ve read the funding guidelines, we suggest you create a narrative skeleton using them as a guide. As you create this narrative skeleton and review the funding guidelines, you will inevitably have questions, which we encourage you to type directly into the meeting agenda (which we will talk about below). A full description of how we create the narrative skeleton is described in our free Grant Writing Course here. Create a checklist of requirements: In our checklist, we list all of the required application materials, who is responsible for each piece and the deadline by which each piece needs to be completed. For instance, we might assign the ask and collection of letters of support to the leader of the organization. It’s important that this person knows that they are responsible for this aspect and by when they are expected to have completed the task. Draft an initial schedule: We feel it’s important for the team members to see a complete timeline in this initial meeting so we draft an initial schedule that can change based off of the meeting discussion. In our grant writing training program - The Global Grant Writers Collective® – students receive a grant schedule template that allows the grant writer to create a timeline with ease. Design the meeting: This is where strong project management skills will set you apart. Before the meeting, figure out who should be there. It’s important that the right people are in the room from the very beginning. You will also need to draft the actual meeting agenda. You can access our kick-off meeting agenda template here. We use google docs so that we can take notes directly into the agenda and keep one document for all information discussed in relation to this particular grant opportunity (instead of multiple documents with separate agendas and notes). We always include the links to the narrative skeleton, draft schedule and checklist so that they are easily accessible for anyone on the team. We also include the questions that we have for the team members. When we are finished with the agenda, we ideally send it to the group 2-3 days in advance of the meeting. This gives our team members a chance to mentally prepare for the meeting. Ideally, they will also look at the questions and be prepared to answer them. The entire process of reading the funding guidelines, creating a narrative skeleton and designing the meeting generally takes us 2-3 hours. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Host Kick-Off Meeting Figure out how your team wants to gather for this initial kick-off meeting. For us, because of COVID and because our team members are generally located in different locations, we use Zoom or Google Meet video conferencing. Despite our geographic differences, we have fun and productive meetings. We attribute this to the ability to interact via video, as well as display the agenda (and other documents) for everyone to see and follow as we progress through the meeting. Below is a breakdown of how we run kick-off meetings.\nTake 5 minutes to get to know each other You will be working together for a significant chunk of time on a project that is meaningful to all of you! Especially if you are a contract grant writer or new to the team, or if you have new members on the team, it’s important for everyone to get to know each other. Confirm project scope and what planning has been done If you are a contract grant writer and unfamiliar with the community or team, start the conversation with a discussion on the background of the proposed project. What has been done in this area before? Why is this project needed? Who is the team that will be implementing this project? This 10-minute discussion can help answer some of your questions and identify the gaps that still need to be addressed. If you are one of the project implementers or you’ve worked with this team before, you may not need as much background on the project scope. However, even if you are familiar with the team or project, make sure all of your team members understand the project scope and what planning has been done before so that you all have a solid foundation to move forward from. Get general questions answered Since you’ve prepped so well, you already know what questions you need answers for! This is a great time in your meeting to start asking those questions. We often discover critical details that are important for application requirements and for persuasive writing later. Provide a birds eye view of grant forms and attachments Most funding guidelines provide a list of grant forms they require you to submit. We use the checklist mentioned above to keep track of the requirements and take a stab at who is responsible for each requirement. During the meeting we confirm if this is a good split of responsibilities. If you don’t want to develop a detailed checklist for the initial meeting, it’s important to at least outline a general overview of responsibilities like we have on the agenda template. It’s also super helpful to have the deadlines on this checklist and to confirm that the deadlines are ok with the person responsible. We worked with an organization where the main team member would get so overwhelmed by the various moving pieces of the grant. Having this checklist with his tasks and his deadlines helped him to navigate the overwhelm and understand that while he was responsible for many tasks, it wasn’t all due at once. Review the grant narrative “skeleton” and identify action items Preparing a narrative skeleton before hosting a kick-off meeting often knocks loose better information to ask for as you prepare to write. We link the narrative skeleton in our agenda so that we can all click on the link and view it together. If you are on a video call, you can share this document as well, which helps all team members see exactly what section you are referring to when asking your question. This is an important step. It takes some critical thinking to determine who will do what and when. A lot of times, certain information like a cost estimate or detailed scope description, can hold up preparing other parts of the application. Doing a narrative skeleton right away will help you as the grant writer (and project manager!) have a handle on how all of the moving pieces will come together. Review the schedule and make necessary adjustments Next we review that rough schedule we created prior to the meeting. During the call we often shift things considerably based on when team members were traveling, when the Board, Council or other governing body meets, and other logistical considerations. Another helpful hint… plan to submit the grant before the actual grant deadline. For example, last year we had a grant due on January 9th but our deadline was December 20th so that we weren’t pressured during the holidays. It also provides for wiggle room in case of emergency. As another example, one of our grant writers went to submit on the Friday before the deadline and grants.gov was having technical difficulties and wouldn’t let her push submit. Lucikly, we were able to contact grants.gov and submit the grant the following Monday (the actual deadline!). P.S. We won the grant, so we are pretty grateful we gave ourselves some room on the deadline for submission! Determine next meeting time and summarize action items We then end the meeting by picking a time/date to meet weekly to go over progress, ask questions and identify next steps. We also end each meeting summarizing the action items between now and the next meeting. It’s also helpful to send notes or a recap email of action steps if that would be a welcomed support to your team. What’s next? Now that you’ve led a rockin’ kick off meeting, you are well on your way to writing a winning grant. We dive into more details on the grant writing process in our free grant writing course. In our full grant writing course - The Global Grant Writers Collective® - we help you further hone your project management skills - whether you are writing grants within your organization or you are a grant writing consultant. We believe in processes so much that we provide a project management excel template to upload into the project management software, Asana, at each stage of the grant writing and research process. Asana is a great option if you are looking for a project management software. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Grant Writing = A Great Remote Project Management Job Grant writing can be a great option for those looking to be a project management freelancer. It is also a great career option for those looking for project management non profit jobs. While there (obviously) writing the grant takes excellent writing skills, managing the grant opportunity is a large part of the grant writing process. Project managers who are looking for a variety of meaningful projects to work on could find grant writing a fulfilling career option. And what’s better than a single grant writer? A team of grant writers! Often, one person loves the project management aspects, while others love the writing or research aspects. In the Global Grant Writers Collective®, grant writers will partner with other grant writers based off of their skills and expertise to provide rockin’ grant proposals for organizations all over the world. If you’re interested in building a career in grant writing, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. You can also dive deeper in processes for effective grant writing in our free grant writing course. Find your confidence to write winning grants with our step by step approach. Check out our free grant writing course here. How to Make a Career Change and Become a Grant Writer If you are wondering about how to make a career change or how to become a grant writer, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Free Grant Budget Template If preparing a grant budget scares you, those days are about to be over! Download the free grant budget template below and take our free grant writing class to learn how to use it.\nFree Template ","date":"2021-10-25","description":"The grant writers that thrive are the ones that are excellent project managers. A new grant application can be overwhelming!  In this post, we share our top project management tips for kicking off a new grant pursuit!","formatted_date":"October 25, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-project-management-for-nonprofits-and-grant-writers-1400w_hu_7019168e56ca13c4.jpg","permalink":"/blog/project-management-for-nonprofits-and-grant-writers/","slug":"project-management-for-nonprofits-and-grant-writers","summary":"So how can you use project management in your nonprofit or as a\nfreelance grant writer? In this post, we share our top project\nmanagement tips for kicking off a new grant pursuit!\n","title":"Project Management For Nonprofits and Grant Writers"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Learning Grant Writing as a Beginner Alexis Swenson first learned about grant writing while working as a Development Coordinator for a nonprofit organization. Her boss walked into her office one day and asked if she wanted to learn. Alexis knew nothing about grant writing—only that it was likely a great skill to learn. Her answer was an easy yes. “It was an incredible opportunity. With the help of a seasoned grant writer from another organization, we won the first grant I ever worked on. I pretty much took over all grant writing for the remaining 2 ½ years I worked there,” said Alexis. As Alexis considered what she wanted her life to look like as her and her husband planned to grow their family, she decided to launch her own business and pursue that as her primary work. She wanted a flexible schedule, the ability to work from home, to make decent money, and work that could be scaled part-time to full-time and vice versa depending on the season. She founded Goods of a Soul and began offering copywriting, ghost writing, and grant writing services. The first six months of starting out was slow and she realized there was room for improvement in her grant writing skills. “I first bought Meredith’s book, then signed up for the course, and almost immediately joined the team to write grants and blog posts for Learn Grant Writing. I’ve learned a ton about grant writing from saying yes to each of those adventures,” said Alexis. Grant Writing Community Increased Confidence For Alexis, being involved with a community of like-minded individuals has been a huge confidence booster in more ways than one. Not to mention, she finally feels like she has co-workers again! Not having co-workers and working from home alone was a difficult adjustment when she first started her business. “Every single one of my clients has been a referral, which I really like. First, referrals were coming from my nonprofit network. Since joining the Global Grant Writers Collective®, I’ve received several referrals through the community—whether taking over contracts for a fellow Unicorn or being referred when a fellow Unicorn isn’t taking on new clients,” said Alexis. The community has also been great at instilling confidence to go after intimidating contracts. Alexis was encouraged to apply for a large out of state contract with a client she had worked with before through the Learn Grant Writing team. Instantly, she dealt with imposter syndrome. She knew the opportunity could be huge for her, but she was still scared of what work might be required from it—hiring a team, improved project management, time requirements, and possibility of failure. Alexis’s strategy was to “act like she belonged” in the pile of proposals. She submitted her proposal with guidance from folks in the Collective, including some who agreed to be on her team if she won the contract. She ultimately did not win the contract, but reached out to the client for feedback. “Asking for feedback is crucial. I knew only good things could happen from doing so. I learned more about what the client is looking for, how to improve my proposal for next time, and that they will be publishing another Request for Proposals in a few months. I plan to try again,” said Alexis. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Proudest Moment as a Grant Writer Throughout her experience with Learn Grant Writing, Alexis is most proud of and grateful for all the people she’s been able to work with. She loves the exposure to different cultures and communities. She directly attributes these opportunities including working with tribes in remote Alaska to her participation in the Collective. Alexis was more than a little jazzed when two Housing and Urban Development Healthy Homes grants she was lead writer on for remote Alaskan tribal communities were awarded in full—a whopping $1.3 million dollars. To date, she’s helped organizations secure over $2.2 million dollars to help them keep doing their good work. “I have connections with clients and grant writers from all across the United States. I have colleagues in multiple time zones—it’s amazing! I don’t think I would ever have been able to make that happen on my own,” said Alexis. If you’d like to become a grant writing unicorn, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Thoughts on Learn Grant Writing “The curriculum is top-notch,\" Alexis said. \"I've learned so much about how to be a better writer, project manager, and business owner. I've even hired others in the Collective to help with my projects as my business has grown! The LGW community has been refreshing, encouraging, and critical to my success.\" After regularly contributing to Learn Grant Writing by writing blog posts for over a year, Alexis joyfully joined the team as a part-time employee to serve in the capacity of Unicorn Coach \u0026 Content Director. She provides coaching and mentorship to the community, oversees much of the written content on the website and in inboxes, and assists members of the Collective earn their grant writer certification. “It has been such a pleasure to work with and for this team,” Alexis said. “I’m amazed by how the support I’ve received from LGW has really turned my grant writing consulting business into a strong foundation to operate from.” Alexis and her husband welcomed their daughter into the world in 2021. She had planned ahead and worked hard to be able to take a full three month long maternity leave (while still paying herself her regular salary!). “Everything they say is true—having a little one is so fun and so hard,” Alexis said. “I’m proud to say that my business has offered us everything we hoped it would. I have a flexible schedule, can spend lots of time with my daughter, and my business is in a solid place financially.” Moreover, Alexis’s husband is in the process of launching his own paintless dent repair business, Swenson Dent Company. “My flexible schedule allowed by entrepreneurship really appealed to John and he wanted to create more of that for our whole family,” Alexis said. “It is exciting my business has inspired and supported this shift for our family.” How to Make a Career Change and Become a Grant Writer If you are wondering about how to make a career change or how to become a grant writer, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2021-10-20","description":"Alexis first learned about grant writing while working for a nonprofit organization. She later\nfounded a writing business with grant writing as a primary service offering. Alexis secured\nover $1.3M in grants in the four months after receiving her certificate from Learn Grant Writing.\nShe now regularly contributes to Learn Grant Writing.\n","formatted_date":"October 20, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-alexis-gains-confidence-1400w_hu_e0a4268d45c7c7f2.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/alexis-swenson-work-from-home-job/","slug":"alexis-swenson-work-from-home-job","summary":"Alexis secured over $1.3M in grants in the four months after\nreceiving her certificate from Learn Grant Writing. She now\nregularly contributes to Learn Grant Writing.\n","title":"Alexis Gains Confidence \u0026 Skills Customized for Her Dream Lifestyle"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Introduction We, the folks behind the words and operation of Learn Grant Writing, are always striving to improve our skills right alongside our students. One relatively new-to-us concept we’ve been really loving is strength-based writing. Writing a powerful grant narrative is a fine art of demonstrating urgency and story-telling. Strength-based writing is challenging our idea of what story we’re telling and how much focus we’re dedicating to urgency in our grant narratives. Deficit-based (wrong) versus strength-based (strong) writing involves a shift from focusing on what is broken to instead focusing on what is working. In the research world, this is known as deficit-based thinking versus strength-based thinking. Essentially, awareness of these concepts helps grant writers balance the importance of illustrating the urgency of a problem to be solved with the importance of using positive language in a grant narrative. We’ve done some of our own research and also had a wonderful conversation with Kate Hohman Billmeier of Wellspring Group Consulting on the topic. She doesn’t claim to call herself a deficit-based versus strength-based expert, but she is highly skilled in evaluation and field trained in adopting a strength-based approach. She’s seen the positive impact of strength-based thinking and is a firm believer. Thanks for your insight for this post, Kate! Why Does Strong Writing Matter? In our efforts to be continuously learning, we’re not afraid of taking a bite out of humble pie. In fact, we’ll even show you a real world example of the dangers with wrong writing! Below is an excerpt Meredith wrote a few years ago. Although the grant was funded, when we look at the application now all we see is how it is steeped in deficit writing. This excerpt is from a grant application to the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection Agency for brownfield redevelopment grant funding: “Because Anchorage grew so fast with the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, the area lacked land use policies and enforcement resources. When oil prices dropped in 1986–88 it caused the ‘Great Alaskan Recession’ where nearly one in ten jobs were lost. Businesses folded and abandoned their properties and to this day, many remain vacant. Known and suspected contamination on these sites has impeded their redevelopment and depressed property values... The former 4th Avenue Theater in Downtown is a cherished historical icon but rapidly deteriorating. It has numerous code deficiencies, asbestos, and a petroleum release from an underground storage tank. Many downtown businesses have relocated to midtown leaving brownfields in their wake.” Did that catch your attention? Do things seem dire?\nYes and yes. However, should that be our only or even primary goal? Eh, not such an easy yes. Is there anything in that excerpt that makes you want to visit Anchorage or think positively about Anchorage? Quite the opposite, even though the city Anchorage does have a lot going for it. This excerpt defines Anchorage by its worst characteristics. Imagine talking about people in this same way; imagine talking about yourself in this way! When we focus all our attention on negative facts and major gaps, this has the effect of “othering”. We are easily tempted to view or treat a person, group of people, or place as intrinsically different from and alien to oneself. Mackenzie Price from Frameworks Institute said this often reinforces the negative stereotypes that organizations using the language are working against. Going even further, wrong writing can lead readers to believe that these negative characteristics are inherent rather than the result of circumstances. This can encourage a system where people and places are treated less as multi-faceted partners in a project or program and more like simplified objects of charity. How could we have written that excerpt in a way that explained the problem while also weaving in the reality that there is a good team behind the project, solid momentum, and other available resources? Because that was the whole truth of the project. Strength-Based Writing ≠ Positivity Whitewashing First and foremost, we must understand that strength-based writing is not simply removing all challenges or problems from our grant application narrative. It is safe to say that pretty much every grant application will require applicants to describe the problem faced by the applicant. After all, funders want to ensure their dollars are going towards good, impactful work. Miriam Axel-Lute, Editor, Shelterforce and Associate Director, National Housing Institute highlights several dangers of using only positive language in her article The Opposite of Deficit-Based Language Isn’t Asset-Based Language. It’s Truth-Telling. When we only use positive language, we fall into the narrative of pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps or bootstrapping. “...if everything is so great, what’s the problem? Why are we putting resources there? If we don’t name the harm that has been done and assign responsibility, are we really undoing the perception that populations and neighborhoods in trouble brought it on themselves?,” said Axel-Lute. Thus, we must push for something much more subtle and powerful than merely using only positive language. Grant writers must still describe deficits, problems, and challenges faced by the people or group served by an organization. A strength-based approach prompts us to shift focus to build on strengths rather than continue grinding on deficiencies of the community we’re hoping to serve. Put another way, this practice is more of a balance rather than an either/or. We need to aim to be truth-tellers. Furthermore, this practice extends beyond the wording you choose in your narrative, as it ties back to how a program is developed and implemented. We’ll cover a bit of that below, and Meredith talks more about it in the second edition of How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn. Start With Mental Models To understand how to develop strong writing, we need to know our own personal mental models. The following paragraph is an overview of mental models according to Jones, N. A., H. Ross, T. Lynam, P. Perez, and A. Leitch: “Mental models are personal, internal representations of external reality that people use to interact with the world around them. They are constructed by individuals based on their unique life experiences, perceptions, and understandings of the world. Mental models are used to reason and make decisions and can be the basis of individual behaviors. They provide the mechanism through which new information is filtered and stored.” Or, Rouse and Morris (1986) explain that a mental model can be conceived as a cognitive structure that enables a person to describe, explain, and predict a system’s purpose, form, function, and state. Everyone has mental models and as grant writers it is imperative we be aware of our mental models when we join a project. Oftentimes, we’re coming into projects where we know little about the norms and customs of a community. Yet, we’ve been brought into the project to represent that very community we have such little firsthand experience about. We need to quickly get up to speed to be a good representative. A great way to gauge your mental model is to consider how you’re approaching a community and how you’re representing them in a narrative. Does it match how they want to be represented? If you were a community member, is it how you would want to be represented? Dig a Little Deeper It is appealing to focus only on the problem(s) we see within the community—maybe it is the extremely low high school graduation rate. But, will that be the drive of the narrative? Is there an opportunity to switch to a different mental model? Look beyond data that feeds a deficit-based approach. As grant writers, we don’t always have an abundance of resources to invest in learning about a community’s strengths. It should be comforting to know that you don’t necessarily have to dig to the depths of the earth, but just far enough to build strength-based thought into the narrative. Again, we must still define the problem of low high school graduation rates, but can we shift our perspective and thinking just a bit? What is the community doing well? We can expose ourselves to other data through additional research or by talking with program staff or community members. Perhaps that data or those conversations reveal that this particular community is especially connected to climate and the environment. Any education or coursework involving the climate goes over well for students because they get it. Instead of simply stating the problem and throwing yet another program at the community, talk with the community about it. Examine what currently exists and how those resources might be bolstered. Perhaps the greater community of elders, healthcare providers, or education professionals can be engaged in the conversation to address low graduation rates. Now we’re toeing the line of program and project development. As a grant writer, much of the project development and planning process will be outside of your purview. You may help certainly, as needed for each client, but the bulk of the work will be done by your client. Writing the grant will be infinitely smoother if the client is on board with a strength-based approach. You might consider having a conversation with the client at the initial kick-off meeting to introduce a deficit-based versus strength-based approach. This can become a natural part of your process with every project and every client. When the client is delivering to you projects that are saturated with strengths, your writing in the narrative will reflect that (and same goes if they were delivering deficit saturated projects). The table below is a perfect example of what it might look like to dig deeper and shift our mental models.\nDeficit-Based Mental Model Strength-Based Mental Model Implement programs as the answer See people as the answer Us versus them In this together Assumes dependence Increases sustainability Focus on what is broken Focus on what is working P.S. We break these concepts down in our book, How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn, as well. Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now Using Logic Models to Inform Strengths An excellent way to evaluate an organization’s strengths is through the use of logic models. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a logic model is a “graphic depiction (road map) that presents the shared relationships among the resources, activities, outputs, outcomes, and impact for your program. It depicts the relationship between your program's activities and its intended effects.” In short, a logic model is a planning and accountability tool. It allows organizations to keep track of their work and offers a continuous feedback loop about where they’re at on the road map. The nuts and bolts of a logic model are inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes (short-term, mid-term, and long-term/impact). Inputs are new and existing resources that will be used to support the project (examples: funding, project team, partnerships, etc.). Activities include the main things the project will do (examples: holding workshops, trainings, or camps). Outputs are the products that will be created (examples: flyers, pieces of art, artifacts). Short-term outcomes are what will happen as a direct result of the activities and outputs. Typically these are changes in knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes (example: youth increase their understanding of protective factors). Mid-term outcomes are the results that will follow from the initial outcomes. Typically these are changes in changes in behavior, policies, and/or practices (example: youth engage in relationship building with a positive, trusted adult). Long-term outcomes are the results that should follow from the short-term and mid-term outcomes. You might also consider these results to be your impact. Typically these are changes in changes in broader conditions (example: youth are more resilient and have lower rates of depression or self-harm). Evaluating projects through logic models serves to help us identify major gaps and significant strengths in our processes. Once those are identified, we can continue developing our projects to evolve with our needs and existing strengths. This then plays directly into a strength-based approach to writing future grant narratives. To learn more about logic models, check out a training on evaluation that Kate Hohman Billmeier graciously provided for us on our YouTube page: Grant Evaluation - How to Measure the Impact of Your Grant-Funded Project. Strengths Based Approach to Social Work As you’re working through your logic models, one way to use strong language is to focus on systems rather than individuals. Axel-Lute said that, “The way to avoid the problem of having the struggles of individual people or places represent something inherent and immutable is to explicitly point out the systems at work—past and present—that cause them.” When you’re describing a problem, use language that highlights how systemic disparities and a history of community (city, region, state, nation) wide problems have systemic roots. Emphasize how those root causes have created harm, that these are not self-caused problems, and work to clearly explain those systems as much as possible. A systemic approach like this connects deeply with many progressive funders. For example, the Ford Foundation’s funding priority model completely encompasses an awareness and recognition on systems as it relates to inequality. They strive to disrupt systems to advance social justice. The Ford Foundation has identified five underlying drivers of inequality—common factors that, worldwide, contribute to inequality’s many manifestations. These factors are:\nEntrenched cultural narratives that undermine fairness, tolerance, and inclusion. Failure to invest in and protect vital public goods such as education and natural resources. Unfair rules of the economy that magnify unequal opportunity and outcomes. Unequal access to government decision making and resources. Persistent prejudice and discrimination against women, people with disabilities and racial, ethnic, and caste minorities. Are any of those factors relevant to the community you’re serving? How might your next grant application benefit from emphasizing one or more of those factors? Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template Overcoming Challenges Getting into the habit of gravitating toward strength-based writing and thinking is the same as getting into any habit: it takes practice. Your mindset is hugely important as you flex your new muscles. Adopting a more strength-based approach to developing grant proposals is a philosophy. It’s more than just words; it’s a shift in whole mental models. Another tool that might be useful for you is to develop a short list of questions to ask yourself throughout the grant writing process. Refer to these customized questions at the beginning of the project and intermittently throughout the project to ensure you’re on track. Perhaps a few questions you might ask yourself include: Does my representation of the community match how the community wants to be represented? If I were a community member, is it how I would want to be represented? What story am I telling? What is the focus of that story? What is the community doing well? What is working? Am I using positive language in the narrative? Have I spoken with community members? Am I telling the whole truth? Final Takeaway So, is this rocking your world yet? Do you feel like you’ve been thinking and writing the wrong way? Yeah, that’s sort of how we felt too. Thank goodness we are all in this together, and that we are all continuously in process. When we only emphasize negative statistics and disparities, we define people and places by their worst characteristics. Ironically, using deficit-based language risks reinforcing the same negative stereotypes that organizations are fighting against. Yes, it can sometimes feel like it is an entire system we’re up against. As Axel-Lute said, this “can contribute to a dynamic where people and places are treated less as partners in a given program or campaign and more like objects of charity.” When you write your narrative, be on the lookout for deficit-based thinking that could be reworked to present a more strengths-based approach. Consider Pareto’s Principle when writing, so that deficit-based writing accounts for roughly 20% of your narrative and strengths-based writing accounts for the other 80%. Finally, give yourself grace as you work to make this shift. This is a difficult balance, but one we have committed to working on and we hope you do too. It will take practice and a lot of trying again. That’s normal, and you can do it. Grant Writing Resources Serious about becoming a grant writer? Learn about our online grant writing training course. If you don't already, be sure to follow us on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2021-09-25","description":"Deficit-based (wrong) versus strength-based (strong) writing involves a shift from focusing on what is broken to instead focusing on what is working","formatted_date":"September 25, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-deficit-v-strength-based-writing_hu_2d887b7280a4ee1.jpg","permalink":"/blog/deficit-v-strength-based-writing/","slug":"deficit-v-strength-based-writing","summary":"Deficit-based (wrong) versus strength-based (strong) writing involves a\nshift from focusing on what is broken to instead focusing on what is working.\n","title":"What is Deficit-Based Versus Strength-Based Writing?"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Introduction A question we are often asked is how to hire a grant writer. It seems that hiring a grant writer isn’t quite as straightforward as hiring a cleaner for the office or hiring out the oil change on the company vehicle. This blog post will break down how to hire a grant writer into tiny, bite-sized steps—hopefully answering your biggest questions about the process. We want you to leave informed and confident in your pursuit of hiring a grant writer. How do you pay grant writers? This is a biggie so we’re going to dive right into the money talk ;). We get asked this question a lot and we know many newer nonprofits are wondering about it too. Can you pay a grant writer from the grant? Short answer: No. We will dive into how you then pay a grant writer, but first let's unpack your question. Many organizations are especially curious about how to pay grant writers because years ago, it was common practice to charge grant writing services based on the success of the grant or include it as a percentage of the grant funding request. However, we know those types of pricing are not ethical. Professional organizations such as the Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Grant Professionals Association, bar grant writers from taking a percentage of the grant, also known as working on commission. At Learn Grant Writing, we also teach against paying grant writers a commission. Staff time spent writing grant proposals and other costs relating to applying for or renewing grants, and reporting on grants received are all considered fundraising activities and expenses. According to the National Council of Nonprofits, “the Association of Fundraising Professionals \"AFP\" and the National Council of Nonprofits agree: compensating fundraisers with a commission on contributions is not ethical.” Moreover, grant writers put in the time and effort developing a final deliverable that reflects your organization’s greatest strengths. Grant writers are hired to produce high quality content not to determine the outcome of the grant application. A grant writer cannot guarantee that the grant they write will be successful. A stellar grant writer will certainly increase your odds of success! But, again, they can't guarantee it. They need paid for the time and professional skill they bring to your organization. It’s also important to remember that funders are not interested in funding an organization’s fundraising activities which grant writing falls under. Therefore, grantmakers won’t allow you to add a grant writer’s commission as part of your grant budget. Acceptable pricing structures that are most common include an hourly rate for the time spent on the grant application and a flat project fee. Once the scope of work is determined, a fixed fee can then be determined. Any adjustments to the scope of work can be amended in the contract. A fixed fee helps to keep everything transparent. A lot of times, nonprofit staff need to consult the Board to get approval for large payments so this can help expedite that process and no one is surprised at the end of the project. Then, how do you pay a grant writer? The payment schedule depends on the grant writer. Common payment methods include:\nPayment by the hour, or 50% up front, 50% upon completion, or Invoices sent monthly for percent of work complete, or Invoice upon project completion. Sometimes organizations are interested in paying a grant writer a certain amount of money upfront, then the rest of the money when the grant is submitted. Grants are never guaranteed; even though a grant writer might create the most carefully crafted proposal a client still may not be awarded due to funder priorities, preference, other applicants, etc. Simply put, it is fair for grant writers to be paid for their work and expertise regardless of the outcome (although they should be of course putting forth their best effort to win the grant). How much does it cost to hire a grant writer? What can organizations expect to pay a grant writer? The first point to keep in mind is what grant writing entails and the high value a grant writer can bring to your funding pursuits.\nGrant writers do a lot more than just writing. Depending on the project, they also provide the following: Project management/communication with funders, organization contacts, third-party researchers.\nBudget development.\nGrant funding research.\nProgrammatic design.\nAdditional consultation as needed.\nIn short, grant writers offer a lot of expertise. The cost of a grant writer varies from writer to writer. In our Grant Writing Collective, we use this handy chart to highlight appropriate ball park costs associated with grant writing. BALL PARK FEES Affordable/Fair Premium Funding Strategy $900-$2,500 $2,500-$8,000 Grant Applications LOI/Straightforward $300-$1,200 $1,500-$3,000 Moderate Difficult $1,200-$3,500 $3,500-$6,500 Federal Grant $3,500-$5,500 $7,000-$25,000+ Hourly $50-$75/hr $100-$150/hr Where do you find grant writers? As mentioned previously, it can be a bit bewildering to hire a grant writer. Finding a grant writer is one particularly challenging aspect of the process. A few places you might begin looking for grant writers are: Learn Grant Writing We’re all about helping folks make a positive impact in their community. We can connect you with a talented and certified grant writer in our pool of grant writers. Review the process and look for a grant writer that fits your goals. All of the grant writers in our pool have received a certification of completing our proven grant writing training program. Once you select a grant writer to work with, we let the two of you work out a contract and cheer you on as you win grants! This is but a small sample of all our grant writers, so if you don't find someone that is a fit (and you have budget to pay them), email us at info@senworks.org. Upwork Upwork is a popular place to find freelancers for a variety of services including graphic design, editing, and even grant writing. Once you post a job (for free!), Upwork connects you with talent around the world, or near you. You’re able to compare bids, reviews, and prior work before interviewing and hiring the best fit. It’s worth noting that most high quality grant writers are not advertising their services on Upwork, so it is likely that you’re going to need to look elsewhere. Grant Writer Team GrantWriterTeam is a service for matching grant seekers with grant writers. There is a $50 administrative fee to begin the process. You can submit your request for a grant writer and you’re on your way.\nOnce your application is uploaded, grant writers will ‘bid’ on your job request and the quotes will be sent to you through the portal via email. You are able to view the grant writer’s expertise and accept the writer of your choice. Together, you and the grant writer are able to negotiate the contract with a list of deliverables. As each deliverable is completed, the files are uploaded to the GrantWriterTeam portal by the writer, and payment is made. Once the payment is made, you will be able to download and review the deliverable. Word of mouth Is there anything more reliable than talking with individuals whose opinions you trust and respect? Check in with your board members, staff members, and fellow nonprofit professionals in your area. Or, is there a Facebook or LinkedIn group you can ask for grant writer recommendations? I’m interested in a grant writer...now what? Yay! After you’ve identified a grant writer you’re interested in working with, reach out! Send them an email with a brief description of the type of project you’d like assistance with and request a meeting. Or, you can also request more information about their work experience first and ask them to send over writing samples or a resume. Regardless, the initial meeting should serve as a good “get-to-know-you” for both parties. You are welcome to ask more questions about the grant writer’s experience and grant writing process. You will share more details about the project you’re working on or hoping to get funded. At the end of that meeting, you can request a proposal from the grant writer outlining cost, schedule, scope of work for the discussed project if that project is in a place to move forward. If all goes well, the proposal (aka: contract) will be finalized between you and the grant writer. Names are signed on the dotted line and you’re on your way to pursuing grant funding! Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now How do I know if they are a good grant writer? This can be tricky since there aren’t necessarily hard and fast rules to quantify being a good grant writer. However, there are a few things you can look at. First, are they professionally trained or certified? A certification isn’t a requirement to write grants and there are many great grant writers out there who aren’t certified. However, a certification or involvement in professional grant writing groups is a huge benefit for grant writers and, in turn, their clients. With a solid professional network and training, grant writers have access to resources they wouldn’t otherwise have on their own. Second, you can look at their success stories and industry experience. While having won millions of dollars in grant funding is nice, it’s not always the best measure of success simply because grants are so unpredictable. For instance, even though the work might be high quality, a grant application could be denied because the funder had different priorities in mind based upon the applications submitted. That is just one reason a grantmaker may decline to fund grants. Most of these reasons (competing organizations, funder priorities, funder/applicant relationship, etc.) are all outside of a grant writer’s control. Furthermore, there are hundreds of grant programs and foundations. A lot of times grant writers develop a niche for a particular program. With that in mind, you might consider looking for a grant writer with a proven record of winning grants in and/or high working knowledge of a particular program. Third, word of mouth again. Have other professionals you know worked with this individual? What feedback do they have? Would they recommend this grant writer? Finally, trust your gut. We know we’re echoing our moms here, but we’re serious: trust your gut. Rarely will it steer you in the wrong direction. You are also always welcome to ask a grant writer for references and/or samples of their work. How can we prepare to work with a grant writer? Reading this blog post has put you right on track to start preparing to work with a grant writer. Nice work! First understanding the expertise grant writers can and cannot offer to your organization is key. There are a few other things to consider getting grant ready as well such as:\nDoes the Board of Directors need to approve a contract with a grant writer? What can you do to start that process? How do you want to communicate with the grant writer? Who will be the primary contact for your organization? (Yes, there really is such a thing as having too many cooks in the kitchen! Try to keep it limited to one main person. Everyone will be happier for it—trust us.) Think through what programs or projects you would like to fund—do they align with your organization’s strategic plan? What administrative leg work can you complete prior to hiring a grant writer? This might look like gathering important information and documents most grants will require including Tax Exempt Status Letter, IRS Form 990, W-9, strategic plan, organizational chart, Board of Directors, audited financial statements, Annual Report, program/project details (scope of work description, outcome measures, target population, relevant statistics, etc.), and history of grants received. Becoming grant ready is important to successful grant pursuits. Grant readiness is the concept of being prepared financially and organizationally at the program, project, and organization levels. In other words, the back end of your organization should be in order before applying for funding. A grant writer will still work through application-specific details with you, but the process will run smoother if you come to the table prepared.\nEnsuring you have thought through all of the above information is a great place to start getting grant ready. It is all about getting super organized so you can find and relay the information you need to write grants efficiently and effectively. And, after your initial meeting with a grant writer, together you’ll be able to create a customized plan that will work for your organization’s specific needs. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template Final Takeaway Overall, while it can be daunting to begin the process of hiring a grant writer, we hope this blog post simplifies the task for you. Let us know if you have any further questions about how to pay grant writers, where to find grant writers, how to initiate the next step in working with a grant writer, identifying a grant writers’ strengths, or how to prepare to work with a grant writer. We’re here to help! 👉 For more tips and tricks on grant funding and writing a proposal, be sure to check out our FREE Grant Writing Class! You can also DM us on Instagram if you have any questions. ","date":"2021-09-20","description":"There are plenty of horror stories out there about hiring a talented grant writer. We know the struggle! Can you pay the grant writer from the grant? How much do they charge? Where do you find grant writers? All that and more is covered in this post!","formatted_date":"September 20, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-how-to-hire-a-grant-writer_hu_f3f9e885a9dbd6c8.jpg","permalink":"/blog/how-to-hire-a-grant-writer/","slug":"how-to-hire-a-grant-writer","summary":"Can you pay a grant writer from the grant? How much does it cost to hire a\ngrant writer? Where do you find them? All that and more in this post.\n","title":"How To Hire a Grant Writer"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" Becoming a Grant Writer Julia-Grace Sanders worked as a science and environment journalist before writing grants. She first heard about grant writing when a friend told her she’d be really good at it. Although Julia-Grace initially thought grant writing was a bit too technical, she connected with a professional grant writer to learn more. “When I spoke with her, she was saying a lot of things that she liked about her job, that I liked about my job as a journalist. She got to get to know people's stories. She got to talk with a lot of new people. She got to learn new things every day. That was all stuff that I really liked about my current job,” said Julia-Grace. After this conversation, Julia-Grace's interest was piqued. She decided to try freelance grant writing to help her figure out what she wanted and if she liked it enough to keep pursuing it. The timing could not have been better. Due to the pandemic, her full-time hours as a journalist were reduced allowing her extra free time to dedicate to grant writing training. Making Money and Gaining Experience as a Freelance Grant Writer Julia-Grace’s first exposure to a grant application was editing a grant for a fellow Unicorn. This helped her see what a grant looked like and increased her comfort level with the process. After completing her grant writing certificate with Learn Grant Writing, she landed her first nonprofit client in an informational interview. She ended up completing a funding strategy for the organization as her first paid gig. “It really was like feeling my way through the dark. I think every step of the way it was like going to Meredith and the LGW community asking am I doing this right? Am I doing this right? Am I doing this right? I think we did it right when we got there,” said Julia-Grace. Julia-Grace produced a fantastic funding strategy deliverable for her second client as well which helped land her a giant contract. While still working her journalism job, she developed a funding strategy for an out of state nonprofit. At the close of the project, the organization decided to hire her on to do all the work outlined in the funding strategy. Julia-Grace was offered a year-long, $22,000 contract! Throughout the process, Julia-Grace battled imposter syndrome. The number one thing that helped her was knowing that the unicorns in the Global Grant Writers Collective® were supporting her. She knew that if she couldn’t figure something out on her own, she could find the answer within the community. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Landing a Full-Time Grant Writing Job Right around the time Julia-Grace entered into negotiations for the $22,000 contract, she was offered a full-time job as a grant writer at her local county community health district, doubling her salary. She liked the idea of earning her chops on a salary and had been applying for multiple full-time positions. Once she landed that full-time job, she knew she wanted to focus on her new job due to the position’s steep learning curve. “I ended up just being really upfront with the client that offered the $22,000 contract. I just said I had to take other work and I will work with you to find a replacement for me. And, they were really understanding,” said Julia-Grace. Julia-Grace handed the baton off to another Unicorn to take over the grant writing contract. The beauty of community! Proudest Moment as a Grant Writer Julia-Grace has a new proudest moment nearly every step of her grant writing journey. Her most recent win came only two months into her new job, when she learned that she had won a $4 million grant for a health equity program. The biggest impact of finishing the grant writing course within the Collective was the encouragement to step back and thoughtfully consider what she wanted, what she wanted her life to look like, and what was going to get her there. “I think taking that step back really allowed me to decide what path was going to feel the best for my life,” said Julia-Grace. Beyond that, Julia-Grace has benefited greatly from having an environment that promotes building a career that works with your life versus building your life around a career. Celebrating major milestones in this journey has been crucial for Julia-Grace too. When she was offered her full-time grant writing position, she celebrated with her husband who knew how hard she’d been working for this, going out for celebratory drinks, and celebrating with friends on a Zoom party. In less than a year and in the middle of the pandemic, Julia-Grace pivoted her career. We are so excited for the impact she is having on her community! How to Make a Career Change and Become a Grant Writer If you are wondering about how to make a career change or how to become a grant writer, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. ","date":"2021-08-10","description":"Julia-Grace loved journalism but not the terrible pay. She fell in love with grant writing and\nlearned she could still write grants that helped her community while making a respectable living.\nLess than a year later, Julia-Grace landed an incredible full-time grant writing position that\ndoubled the salary of her previous position.\n","formatted_date":"August 10, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-julia-grace-sanders-1400w_hu_9054b1e472863531.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/career-change-julia-grace/","slug":"career-change-julia-grace","summary":"How Julia-Grace pulled off a major career change in the middle of a pandemic.\n","title":"From Journalist to Grant Writer - A 50% Pay Increase"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":"Why a 2nd Edition of Our Grant Writing Book?","content":" Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one outlines a plan for how to become a freelance grant writer. This post highlights diversity, equity, and inclusion as a grant writer. And, Jess Stack is a mom who has found great success with grant writing. Also, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! More questions about the Collective? You can send us an email at info@senworks.org.\nOr, shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄\nDifference from 1st Edition to 2nd Edition You, as the reader of this book, are getting the same thing! Since publishing the first edition in September 2019, I have learned a great deal more from thousands of readers and hundreds of students in our online grant writing classes. Plus, I now have a co-founder, Alexandra Lustig, who brings her own special zone of genius. In the first edition, I gave you what I thought you wanted—technical knowledge on grant writing. You got that, but you revealed to me that you want something more than the ability to write grants. You want a career that is fulfilling. You want flexibility in how you spend your days. You want to make a respectable living, while still having time to get outside and travel. You have lots of interests. You give passionately to causes you care about.\nYou want to feel a sense of purpose and meaning. You want to be done by three pm to be with your kids. Or, you want to work and explore from your van. You want to dig in deep for several weeks and then take a week off to go camping. Whatever your image is for a life well lived, I have some good news. You can absolutely have it.\nThat said, here is the tiny print: You CAN have a life you love, but it requires you to take complete and total responsibility for making it happen. What does that mean?\nYou will be waiting a long time if you are counting on the stars to align for the perfect job or time to start a new career. I get your frustration and need to mitigate risk. You cannot quit your job tomorrow and continue to support yourself or your family. Yet, you know you are capable of more.\nWhether that is building a freelance grant writing business, landing a fulfilling new job, building your dream, or helping your community be a better place. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Make Each Move Count Imagine we are back in the hay fields. I am 14 years old and running an old 1956 tractor to put hay into windrows. My job requires staying ahead of the stacking crew (the team that put the hay into the haystacks). They keep catching me, and I am growing frustrated. You can only bounce around so fast in a hay field! My father flags me down. He explains that there is a pattern in the hay, if I look for it. His advice was to “make each move count.” Once I started looking for the patterns, I could see them. I became more efficient and the gap grew between me and the stacking crew. You can do the same thing.\nGrant writing follows a pattern. On the whole, each application is looking for the same information. In this book, you will learn the patterns behind grant writing that allow you to excel at it. What You Can Expect The first section of this book answers the questions most frequently asked by aspiring grant writers. The second section follows up with the questions I wish you were asking. This section includes new training taught be Alexandra, my co-founder and friend, on tough topics like how to confront our own privilege, racism, sexism, classism, saviorism, colonialism, ageism, and/or religious prejudice as grant writers. She brings us full circle with an introduction to Human-Centered Design, a framework for centering the community and their needs throughout the project planning and grant writing process. There are two more chapters that have me fired up to share with you. We rounded up funders and asked them for their perspective on what they wish you knew. They drop some knowledge bombs that will shock you. The chapter that someday will become a book unto itself is all about the topic of evaluation. Grant Writing Unicorn, Kate Hohman Billmeier of WellSpring Group, guides us through a training on how we can use Logic Models to think critically about the work we do. It is packed with oodles of gold. The third section is brand spankin’ new from the first edition, all about how you become a grant writing unicorn. You will discover if you are experiencing the unicorn dilemma and what you can do about it. The punch line? We do not believe in volunteering to gain experience, and instead show you how to start by freelancing. If that makes you pull back a bit, that is normal.The Grant Writing Unicorn Method™ is unusual, but it also works. Then we will talk about the grant writers’ kryptonite—imposter syndrome. Yep, we are going there, and you are coming with, so we can squash that dream killing mindset once and for all. Here is a sneak preview of the illustration we have to describe the Dunning-Kruger Effect on grant writers.\nFree Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template How to Get a Copy Freshen that cup of joe or tea my friend. We move quickly around here. Get your copy, and you are on your way to becoming a grant writing unicorn! You can pick up your copy at Amazon or, better yet, ask for it at your local bookstore. More information on the book can be found here. Tag us @learngrantwriting on Instagram to share your post-it filled, highlighter marked up, coffee-stained copy! And last but not least, a unicorn is born when you leave a review wherever you bought this book. Reviews are digital pixie dust and help us out a ton. Thank you and happy reading! ","date":"2021-06-01","description":"How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn.","formatted_date":"June 1, 2021","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-2nd-edition-grant-writing-book-1400w_hu_b80291dc9ffee229.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-books/","slug":"grant-writing-books","summary":"The world of funding is changing. This newly expanded and updated version has you covered!\n","title":"Why a 2nd Edition of How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn?"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" This blog post highlights funding opportunities for historical structures. To be clear, city hall or other municipal-type buildings can be extremely difficult to secure grant funding for. This is because it is expected that those expenses are covered by local government revenues. So, how do we approach such complex structures? Grant research strategy When looking for inspiration on how to get a complicated project funded, we always defer to our tried and true grant research philosophy. We teach it in our program, the Global Grant Writers Collective®. Essentially, the last thing we want to do is spend precious time and energy preparing a grant application only to discover it’s not a good fit. Enter: grant research and a funding strategy.\nA funding strategy is a road map for knowing what grants you will pursue ahead of time and when. It’s a short list of grants your organization will pursue over the course of a particular project/program or to help cover general operating costs. We recommend putting together a funding strategy before applying to any grants. When we develop a funding strategy, we whittle down a list of potential funders based upon how well the ask fits within the grantmaker’s funding priorities. We also look to ensure that the chance of winning the grant is at least 20%. Therefore, funding strategy is not just a random list of grants to apply to; it is a list of grants that your organization has a high likelihood of winning due to thorough research. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Look at other grant-funded examples Another approach we take to complicated projects is examining how others funded their projects (which is where much of this post’s inspiration comes from). If at all possible, we try not to reinvent the wheel, but to instead tweak as necessary. This post examines funding opportunities for a historical structure. As we mentioned previously, city hall or other municipal-type buildings can be challenging to secure grant funding for. Occasionally though, you will have a unique case for getting your project funded, and that was the case for a project we helped with years ago. Instead of moving City Hall to the outskirts of the community with a new building, this particular organization in Washington was working to preserve and upgrade the historic building that originally housed city administration. This small community was known for valuing its historic assets and having a charming downtown which is just about the most lovely thing, wouldn’t you agree? We were jazzed to help. Funding Sources Back in 2017, we presented a few different funding sources to the client. However, since revisiting the project we’ve broadened it up and found funding for historical structures everywhere in the United States (not just in Washington). Below are several funding opportunities for your historical structure preservation project. National Endowment for the Humanities: Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions Preservation Assistance Grants help small and mid-sized institutions—such as libraries, museums, historical societies, archival repositories, cultural organizations, town and county records offices, and colleges and universities—improve their ability to preserve and care for their significant humanities collections. These may include special collections of books and journals, archives and manuscripts, prints and photographs, moving images, sound recordings, architectural and cartographic records, decorative and fine art objects, textiles, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, furniture, historical objects, and digital materials. The max award is $10,000. 👉 Check out this funded City of Boston Archives Grant Application for ideas of how to use these NEH grant funds. National Trust for Historic Preservation: National Trust Preservation Funds Grants from National Trust Preservation Funds (NTPF) are intended to encourage preservation at the local level by providing seed money for preservation projects. These grants help stimulate public discussion, enable local groups to gain the technical expertise needed for particular projects, introduce the public to preservation concepts and techniques, and encourage financial participation by the private sector. The grant covers planning and implementation expenditures. Planning expenditures is a great ask from this grant! Planning expenditures: Supporting existing staff (nonprofit applicants only) or obtaining professional expertise in areas such as architecture, archaeology, engineering, preservation planning, land-use planning, and law. Eligible planning activities include, but are not limited to: Hiring a preservation architect or landscape architect, or funding existing staff with expertise in these areas, to produce a historic structure report or historic landscape master plan. Hiring a preservation planner, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce design guidelines for a historic district. Hiring a real estate development consultant, or funding existing staff with expertise in this area, to produce an economic feasibility study for the reuse of a threatened structure. Sponsoring a community forum to develop a shared vision for the future of a historic neighborhood. Organizational capacity building activities such as hiring fundraising consultants, conducting board training, etc. Of note: only Organizational Level Forum members or Main Street America members of the National Trust are eligible to apply for funding from the National Trust Preservation Fund. National Endowment for the Arts: Our Town Grants The National Endowment for the Arts plans to support a variety of projects across the country in urban, rural, and tribal communities of all sizes. Our Town projects must integrate arts, culture, and design activities into efforts that strengthen communities by advancing local economic, physical, and/or social outcomes. This might be a good option for your historic structure if you can bring new attention to or elevate key community assets and issues, voices of residents, local history, or cultural infrastructure. Free Grant Matrix Template To stay organized, we recommend you put your grant findings in a matrix. This way you can systematically filter the top pursuits.\nGet Free Grant Matrix Template Regional and Local Grants Many of your best opportunities for historic preservation are available at the regional and local level. For that reason, we also recommend looking into the following for more funding options: YOUR STATE'S HISTORICAL SOCIETY i.e. Washington State Historical Society: Heritage Capital Projects Fund This program is a good option for funding restoration and preservation. The City is an eligible applicant. This grant is a great demonstration of how a funding strategy is crucial to a successful project. Approximately $10 million is available every biennium to reimburse up to 33% of eligible costs. The max award is $750k. Though a seemingly far away deadline, this schedule should work well for the City to secure the remaining 66% of funds needed to renovate the facility and do the necessary leg work to ‘position’ the project for an award. So, we know that the organization needs to secure 66% of project funding elsewhere. YOUR STATE'S DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE i.e. Washington State, Dept. of Commerce: Energy Efficiency and Solar Grants This program funds street lighting or solar power projects. In the event this building wanted to use solar power, this could be a good program, although highly competitive. Max award is $500k for solar. 👉 An updated resource that we are really impressed by can be found here on solar panel grants and loans by Happy DIY Home. PARTNERSHIPS WITH 501(C)3 NON PROFITS To access additional funding sources, there would need to be a 501(c)3 non-profit applicant (if you aren’t one already). Instead of forming a new non-profit, we recommend you consider finding a fiscal sponsor, which we talk about in this blog post , as an alternative strategy. When developing your vision for the future of your historical structure, creative ideas like providing a long-term lease to a local non-profit(s) on the ground floor could open up funding for that portion of the building. For example, with a long-term lease and non-profit applicant, you could jointly pursue a Department of Commerce Building for the Arts grant up to $2 million. 👉 Pro Tip: Don’t overlook small maximum grant awards ($5,000 or less)! If you can identify internal staff or a volunteer to submit the grant, it can help show support for the project when pursuing larger funding sources. Hopefully, this helps get you thinking about creative ways to grant fund historic building improvements. Have any questions? Other ideas? Share them in the comments below. Grant Writing Resources As you embark on a fundraising campaign, you might consider getting professionally trained in grant writing. It will save you years of mistakes and lost grants learning everything the hard way. Here is a FREE grant writing class on the seven steps to writing winning grants. If you don't already, be sure to join our free grant writing support group on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-11-22","description":"Inspiration on grant funding sources for historic buildings and how to develop a funding strategy before beginning your fundraising campaign.","formatted_date":"November 22, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grants-historic-buildings_hu_2dd8a0eaf74a8577.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grants-for-historic-buildings/","slug":"grants-for-historic-buildings","summary":"Learn about funding opportunities for historical structures\nand how to secure grant funding for them successfully.\n","title":"Grants for Historic Buildings"},{"author":"Alex Lustig","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexandra-lustig_hu_29673d9c06922fa5.jpg","card_title":null,"content":" Even as an experienced grant writer, getting started with a new grant application can be overwhelming. In this post, we share how we structured a kick-off meeting for a new project and grant pursuit with the Native Village of Tetlin (Alaska). Review grant requirements There is a bit of prep work before hosting a kick-off meeting. To prepare for the kick-off meeting, always read the funding guidelines. As you have questions, type those into the meeting agenda for discussion later. Also list the required attachments and assign different team members to each. Then include a mini grant narrative skeleton (described in the Free Grant Writing Class here), to understand where you have information gaps and to assign responsibilities. The entire process of reading the funding guidelines and preparing a kick-off agenda took us about 1.5 hours.\nIn the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we teach members how to utilize templates to make the kick off meeting process smoother. In addition to agenda templates, we teach how to use Asana templates. Templates are a game-changer and help to ensure you don’t miss anything important (key for success as a grant writer!). Using Asana allows you to assign a team member to a task and set a due date. See below for examples of an Asana template for a grant application and hosting a kick-off meeting.\nFree Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class How To Host Kick-Off Meeting We use Zoom video conferencing to host meetings. For this project, our team spread from Anchorage and Tok, Alaska, to Paraguay! Despite our geographic differences, we had a fun and productive meeting, and largely attribute that to having video for interacting with each other. Below is a breakdown of how we ran the kick-off meeting.\nConfirm project scope and what planning has been done. Coming into the project blind as a contract grant writer, we started the call with a discussion on what planning has been done for Tetlin’s proposed housing renovation project. In less than ten minutes we covered project need, site ownership, teaming, match, cost, and gaps in planning. Patricia Young, the Grant Development Specialist in Tetlin, was able to respond to inquiries quickly because she had completed the Project Planning Toolkit beforehand. As an aside, Patricia has taken two of our in-person grant writing workshops sponsored by Tanana Chiefs Conference. She is a talented grant writer! Teaming up with her on this pursuit is a demonstration of how effective grant writing can be when you have at least two people working on it together. Get general questions answered We then ran through seemingly miscellaneous questions that had been noted while reviewing the funding guidelines. This is where we covered bizarre details like if Tetlin’s Code of Conduct is listed on HUD’s website, a requirement for funding. Provide a birds eye view of grant forms and attachments Most funding guidelines provide a list of grant forms they require you to submit. We added that list to the kick-off agenda and took a first stab at divvying up who will do what. During the meeting we confirmed if this is a good split of responsibilities. Review the grant narrative “skeleton” and identify action items Generally, we like to prep a narrative skeleton before hosting a kick-off meeting. It often knocks loose better information to ask for as you prepare to write. The second best option is to embed a mini narrative skeleton into the agenda. We did this and preassigned which team member will do what. This is an important step. It takes some critical thinking to determine who will do what and when. A lot of times, certain information like a cost estimate or detailed scope description, can hold up preparing other parts of the application. Project management as a grant writer It’s important to review the schedule and make necessary adjustments. We prepared a rough schedule before the meeting. During the call we shifted things considerably based on when team members were traveling, when the Council meets, and other logistical considerations. The grant isn’t due until January 9th, but our plan is to submit it December 20th. There’s no reason to drag on grant writing to the deadline – especially over the holidays. Determine next meeting time and summarize action items We agreed on the next team meeting and summarized action items between now and then. The agenda was updated with notes from the call and sent out following the meeting. Everyone jumped right onto their action items and we were off to a great start! The entire kick-off meeting took 45 minutes. Meeting Agenda Template Below are screenshots of the meeting agenda. Hopefully, you find this level of detail helpful for your own project meetings! You can download this meeting agenda template for free here. Grant Writing Resources Be sure to read our blog post on project management for nonprofits and grant writers. If you’re interested in building a career in grant writing, check out our free training on how to build a career in grant writing. You can also dive deeper in processes for effective grant writing in our free grant writing course. If you have any additional questions about our programs, let us know! DM us on Instagram! ","date":"2020-11-15","description":"Getting started with a new grant application can be overwhelming. In this\npost, we share how to structure a kick-off meeting for a new project\nand grant pursuit.\n","formatted_date":"November 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grant-writing-kick-off-meeting-1400w_hu_cb491e6a6371d8a0.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-kick-off-meeting/","slug":"grant-kick-off-meeting","summary":"Bold statement, but how your kick-off goes is a good indicator of how the\nrest of your grant pursuit will go. Learn how to run a fabulous\nkick-off meeting.\n","title":"Tips For Your Next Grant Kick-Off Meeting"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" In your grant writing efforts, you’ll most certainly come across funders that require a certain percentage of match dollars. This is especially common for federal grants. It can be tempting to simply delete those grants from your list of potential opportunities to pursue because perhaps you’re not sure what match is, it seems like a lot of work, or you don’t know where to find match. Please don’t delete those grants from your list! I promise match isn’t scary. This blog post will break down what match is, how you can use it strategically, and where you can find match dollars. Our goal is to further equip you with necessary knowledge to find match for your grants and to think creatively about match sources. In other words, we’re here to help you sparkle like the grant writing unicorn that you are! What is match funding for grants? Match is the cash value of all the cost sharing made by you, the applicant, or your partners to help fund a project. In different terms, match is also known as cost share which can be defined as a detailed list of all the cost sharing being made by you, the applicant, or your partners. As mentioned previously, grant applications often require that a certain amount of match is provided. For example, if a foundation requires 50% match, that means you need to demonstrate how you will pay for half the project. If you want to apply for $10,000, the total project cost would be $20,000. Your organization would be providing $10,000 or 50% match. We realize that the concept of match concerns a lot of people and you may even feel inclined to say you are not interested in those grants. But hear us out: match is not something to be afraid of. The more you know about match, the more you’ll be confident in applying for grants that require match (read: sparkle like the grant writing unicorn that you are). Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class What are the different types of match funding? Yes, there are different types of match. What you can and cannot include as match will be clearly defined in the funding guidelines so be sure to read them carefully. If it isn’t clear, reach out to the funder for clarification. In our Global Grant Writers Collective® program, we recommend printing out a hard copy of the funding guidelines to read, highlighting unique requirements as you go. We’re all for reducing paper waste, but in our experience, we tend to catch the little nuanced things more often when we read a physical copy versus a digital copy. Cash Cost Share This is exactly what it sounds like. Cash cost share is hard cash contributions being made by the recipient, subrecipient, or other partner for costs incurred and paid for during the project. This can be an organization’s personnel, supplies, equipment, etc. Essentially, if the item in your budget is being reimbursed by you the applicant or the subrecipient, it is cash cost share because it is a legitimate and real expense being paid for. It’s important to note here that all cash cost share must be necessary for the successful performance of the project. In-Kind Cost Share This is the type of match/cost share you are probably most familiar with hearing about. In-kind cost share encompasses all contributions to the project made by the subrecipient, consultant, partner, or anyone but you the applicant. These contributions often represent donated items or services. As such, in-kind cost share usually consists of volunteer personnel hours, donated existing equipment, and donated supplies. Where do you find match funding? I know that at this point in the article, it sort of sounds like match is person, like Mitch, and we’re obsessed with him. Match? Match? Stick with me. This is the section where I give you all the golden clues for where you can source the required match. There are several sources to examine for match dollars and it can be really worthwhile to spend some time thinking creatively how to reach your required match. Before you cross a grant off your list because it requires match, take a day or two and brainstorm with a coworker potential match sources. Below outlines a few of those sources and specific examples of thinking outside the box for meeting match requirements. Hopefully these help get you started on brainstorming. Leverage Other Grants The best source of match are other grants. Check with the funding agency for specific restrictions on matching funds as Federal grants may have unique stipulations on utilizing other grants as match. Otherwise, private sector grants are a great match option for certain portions of the project. This is one reason why at Learn Grant Writing we look for 2-5 grants to pursue per project (aka: a funding strategy). We want you to use those grants strategically in cohesion. We encourage you to think about leveraging your grants like dominoes. So, how can you do that? Well, for example, we have a student who received a commitment of $25,000 from a philanthropist to get their idea off the ground. Before spending that $25,000, Jacqueline used that promise of funding to secure another $86,000 by communicating the urgency of matching the philanthropist’s donation to secure it. The full interview, in case you’re curious, is right here. Cash Match Again, cash match is any item in your budget that is being reimbursed by you the applicant or the subrecipient. Cash match can include: Personnel: People in your organization working to deliver the project. These individuals will provide direct or indirect services for the grant-funded activities but who won’t be charged to the project’s budget expenditures as a line-item request to the funder. On a prorated basis, administrative, clerical, contracted, and facilities personnel can all be used as cash match line items. Note: salary for these personnel must be paid by your organization in order to be considered match. Fringe Benefits: Extra benefits that supplement an employee’s salary like health insurance. Similar to personnel, you can offer these benefits as match for administrative, clerical, contracted, and facilities personnel that are directly related to the project. These benefits must be prorated based on the actual amount of time these staff members will contribute to funder-supported activities. To be abundantly clear, your organization pays these benefits. Travel: All travel costs necessary to the performance of the project that your organization will pay for from its own funds. Equipment: Items that have a useful life beyond one year like a computer. This equipment must be purchased by your organization and be directly related to the grant project. Supplies: Items to be consumed during the project purchased by your organization with its own money. Other places to look for cash match include:\nSpecialized Allocation: For example, when your chief financial officer or council transfers cash from the general operating funds account into a specially allocated account to be used only for cash matching funds. General Operating Funds: Unrestricted monies to pay the day-to-day operating expenses of your organization. Due to the fact that these funds are unrestricted, you’re able to utilize them for match. In-Kind Match In-kind match encompasses all contributions to the project made by the subrecipient, consultant, partner, or anyone but you the applicant. In-kind cost share encompasses all contributions made by sub-recipients. Construction: Eligible construction is any aspect of infrastructure work that will be donated by trade professionals or volunteers. This is only applicable if the project is a capital project including new construction or renovation of a physical structure. Contractual: All costs related to sub-recipients. These include project partners, contractors, or specialized consultants. These individuals will lend their expertise and time to the project after it’s funded but whose expenses may not be requested from the grant-funder. Equipment: Items that have a useful life beyond one year like a computer. You must document fair market value for each item. Eligible equipment must be on hand from existing inventory. Indirect Costs: Expenses of doing business that are not readily identified with a particular grant, contract or project like the electricity bill. If you’re struggling to identify matching funds, use indirect charges as a matching contribution to be absorbed by your project. Make sure you know and follow each specific funder’s directions for how to include and calculate indirect charges. Supplies: Items to be consumed during the project. Eligible supplies must be on hand from existing inventory. Travel Expenses: Eligible travel must be grant-related for key or ancillary personnel, and money for the expenses can’t be requested from the grant funder. Miscellaneous: Other eligible sources include utilities and telephone expenses related to implementing the project but that aren’t allowable line items in the funding request; printing, copying, postage, and evaluation expenses not included in contractual or supplies; and any other costs your project will incur that haven’t been requested from the funder. 👉 When you’re preparing your budget, avoid this #1 most common mistake: anything you list in the cost share tab must be accounted for in the other tabs. Otherwise you are cost sharing for an expense that isn’t listed. If you want a better example, here's a short YouTube video we made to describe this concept on a whiteboard. How do you use match funding strategically? You might be reading this wondering why you should pursue grants that require match dollars when other funders don’t. Is all the time and effort to find match dollars even worth it? Great question. We’re here to tell you that it is worth it. Actually, it’s more than worth it for the following reasons: The reality is that funders want their dollars to go as far as possible. You establish urgency by showing that additional funding can be leveraged if this grant is awarded. Paint a picture in your narrative of grant funding you have pursued or will pursue to demonstrate the relationship between funding sources. This is where you put your storytelling and persuasive skills to work —make magic and compel the funder to award the grant. Match allows you, as an organization, to show a donor the in-kind support and donations of the community. Match helps to demonstrate the rock solid foundation of support you have and that your organization is reliable. In other words, you can be trusted for financial stability. This also helps show the grant making agency your high level of commitment to achieving a fundraising goal. Again, the funder understands that your organization is established and faithful to your mission. If match is reached through new money or new donors, it shows your organization is willing to put in the work to increase your donor base and find new ways to engage your community. New money is defined as 1) a gift of money or property that exceeds a donor's gift in the previous year, 2) a gift from a newly acquired donor, or 3) a large amount of money recently acquired by a person or family. Basically, new money and new donors are really good for your organization because it means that you’re growing and connecting with a wider community of supporters. Free Grant Budget Template If preparing a grant budget scares you, those days are about to be over! Download the free grant budget template below and take our free grant writing class to learn how to use it.\nFree Template Final takeaway You do not need to be scared of match. Match, also known as cost share, is simply the cash value of all the cost sharing made by you, the applicant, or your partners to help fund a project. There are two primary types of match which are cash and in-kind contributions. Sources of match funding are not as elusive as one might initially think. Depending on the funding guidelines, you can use volunteer personnel hours, donated equipment, and/or cold hard cash to reach match requirements. Moreover, match can help demonstrate to funders the strong support your organization has. Meeting or exceeding match proves to funders that their contributions are making a tangible difference through a well planned project that is set up for success. For more tips and tricks on grant funding and writing a proposal, be sure to check out and follow us on Instagram for updates and course information. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-11-06","description":"Understanding how match funding works (also known as cost share) can be intimidating. Learn what match funding is and how to avoid the","formatted_date":"November 6, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-match-funding-grants-1400w_hu_4c5f931bb3634246.jpg","permalink":"/blog/match-funding-grants/","slug":"match-funding-grants","summary":"And, why you shouldn't be afraid of match funding.\nLearn how to use match funding strategically.\n","title":"What Is Match Funding For Grants?"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":"New Book on Grant Writing!","content":" “Grant writing is overwhelming.”\n\"I don't know where to start.\" Any of that sound familiar? I can relate! When you first decide to write grants, it's natural to look for a good book. The trouble is that the books available are either too dense or they call you a dummy! You know what I'm talking about. 😉 This book takes a different approach. I decided to write this book to make grant writing more personable and approachable. This book shares stories of lessons I learned the hard way and how you can avoid making the same mistakes. The book is structured to answer the most common questions I'm asked. It is a simple guide to get you underway immediately. Plus, in this new 2nd edition we talk about grant writing as a career choice so imposter syndrome does not hold you back from a life you love. Snag your copy of this book here. P.S. you can download the 1st edition for free here. The book covers topics like: The 7 steps to writing a winning application, How to write a convincing narrative, Where to find grants to go after, How to avoid running out of time when applying, Where to do if you don’t have any match funding, How to prepare a grant budget (with bonus access to a free budget spreadsheet template!), How to center the community in your work, How to not burn out as a grant writer, and The grant writer’s kryptonite - imposter syndrome, and more. A lot of people want to become grant writers, but most do not take the first step to learn how. Stand apart. Make grant writing your superpower. 🦄 It is a skill set that cannot be taken away from you. Once you know how to write grant proposals, you are perceived in awe by others who think it is too complex to learn! This book will fast track your learning curve to become a talented grant writer. Is Grant Writing A Good Career For You? Take the 3 minute personality quiz to find out!\nTake The Quiz Check out what others have said: \u0026nbsp; I would love to know what you think. You can read more about this book and get a copy here.\nFree Audio Book We have turned the book into a podcast that makes it easy to listen to on-the-go. Get instant access after you provide your email below.\nGet Free Audio Book ","date":"2020-09-30","description":"This book takes a different approach to teaching you how to write grants and secure grant funding. It is personable and easy to read.","formatted_date":"September 30, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-book-on-how-to-write-a-grant_hu_6dcec64db748cd3d.jpg","permalink":"/blog/how-to-write-a-grant-book/","slug":"how-to-write-a-grant-book","summary":"Lots of people want to explore their curiosity about grant writing.\nWe wrote this book to introduce you to the fundamentals of grant writing.\n","title":"Become a Grant Writing Unicorn With This Book"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":"Writing Your Grant Narrative","content":" It seems like the internet is filled with general grant writing tips that aren’t too useful. We don’t want to add to the noise at all, but these tips are genuine rules to live by when grant writing. Why? It makes the writing process faster and helps your grant reviewer find the information they need. The tips below assume you have already set up a narrative ‘skeleton’ or template for filling in your responses. If you haven’t, get access to our free grant writing class and learn how to prep your narrative. Once you have that in place and are ready to start writing, here are tips and tricks to consider: Tips for Writing Grant Narrative Write fast and furiously! It can be so tempting to go look up facts or information, but in your first draft try to not leave the word document. While you are typing, just make notes of sections you want to add facts or information and come back to it later. Use bullet points to list ideas. Ideally turn off your internet so you can’t be tempted by the distraction of looking up information! If you find yourself going around and around on a single sentence, just skip it, even if it’s incomplete and move on. The more you force yourself to do this, the faster you will write. Before you know it, you will have a complete first draft narrative! Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Target 20%+ more words in your first draft Target 20%+ more words in your first draft than you actually need. When you start editing, you will slash content from the first draft to be as concise and clear as possible. To prevent you from having to go look for more content, fill your first draft with plenty of information. Use the wording from the narrative question In your response, use the wording from the narrative question. For instance, a common question in narratives would say something like this: “Clearly state the specific technical problem or opportunity addressed by the project and its importance.” To help you make sure you are responding fully, start your narrative with, “The specific technical problem being addressed by the project is …”. After finishing that description, write, “The importance of the problem is…” Sometimes I’ll even bold and italicize those sections so it’s easy for the reviewer to see where I responded to each section of the prompt. Even if you choose to delete the formatting later, it helps you visually make sure you responded to each question in the narrative guidelines. Start with end of application Start with the end of the application. The first part of an application is almost always worth the least amount of points and the most tempting to waste precious writing time on. If you start from the bottom and work your way to the front, you get into the most complex parts of the application (i.e. work plan or benefits section). By the time you make it to the summary or project background section, your writing is well tuned, and you can crank it out effortlessly. Write project team section early Write your project team section early on. As we talk about in the Project Development course, one of the best things you can do early on is get resumes from your team. Getting resumes can be like pulling teeth. Get them as fast as you can and then it provides instant content for writing the project team section of your narrative. Almost every application – even just a two-page letter of inquiry – requires knowing who the people behind the project are and their relevant experience and qualifications. Don’t go overboard on abbreviations Don’t go overboard on abbreviations. If you aren’t using the abbreviation later in the narrative, don’t abbreviate it. If you don’t use the abbreviation often and it’s spread throughout the narrative, consider just writing out the full name that the abbreviation stands for. Your grant reviewer won’t remember the abbreviations and shouldn’t have to go back in the narrative to hunt down its meaning. Calculate how long each response should be compared to its point value Calculate how long each response should be compared to its point value. There’s no sense in using half of your narrative on a section that’s only worth 10% of the total grant scoring. Divide the total points for scoring by the number of narrative pages allowed and multiple that figure by the percentage assigned to each section. For example, if the grant is scored against a 100-point rubric and you can have 10 narrative pages and the work plan section is worth 40%, you know that section should take about four pages (i.e. 100 points/10 pages=0.1 pages x 40%= 4 pages). Better video instruction on this is described in our Grant Writing Training. Key Lessons for Draft Of Grant Narrative Write fast and furiously; don’t leave the narrative to chase down information! Target 20%+ more words in your first draft than you need. In your response, use the wording from the narrative question. Start with the end of the application. Get resumes from your team ASAP to write the project team section. Don’t go overboard on abbreviations. Calculate how long each response should be compared to its point value. Remember, this process is much easier if you have a narrative 'skeleton'. You can download a free mini course on how to prep your narrative here. For more tips and tricks on grant funding and writing a proposal, be sure to check out our FREE Grant Writing Class! You can also follow us on Instagram for updates and course information. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-09-30","description":"It seems like the internet is filled with general grant writing tips that\naren’t too useful. We don’t want to add to the noise at all, but these\ntips are genuine rules to live by when grant writing.\n","formatted_date":"September 30, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-tips-tricks-writing-grant-narrative-1400w_hu_93499a604fbafc01.jpg","permalink":"/blog/writing-your-first-draft-grant-narrative/","slug":"writing-your-first-draft-grant-narrative","summary":"Even as pros, it can be overwhelming starting a new grant application.\nThis post shares our best tips for learning to write your first draft\nof a grant narrative quickly and fearlessly.\n","title":"Tips for Writing Your First Draft of a Grant Narrative"},{"author":"Alexis Swenson","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/alexis-swenson_hu_36819fe445d25aeb.jpeg","card_title":null,"content":" The ultimate writing dilemma? As a grant writer, should I write grants in the first or third person? Ah, a question as old as...grant writing. We get it. It’s a good question. We have asked that very question ourselves because our high school English teachers and college professors hammered in that using the first person was not appropriate for research papers, but does grant writing need to abide by that same rule? Also, wowza, it just doesn’t feel right to only use the third person in grant proposals. Can you relate? The short answer to that question, “Should I write grants in the first or third person?”, is that both the first and the third person are fine! You should use a blend of the first person and the third person when writing proposals. In this blog post, we’ll break down what is the difference between the first person and the third person, what style of writing grant writing really is, our reasoning for using a blend, an example of blending in action, the importance of writing with the end goal in mind, and a few extra tips for successful writing. In other words, continue reading for the long(er) answer. 👇 Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class What is the difference? First, what is the difference between the first person and the third person? According to Owl at Purdue, the first person or first person point-of-view refers to using the first-person pronouns like I or We. Conversely, the third person or third person point-of-view refers to the use of third-person pronouns like he, she, they, and it. Generally, the use of first person point-of-view is usually avoided in academic writing (the reason why good ol’ Ms. Brooks was liberal with that red pen on our research papers!). Typically, the third person point-of-view has a wide range of uses in both creative and academic contexts. This wide range of appropriate usage makes it a bit more challenging to determine when and where to use the third person. More of a YouTube person? Watch the video on this topic here. What is grant writing? Even more challenging is that grant writing is its own particular style of writing. Grant writing is a combination of creative storytelling and more technical or academic style writing. According to the Association of Fundraising Professionals, a grant is, “a financial donation given to support a person, organization, project, or program.” We know that a grant is only successful if we meet the requirements in the funding guidelines (and some!) and if we can tell our organization’s story in a compelling way while including appropriate technical information. Basically, how we tell our story or write our proposal is just as important as what our story is and what information our proposal includes. In that regard, grant writing requires stylistic finesse. Thus, the question of writing in the first person or the third person matters. It matters a great deal. The fact that you are curious about it says a lot about you as a grant writer. It says that you care about your work and your organization. We love working with people who care. :) People also ask us if grant writing is hard. Doubtless, grant writing is a unique skill complete with its own challenges, but that’s why Learn Grant Writing exists. We are here to give you grant writing help, transform you into a grant writing unicorn, and teach you how to win grants to make tangible, positive change in your community. Why use both first person and third person in grant writing? In short, we teach people to use both the first and the third person because we really are no different than you: we want to have our cake and eat it too. We want the best of both worlds. Breaking it down, you could use the third person or “Churches United for the Homeless” throughout the entirety of your narrative. This would come across as specific and formal. It would also offer repeated subliminal advertising of the organization during the review process. Subliminal advertising is using images and sounds to influence consumers' responses without their being conscious of it. It’s a little sneaky, but it works. At the same time, using “Churches United for the Homeless” often takes up more space in your already significantly limited word count requirement. It can sometimes also appear impersonal or aloof. On the other hand, the first person point of view has the benefits of sounding more personal, relatable, and collaborative. To some funders, it may also come across as being a bit too vague. Applicants lose the advantage of reminding reviewers who the organization is because other proposals will also be using the universal “we” source. For example, if your proposal is 30 pages long and you only used the first person, there’s no doubt that by page 29 the reviewer will have forgotten who the applicant organization is. You’re just another “we” and “our organization” trying to do good work in the world. In our decades of experience, we have found that it is antiquated to write strictly in the third person and that it is too informal to write strictly in the first person. Used on their own, neither form achieves what we want. Thus, we prefer to use a blend to reap the advantages of both forms. Using a blend makes the proposal more readable and personable for our narrative reviewers. Moreover, a mix of both creates a natural sentence structure variety which is key to producing good writing. Our biggest hard and fast rule is to never say “I” but use “we” and “our” to refer to your organization. Grant writing made easy: blending in action We’ll go through an example with you. Take a look at the excerpt below from a grant application below:\n“Much of our focus has been devoted to tackling recidivism. We now need support to kick-start the Department’s objectives regarding recovery services.” That above excerpt is written in the first person and the third person. It reads nicely, huh? No hiccups. No issues. Comparatively, in the blurb below we changed everything to the third person:\n“The Department’s resources have been focused on tackling recidivism. The organization needs support to kick-start the Department’s objectives regarding recovery services.” That excerpt does not read as smoothly as the original version. There are only so many different ways to rephrase “the Department ”. Furthermore, at only two words, “the Department”, is a relatively short name for an organization. But think of other names: Churches United for the Homeless (five words!), Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Red River Valley (nine words!), Missions in Motion International Ministries (five words!). What a mouthful it would be to use the third person with an organization name as long as those. There is no good reason for us to repeat that name multiple times in one sentence or even in one paragraph. Trying to do so makes the excerpt extra clunky when it doesn’t need to be. To be abundantly clear, clunky is not a characteristic of high quality, readable, and compelling writing. Sure, there are instances you can abbreviate like RMHC for Ronald McDonald House Charities, but we don’t encourage many abbreviations. Grant reviewers don’t know or won’t remember all of your organization’s unique acronyms or abbreviations. You’re ingrained into your organization’s work and at staff meetings everyone knows what you’re talking about when you speak in acronyms. However, the grant reviewer is not at those same staff meetings and they do not understand what you’re talking about when you use an excessive amount of acronyms. You need to keep it simple and crystal clear for your grant reviewers. In other words, you need to limit the amount of acronyms and abbreviations you include in your proposal. Our end goal: why grant writing is important Our goal is to create a positive experience for our narrative reviewers. We want to combine our story with persuasive statistics and only include the most helpful and purposed words. We want our narrative to read like an informative, compelling, well-written book. We do all of that in order to win the grant funding we are requesting so that we can incite positive change in our community—the whole reason why grant writing is so important! Solely writing in the first person or the third person does not bring us closer to reaching that goal. For more on how we teach about using the first and third person in grant writing, check out Module 3 in our program called the Global Grant Writers Collective®. At about the 10-minute mark, we offer a deep dive into the question. Meredith reads aloud a few examples so that you can physically hear the difference between a perfectly blended first and third person sentence and clunky sentence. Write with the end goal in mind. Think carefully about your grant reviewers and what their perspective is when reading your proposal. Think about them especially when you’re in the editing stages of the grant writing process. Trust yourself At the end of the day, writing is a bit about feeling or, at the very least, the flow of your written word. Sometimes it is okay to ask yourself, “what feels most right in this sentence to you?” First or third person? As long as your grammar, punctuation, and spelling are on point, you needn’t worry too much about royally messing up the rest of the sentence. Chances are that you are golden. So, if it seems like the first person might work and flow better than the third person, go with that. A favorite trick we constantly use and recommend is to read the sentence or paragraph in question out loud. Listen, we promise that all the best writers do it. You can trust that you are in good company when you sit at your desk or walk around the block with paper in hand reading your work out loud to yourself—we do it too. (You better believe that at least one person on our team read this very paragraph aloud.) Something different happens when you physically hear the words rather than simply see them again for the millionth time. When you hear your words you can catch mistakes, bad words, needless words, clarify the flow of your proposal, and figure out if you should use the first person or the third person. We encourage you to read your work aloud, edit as necessary (with the end goal in mind), then read it aloud a final time. It sounds better after your edits, huh? Additionally, as grant writers, we need to trust our gut. Rarely does our gut steer us in the wrong direction. Plus, remember that we are powerful grant writing unicorns and with great power comes great responsibility. Part of the responsibility of being a unicorn is taking ourselves seriously (but not too seriously), trusting our intuition, and making moves with confidence! Make this small move of deciding the first person or the third person with confidence. As a final fail safe, ask your editor. Per best practice, here at Learn Grant Writing, we always recommend having an outside individual complete a final read-through of your grant application prior to submission. If you’re concerned, ask that individual to specifically review your use of first and/or third person. Final Takeaway In summary, as grant writers we need to use both the first person and third person in our narratives. Write grants in a blend of the first and the third person for readability and sentence structure variety. The ultimate goal is preparing a clear, easy to read narrative that will effectively compel grant reviewers to fund our request. We need both first and third person to make our goal a reality. Grant Writing Resources Keep reading our blog articles. Specifically, this one has more tips for writing draft narratives. This post highlights the top mistakes grant writers make and how to avoid them. Also, check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-09-29","description":"Should I write grants in the first or third person? In this blog post, we will break down what is the difference between the first person and the third person, what style of writing grant writing really is, how to write a grant application using a blend, an example of blending in action, the importance of writing with the end goal in mind, and a few extra tips for successful writing.","formatted_date":"September 29, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-write-grant-first-person-third-person_hu_347cea10738342fa.jpg","permalink":"/blog/write-grants-first-person-third-person/","slug":"write-grants-first-person-third-person","summary":"We will break down what is the difference between the 1st and\n3rd person and how to write a grant application using a blend.\n","title":"Grant Writing: First or Third Person?"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" \"I just learned about {grant name}, but it is due in {insanely short time frame}. Should I go after it?\" Smalls, you're killing me! The answer is no. No, no, no. Still, no. Don't even try to convince yourself it's the perfect fit. Now that we're done being sassy, let's explain the tricks your mind is going to play on you.\n\"But this is the PERFECT grant for us!” If you are only learning about a grant once the announcement has come out, you are too late. You don't have the time to properly examine if it is a good fit. Your judgment is now blurry because you want the signs to say “go for it!” Even if you follow the rule of contacting the funding agency to gauge if the program is a good fit, the funder can lead you astray. Once an announcement is out, many funders will encourage you to apply because it makes their programs look better if they are competitive. Another issue is that a funding agency representative often cannot talk to you about the application or your project once announcements are published. Remember, this advice doesn't come out of nowhere. It is because we learned the lesson the hard way – a few times. Even when you know better, you can fall into the trap of thinking “this one grant is the exception to the rule, and I’m going to go for it!” A little over a year ago, we dropped everything to help a local nonprofit pursue a national arts grant. It seemed like the perfect fit, and they desperately needed the funding. The application was pretty easy, so we agreed to prepare the application with just a few days notice. You can probably guess what happened. The application was not successful. It also took forever to figure this out because, in hastily applying, we had misspelled the email for our main point of contact for the funding agency. 🤦 We later figured out that only 1-2% of applicants were successful. Generally, the rule of thumb is to not apply for grants with less than a 20% likelihood of success. If we'd taken the time to properly examine the grant program, we would have learned that fun fact on competitiveness and never applied. “It’s a simple application and won’t take that long.” Don’t be fooled into thinking a two-page application won’t take time. In fact, the shorter the application, the more your word choice matters, and that requires more editing time. If you drop everything to spend a week preparing an application that has low odds of success, you literally just blew a full 40-60 hours of work on nothing. Even if it was “just a day” – that’s a day you aren’t getting back! What if you put the same amount of time into developing the project further and putting together a proper funding strategy? A funding strategy should not take more than 10-25 hours to prepare. (A funding strategy is a road map for knowing what grants you will pursue ahead of time and when.) Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video “My boss insists I apply. I don’t have a choice.” Okay, first of all, you do have a choice. A Boss never threatens you to write the grant or else. (And if that is the case, you are in an abusive work relationship and should find a new job!). Their demand is coming from wanting that grant resource and trusting you to get it done. To counteract these demands, you must find your voice and paint your case with facts.\nCalculate Likelihood of Success You do this by dividing the total number of applicants by the number of awards made. You will do this for the previous year's program. Many times, you can't figure out how many applicants applied. You will have to contact the funding agency and ask. This is an easy question to open up communication with the funding agency representative. Target a ratio that is no less than 20%. If there are 100 applicants and 24 of those are funded, that means you have a 24% chance of getting funded. We're good with those odds. We may sometimes dip down into the 13-15% range, but must have strong reasons for doing so. (Here is a detailed blog post on how to calculate this and other simple math tricks). Look into the Funding Agency’s History Often, when you’re feeling pressured to hurry and apply, it is because someone is interpreting text on the project website as the “perfect fit.” The language used on a funder’s website does not always reflect their current giving priorities. If you are applying for private foundation funding, you can access their giving history by reviewing their 990 forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service. These are gold mines of good information! Locate 990 forms for free through the Foundation Center or your Instrumentl subscription. (Visit this post for more information on Top 10 Grant Databases like Instrumentl). If the funding program says it funds fighting obesity, saving the polar bears, and art and culture, let’s look at their 990 form to confirm this is true. Perhaps then you see that they actually only fund arts and culture projects, so don’t bother with your initiative to save the polar bears! Check out our blog post on how to use the 990-finder to your benefit here. Calculate the True Cost of Grant Preparation Even simple applications have a cost for preparation. Take your hourly rate and add 20-30% for your benefits (like healthcare, retirement savings, insurance, etc.). Multiply that by the number of hours you would spend on this project. Do the same for anyone else involved. We often think our time is free, but it is not. It is good to be clear on what those costs are, so you use the precious resource of time wisely. Especially think about this when asking important, well-paid people to meet. An hour of their time can easily exceed $1,000 in value. Be confident with your intuition, even if you are a new grant writer. Early in my career, I went head to head with an engineer that wanted to pursue wastewater treatment funding for a community that had no chance of getting awarded. This community had the lowest service fees state-wide for providing wastewater services. The project they were trying to get funded was frankly just a routine maintenance improvement. The City did not need a grant. They needed to raise their rates. The engineer fought me on this and said, “It earns us goodwill if we show the community we tried”. I put my foot down and refused to prepare the application. I have done this countless times since then when it doesn’t make sense to apply. Sometimes, a grant looks like a great fit, but once you get into the thick of it, you realize some fatal flaw. Don’t try to hide it. If you see it, the funder will too. If you do not believe in your heart that you have a good chance at winning the grant, don’t waste your time! Grants are too much work to not focus exclusively on those providing the best chance of winning. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Why This Matters Crash preparation of grant applications is a recipe for burnout. Grant writing is a lot like the role that marketing coordinators have in professional consulting companies. The average burnout is three years, and it is because they are always on deadlines. If you want to be in the game for the long run, you have to intentionally avoid burn out. Otherwise, you will never want to write another grant again. In addition, you can tarnish your reputation if you always rush things and beg favors from people so that you can make a grant deadline. It is unprofessional to ask for last-minute letters of support or rush a resolution from your council or board of directors. We all need favors from time to time, but ask for them wisely. There are exceptions to the rule, but you must take responsibility for choosing to apply. Have we ever dropped everything to apply for a grant with an impossibly close deadline? Yes. I once prepared a U.S. Department of Energy grant in five days almost entirely by myself. Federal energy grants are really hard! The grant guidelines are always at least eighty pages long. They have a ton of required attachments and very specific requirements down to the font type. I agreed to write the grant for a few reasons:\nI had worked with the project manager and trusted him to be responsive and helpful. I had worked with the applicant before, and they had an exceptional staff. The project was one of the last infrastructure upgrades to help the City convert their electricity production to biomass. By being able to reference these past successes, I could easily demonstrate the applicant’s capacity to deliver the project on schedule and on budget. A formal stakeholder group had driven development of the project for years. This gave me the confidence in their strong working relationships to help with last minute requests like getting letters of support. The grant was successful! I was thrilled with the outcome, but I accepted full responsibility at the beginning of the project taking it on. Nobody was forcing me to apply. I made the choice. More often than not, I have been burned rushing a grant application without proper due diligence. Please let me spare you from making the same mistakes. Your success rate will be higher than average if you do nothing more than follow this rule alone: don't chase grants. Choose them wisely and intentionally. Watch the Video If you don't already, be sure to follow us on Instagram. Be sure to check out our FREE online Grant Writing Class with Tips and Tricks for Narrative Writing here. Serious about becoming a grant writer? Learn about our online grant writing training course. ","date":"2020-09-27","description":"Grant writing can be overwhelming. To minimize any unnecessary\nstress, learn these strategies for never chasing grants haphazardly.\n","formatted_date":"September 27, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-avoiding-last-minute-grant-1400w_hu_e59a36656987fc3f.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-tips-avoiding-last-minute-grant-pursuits/","slug":"grant-writing-tips-avoiding-last-minute-grant-pursuits","summary":"If you want a high success rate writing grants and to not burn out,\nit is critical to learn how to avoid last minute pursuits. Here is\nour advice when you navigate sticky situations.\n","title":"How to Avoid Last Minute Grant Pursuits"},{"author":"Helen Richards","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/helen-richards_hu_eb12784a13c75236.jpg","card_title":"Top Mistakes Made by Grant Writers and How to Avoid Them","content":" This post is brought to us by grant writing student Helen Richards of Cradley Heath, West Midlands, England. She brings a unique perspective to grant writing as someone who has assessed thousands of grant applications. Keep Getting Rejected? You’ve shed blood, sweat and tears to get your grant application into the funder. You sit and wait, nervously twiddling your thumbs. Your charity/voluntary organisation/non-profit is relying on your grant writing wizardry to win the day. Weeks pass. You get a letter/email into your inbox. You open it, twitching in anticipation. Then your heart sinks. Another rejection. You sigh and chuck the letter in the bin/delete the email and wonder how it all went wrong. Then curse under your breath as you know you must tell everyone else that you’ve failed. Rejection hurts. No one likes to be rejected in general, especially when other people are relying on you.\nHandily for you and your grant writing brothers and sisters, I’ve compiled the following tips to help you avoid the dreaded reject letter/email. I have read over 3,000 grant applications while being a grant officer for a well-known grant program in the UK. I’ve seen everything from small grant awards of £10,000 up to £750,000, and I have found that the same advice applies no matter the size grant you pursue! Read on and avoid some of the most common pitfalls that befall grant applicants. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Not Fully Completing Application Forms This may seem obvious, but in the grant programme I managed in the UK, I came across so many applications that didn’t get out of the starting blocks due to being incomplete. Yes, filling in a form can be tedious, especially if you are in a rush. I know there are all those little tick boxes and seemingly useless sections that you think you can skip over. You can’t rely solely on the form prompting you to complete all the fields when it's online or electronic, and especially not when it’s in another format such as a PDF or a paper form. But, from the funders perspective all those boxes are there for a reason. You need to pay attention and make sure you provide the required information, that is specific to your organisation and the funders requirements. Some of the most common things applicants miss out are: Contact details; either not completing these fully or leaving sections blank Organisation details and address not being fully completed Not providing the required number of contacts for your organisation type Not fully completing the project description/project idea/sections Every application that is incomplete, either gets rejected outright or is delayed as staff must go back to the applicant to get this information. Make sure you check everything on the form has been completed and all the required contact and organisation details have been provided. Then check it again just to be sure! Then get someone else to check it. It’s no good having an amazing application if the basics are incomplete! Not Responding to Correspondence Closely related to point one, is point number two. If your application is incomplete but only partially, most funding officers will drop you an email or a call to get the missing information. They won’t wait around for you to respond forever. Funding Officers are busy people and have KPI’S (Key Performance Indicators) to adhere to. I think when I worked in funding, we had a two- or three-week grace period for incompletes. If the applicant did not respond in this time, then their application was closed as being incomplete. If the applicant then called up, they had to submit a whole new application and go to the bottom of the pile. To avoid this I suggest: Setting up new email addresses for all your project contacts, that they specifically use for the project. Make sure they are spelled correctly on your application form! This will lessen the chance of emails from the funder being lost in the sea of spam floating around your existing inboxes. About spam, always check your junk folder. I have had issues with emails going straight into people’s spam folders. Make sure your contact phone numbers are correct and for mobiles, switched on. If you do get an email about an incomplete, respond asap to lessen any further potential delays. Taking Things for Granted AKA Your Funding Officer Knows Everything You may assume that the person assessing your application has an encyclopaedic like knowledge of all things funding related. Whilst many funding officers may indeed have a large knowledge base, do not assume this is the case. You may be allocated a starry eyed, new to the grant world funding officer, like I was when I first started. You may get someone who is unfamiliar with your niche or subject matter. Remember funding officers are people too with their own varying knowledge and experience base. If your application is page after page of jargon and obscure terms that even the most experienced of funding officers would struggle with, then you have a problem. This stands a high chance of being rejected. For example, I once received an application and had no idea what the project was or what they wanted to achieve with it. I consider myself a dab hand with the written word, but this one stumped me. It was full of words and phrases I’d never heard of. I reread it several times and was still scratching my head afterwards. I took it to my manager on the off chance I was just having a bad day, but he admitted he couldn’t make heads nor tails of it either. The result? It was rejected on the grounds of unclear project aims and how it fit in with the funding programme. Make sure to avoid jargon and make it clear and specific as to what you are applying for funding for. This will make for a much happier funding officer and increase your chances of success! A Lack of Flow and Continuity Across the Application Form This may sound like an odd one but hear me out. Imagine if you started reading a novel and the first chapter was about a gruesome murder being investigated by the police. Well, you would expect the story to progress along this theme, wouldn’t you? Imagine getting to chapter three and suddenly, the novel changes genre. It wouldn’t make any logical sense to you and would most likely get terrible Amazon reviews. I saw many applications where it looked like different sections had been bolted together from totally different projects. The project summary was about one thing, the budget another and the project aims something else entirely. This is not a good way to construct your application form, it rings alarm bells with the funding officer and does not give a good impression of your organisation. Is there continuity across your application form? Do the sections flow and make sense? On a similar theme, organisations used to just copy and paste a previous application and submit this, sometimes without even changing the dates! I appreciate why charities and not for profits do this, as a time and resource saver, but it’s a fatal mistake. If you’ve not bothered to update the information and make the application current, the funder will reject your proposal. Applying for Ineligible Items And Bad Budgets Whichever funding programme you apply to, it will have its own set of rules. This includes what the funder will and won’t pay for. If you submit a project where most of your budget is for ineligible items, guess what happens? Yup, a big fat reject stamp. Be sure you read the programme guidance before you start putting your proposal together. This will help you avoid this common pitfall. Some funders have odd little rules that applicants can easily miss, such as not funding used vehicles (but funding new ones!). Other budget pitfalls to avoid include: Do not use miscellaneous or contingency as budget headings. This will most likely result in the funder contacting you for more information, thus slowing down the whole process. Especially miscellaneous, I mean that could be anything. Avoid. Make sure it’s clear what each item in the budget is; remember a human will read your application. Make sure your project is value for money. A lot of grant funding is from public money and is zealously guarded by the Funding Officer and whomever the Funder is. For example, if you list 20 iPad’s; can you justify why you need these specifically for the project? Or would a cheaper type of tablet work just as well? Projects can be rejected on the grounds of poor budgeting and/or not demonstrating value for money. With seasonal workers/staff make sure you put down the hourly rate and how many hours per week they will be working. Again, make sure the hourly rate/salary is fair and demonstrates value for money. If you put some far-fetched hourly rate, the funding officer will be raising eyebrows (as well as questions) about your budget. Ensure budget totals are correct at the bottom of the page. Be sure to indicate how much of the project costs you are aiming to get from the funder, and how much your organisation is putting in from its own funds (for each item in the budget). Align items in the budget with the activities you are planning to deliver. This must sound obvious but I have seen many applications where the budget had no apparent relation to the project. This will trigger a Funding Officer’s ‘Spidey Sense.’ They will most likely become suspicious, and if they are kind, they might contact you for an explanation. That is if they don’t just reject the project up front of course. Don’t even think about applying for dishonest reasons. The longer the Funding Officer has been in post, the better their ‘Spidey Sense’ will be. Include a budget. Yes, people sometimes miss this out entirely. Not Asking For Feedback If you do get the dreaded rejection letter/email, then all hope is not lost. Call or email the funder and ask them to provide some more feedback. Ask them for specific examples as to why you did not meet the programme criteria, or for any other pointers that could help you improve the application. Funding Officers are not gargoyles, at least in my experience and generally a friendly and understanding bunch. If your application has potential and the programme allows it, you can always reapply. I can see all the introverts cringing at the thought of making a phone call but trust me it’s worth it. Just make a note of what you want to say beforehand, and you’ll be fine. Summary Of Tips To recap, remember that the top mistakes grant applicants make are:\nNot Fully Completing Application Forms. Not Responding to Correspondence. Taking Things for Granted A Lack of Flow and Continuity Across the Application Form Applying for Ineligible Items and Bad Budgets Not Asking for Feedback Avoid these pitfalls and you’ll be on your way to grant writing success! What have you found to be the most difficult parts of grant writing? Shoot us a DM on Instagram! 🦄 Keep the learning journey going by checking out other blog articles here or check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in seven easy steps! Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-08-28","description":"Obvious as these tips may seem for your grant applications, they are incredibly easy mistakes to make. Learn them to avoid them and win grant funding!","formatted_date":"August 28, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-avoiding-grant-mistakes-1400w_hu_6e76e0418632505b.jpg","permalink":"/blog/top-mistakes-grant-applicants-make/","slug":"top-mistakes-grant-applicants-make","summary":"Obvious as these tips may seem, they are incredibly easy mistakes to make. Learn them to avoid them!","title":"Top Mistakes Grant Applicants Make (And How to Avoid Them)"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" We were never particularly gifted at math, but basic math comes in handy as a grant writer! For every single grant we seriously consider, we insist on knowing the applicant success rate. Applicant Success Rate for Grants What’s that you ask? That is how many applicants were awarded funding out of the total number of applicants.\nWhy? Now you may say this isn’t a good indication of success since your proposal will be above average. That hopefully is true, but when you get into grants that award less than 10% of applicants, it doesn’t matter how good your application is – the odds are just working against you! Take a peek at this video for a tutorial on how to determine applicant success rate. Or, keep on scrolling for an explanation of the calculation. How to Calculate Applicant Success Rate How do you calculate it? Divide the number of successful applicants by the total number of applicants. For example, if 80 grants were awarded and 400 applied, that equates to a 20% success rate (80/400=20%). What if that info isn’t published? Ask the funding agency. This is a non-negotiable detail to have before deciding to write a grant. Some programs are so competitive less than 5% of applicants are awarded (or even worse!). You must know this so you don’t waste time writing a grant with impossible chances of success. P.S. If you want to review other suggested questions to ask funding agencies, read this blog post on 3 Tests to Decide If a Grant is Worth Pursuing. What do we do with this information? Our rule of thumb is to not apply for grants with less than a 20% chance of success. We will tolerate down to a 12-15% range if we think we have an exceptionally well developed project and team, but it’s rare. As mentioned earlier, we do this so we are spending our time on grants that present good odds of success. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Why this matters? When you are dealing with bad odds of success, it doesn’t matter if you have a perfect grant application. Someone else will have a perfect application too! For that reason, it is critical to focus on the handful of grants that you are reasonably confident will be successful. To do this, you need a Funding Strategy. A Funding Strategyis our secret sauce. I developed this methodology to filter hundreds of grants and pick out the top 2-5 worth pursuing. You can learn a bit more about it here. We go way deep on this topic in Module 2 of Phase II of the Global Grant Writers Collective®. The point is, your resources are limited. Leverage your exceptional talents and energy for grant pursuits that are worth it. Plus, we want you to have a high win rate with your grants! Grant Writer Certification The other reason why it is so important to know how to calculate applicant success rate is to earn your grant writer certificate. Through the Global Grant Writers Collective®, we teach members about learning the competitiveness of a grant program. In order to pass a required grant writing assessment for earning a certificate, members must demonstrate correctly calculating applicant success rate. Scout’s honor: the Collective teaches a curriculum that is hands on and practical - we’re not messing around! Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now ","date":"2020-08-22","description":"We were never particularly gifted at math, but basic math comes\nin handy as a grant writer! Follow this one tip to increase your\nsuccess rate.\n","formatted_date":"August 22, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-grant-writing-tips-1400w_hu_6c8fec37982086cc.jpg","permalink":"/blog/must-do-math-before-writing-a-grant/","slug":"must-do-math-before-writing-a-grant","summary":"For every single grant we seriously consider, we insist on knowing\nthe applicant success rate. Check out this post for the other two\nmust do calculations before applying.\n","title":"Must Do Math Before Writing a Grant"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" When people like Anna want to take our online grant writing course, we have to ask, “Are you sure?” She already has a proven track record writing winning grants! How Anna Won Millions in Grant Funding But like us, Anna was a self-taught grant writer. She didn’t feel that she had optimized her processes and wanted to be fresh on the latest trends in grant writing. With that in mind, Anna joined Grant Writing: From Start to Funded. She has secured $2.1+ million in grants in the six months since taking our grant writing program. Here’s the breakdown of her wins:\nU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Indian Community Development Block Grant for $800,000 to fund a Tribal Elder’s Wellness Center. She used that grant to leverage another $100,000 of in-kind donated time from the North Pacific Rim Housing Authority! She won a $720,000 U.S. Department of Justice grant last September and was then pre-approved an additional $400,000 for her excellent management and use of funds. The Bureau of Indian Affairs awarded the Valdez Native Tribe a $10,000 grant for training and travel expenses for resiliency. She is now waiting to hear back on a $65,000 grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior to preserve artifacts. Last we checked in with Anna, she was in crunch mode on a complex National Endowment for the Humanities grant. She said she was in “the freaking out phase,” but if her track record is any indication, Anna will pull it off. We also connected her with a student looking to build her portfolio to help with last minute editing. As she said in the interview, Anna found it so reassuring to know that “there are other people out there that speak the same lingo!” She’s referring to our private community group of grant writers. Grant writing can be lonely when you’re doing it all by yourself. It’s invaluable to have others to collaborate with and bounce ideas off. . Overcoming ‘Bad’ Data To overcome eligibility issues with the Indian Community Development Block Grant, Anna had to be sure and focus on funding for tribal elders, as seniors are automatically considered an eligible group. The nuances of eligibility can be complex! Spend time confirming you are both eligible as an applicant and based on the specifics of your project. Why Managing a Grant Perfectly Is Key! The U.S. Department of Justice had extra funding. Because of Anna’s excellent grant administration skills, she was invited to apply for it. She was able to extend a three-year project to five years with an additional $400,000. Anna said, “We think we’re successful because we’re finding grants for exactly what we need.”\nOn What She Learned From Grant Writing: From Start to Funded Anna said that when she wrote grants for her farm in Nevada, they were smaller and manageable for her to do alone. When she moved into a larger organization, she had a team around her that she would rely on for certain inputs like the budget. She said, “Your course made it so I could do grant writing by myself. It polished all those steps...for instance the budgeting. It’s all great and fine to write the narrative, but you need to write it based on the budget...Now that I develop the budget first, the narrative is a breeze!” “The other thing I liked that you taught me was to just write.” What Anna is referencing there is about our tips on how to crank out your first draft of the grant narrative as fast as possible! It seems like we have all been told to write freely and then go back to edit, but it can be hard to do that in practice. It can be the reminder tips like that go an extra-long way as you perfect your writing habits. If you want to catch more of Anna’s interview, be sure to listen to it here.\nWant To Be A Grant Writing Unicorn Too? Who doesn’t want to grow up and be Anna?! She is an impressive leader, having a bigger impact on her community than she might realize. You can have a similar impact and career. Check out our free webinar workshop to learn common traits of successful grant writers and the career options available to you. Is Grant Writing For You? If you are looking for a career change and interested in grant writing consulting, check out this training on how to get started. Build a flexible life you love!\nWatch Video ","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Anna is a true grant writing unicorn. She has been doing it for years, writing grants for her farm in Nevada originally and now writing grants as the Tribal Administrator for the Valdez Native Tribe.","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/anna-bateman-grant-writer_hu_a9827784ab76cbfb.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/anna-bateman-winning-grants/","slug":"anna-bateman-winning-grants","summary":null,"title":"Anna Bateman Winning Millions in Grants"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" It happens to all of us at some point. We burn out in our careers and are craving something new. Anna discovered grant writing and what a wildly fulfilling journey the last six years have been! Becoming A Professional Grant Writer Anna’s former work situation became toxic, and she knew she needed to leave. She wasn’t coming up with any ideas on what to do next. Finally, she was so fed up, she quit without a plan. Around this same time, we went mountain biking and I encouraged her to consider grant writing. Anna has all the traits of a successful grant writer. She exudes positive energy. She’s highly community oriented. And, she knows how to keep people organized. It helps that she was an English major in college and likes to write. We connected well before I had a book about grant writing or an online course. Thanks to people like Anna, I now have a better roadmap to offer those interested in grant writing. But at the time, I pushed her into the deep end of the pool. Literally, I gave her a sample contract and told her to go win a grant writing consulting project so she could get paid to learn! Landing a Full-Time Grant Writing Job Anna started volunteering with two of her favorite nonprofits as a grant writer. She helped SheJumps, an organization that gets women and girls into the outdoors. She also volunteers with Evergreen East, a mountain bike advocacy organization in the Inland Pacific Northwest. After that, an engineering firm reached out looking for a grant writer they could hire. I referred them to Anna and the rest is history! She has been working for Varela Engineering and Associates in Spokane for five years. As an aside, our vision is to be the #1 platform in the world for credentialing grant writers and matching people up that want to hire professional grant writers. Experiences like this show how powerful it can be to connect the right people together! Why She Loves Grant Writing Anna loves that she gets to work on a lot of different types of projects. She notes that every grant is new and different. Even the same grant will have slight differences from year to year. “Being okay with not having all the answers but knowing that you can figure them out and working through it has been really fun and rewarding,” said Anna. She shares that getting into grant writing has taken her places professionally that she never would have imagined. Others in the grant writing community asked Anna how she got into grant writing, and she said she kept saying yes even though she didn’t know where it would lead. “You are a unicorn among engineers! They definitely don’t want to do the grant writing, but they are fun to work with.” That is the beauty of grant writing for job security! Most people dread it, so you will never be short of work opportunities. Anna’s Future in Grant Writing Anna is starting to think now about how she can continue to challenge herself. She works now for rural municipalities. She grew up in eastern Washington, so she loves working with the people and knows that these projects have a huge impact, like ensuring clean drinking water. Looking ahead, she wants to set her sights on bigger projects. Her largest projects presently are $15-20 million. She is quick to say that it is a mind-blowing project budget compared to her roots volunteering, where a $25,000 grant seemed momentous. Nope, Anna is going big. She wants to tackle $50-$200 million projects that are pursuing grant funding. We are excited to see where Anna goes with her grant writing career! Want to Become a Grant Writing Unicorn Too? Good move! The world needs more talented grant writers. Check out our free grant writing class on the 7 steps to write winning grant applications. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Burned out from her job, Anna quit with no plan. She picked up grant writing and ran with it as a volunteer. Not long thereafter she landed a full-time job grant writing!","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/anna-twohig-grant-writer_hu_bd6d0bcf55b69319.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/anna-twohig-professional-grant-writer/","slug":"anna-twohig-professional-grant-writer","summary":null,"title":"Anna Twohig's Career as a Professional Grant Writer"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Maybe some of you can relate to Emily’s story? Emily was thrust into a grant writer role at work because no one else wanted to do it. Winning a USDA Grant What was the first grant she was asked to do?\nA massively complex USDA Rural Utilities Services Community Connect Grant. She worked tirelessly (or rather she worked until she was quite tired!) to prepare this behemoth of a federal grant application. The verdict? No go. Not funded.\nNow, this is where many would give up. As tempting as it is to give up, resist the urge and contact the funder for a debrief meeting. You always, always, always want to reach out and understand what can be done better. Some discover their application wasn’t eligible or a poor fit. Be aware that if you take our grant writing training, that should never happen to you! We teach you how to find the right grants in the first place, so your precious time is spent wisely. But... even if you find the right grant, it might not be successful. That’s okay! Don’t beat yourself up. Nobody bats a 100% success rate. The magic comes in learning from the funder where your application fell short so you can address those concerns. Emily was thorough in gathering feedback from the funder. She discovered that her organization, the Arctic Slope Telephone Association Cooperative, needed to have a more robust public involvement process to prove community need. Let’s back up and provide an overview on the project. It proposed bringing broadband fiber connectivity from Utqiaġvik - the most northern community in the United States - to Atqasuk, a rural village of about 300 residents. Photo by Deborah Schildt on Unsplash Do you recall the days with satellite internet? Do you remember loading a page and then leaving to make a burrito (or whatever you do) because that’s how long it would take for the page to load? That’s what the people of Atqasuk have been dealing with! Not for much longer, however, as the $6.5 million project will soon bring broadband connectivity to every home. Specifics aside (watch the video interview for full details!), there are several key takeaways that Emily shares that we think you will like. Prove Public Involvement and Support The USDA knew that the project was supported by the community, but the application didn’t prove community need. To address this, ASTAC launched an intensive public outreach campaign which included questionnaires to every household. As you can imagine, getting questionnaires back from a community with extremely slow connectivity was quite a challenge. ASTAC got creative, however, and even let residents take a picture of their surveys and text it to them. The surveys helped tell the micro-stories that bring to life why the project is important. For example, one resident shared how he knows there’s this resource (called YouTube!) to learn nearly anything. He would love to use it to improve his auto mechanic skills, but it’s literally impossible to download a video in Atgasak. Another story was shared by the Food Bank of Alaska. They described the incredible logistics involved in helping people get food stamp benefits when there is barely an internet connection to do so. Getting those stories drawn out, and getting them written down, was a critical step for ASTAC’s application. The stories were documented in the surveys, peppered throughout the narrative, and captured in letters of support. Pay Attention to Definition of Eligibility The definition of rurality per the USDA is population density. Under that definition, rural Alaskan communities don’t meet the definition of rural as homes and facilities in a village are closely located together. It’s ironic, of course, because there is no place in the U.S. more rural than our rural Alaskan communities! Atgasuk is only accessible by bush plane or snowmachine trail in the winter. As a quick aside - the challenge Emily encountered here to prove eligibility is not uncommon. Be sure to pay extra-close attention to the nuances of a grant program to be 100% positive you have met the eligibility requirements. A habit we have started doing is including a one-page summary at the beginning of our grant narratives showing clearly that we meet eligibility requirements. If you want us to talk about this more, let us know in the comments! Back to Emily!\nWhat Emily Learned from Grant Writing: From Start to Funded Confidence! She said, “Your workshop gave me the confidence to fake it until I make it!” It’s true! Grant writing requires jumping in, getting a little out of your comfort zone, but having confidence in yourself to figure it out. Emily said she also appreciated the budget template we provide and getting instruction on how to use it. As she so aptly said, she could see how people could get really bogged down and mired in the stress of a grant budget. It was music to our ears to hear that Emily didn’t let the budget derail her. Download the budget template from our free resources page here. She also liked learning how to prepare a grant narrative skeleton. In the interview, you will hear her reference getting the “bones” set up. We sound like it’s Halloween around here year-round! What we mean is that it is enormously helpful to prepare an outline to your grant narrative before starting to write your proposal. When you do this, it becomes clear where you have gaps in knowledge. You can take those gaps to your kick-off meeting with your team and be more specific about what you need to prepare a successful grant application. Emily said she spent more time on the grant narrative skeleton than she would have otherwise because of what we taught. Key Takeaways When asked what else aspiring (or current) grant writers should know, Emily said:\nDon’t be afraid to contact the funding agency. Ask questions! Think creatively to meet requirements and make your case. Set up a grant narrative skeleton before doing any serious writing. If you want to get a copy of the budget spreadsheet and learn how to use it, you can sign up for our free grant writing class on the 7-steps to write winning grants. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Again, congratulations Emily on landing a $3 million grant!\n","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Discover why it’s so important to ask the funder for a debrief. Emily wasn’t successful with this grant on her first try. She got training (and confidence) with our grant writing training and took another run at it.","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/usda-grant_hu_59bce27f4455886c.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/usda-grant-emily-dodge/","slug":"usda-grant-emily-dodge","summary":null,"title":"Emily Dodge Winning a $3M USDA Grant"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Before we could even press record, Jim was singing praises of the Learn Grant Writing learning experience. Thanks, Jim, for the kind words of affirmation! If your organization has been forced to pivot with the pandemic, this is an inspiring story for you. Winning Non-profit Youth Grants Kids Around the World is a faith-based nonprofit that services the physical and spiritual needs of kids globally. Jim is the Regional Director of One Meal, a highly nutritious meal kit for kids that are malnourished. Last year over 7,000 volunteers fundraised and packed 1 million meals in the Pacific Northwest alone. Not only that, but the volunteers fundraised the meal costs before they packed the meals. But, as Jim so aptly said, “What happened was COVID happened.”\nAs you can imagine, when COVID-19 hit and groups could no longer meet, Jim’s operations came to a screeching halt. He came up with an ingenious solution, however, and turned to grant writing to fund it. Getting Creative During COVID-19 Prior to COVID, Jim told his CTO that he was interested in moving into grant writing with his career. Meal packing requires a great deal of physical labor, and he worried about being able to do it for the rest of his life. And while grant writing can feel like a heavy lift at times, it is only mental lifting! Jim seized the opportunity to learn grant writing to help the organization fund a pivot. He said that Grant Writing: From Start to Funded was his first online course. He said our training required him to get the lay of the land within his own organization. He was able to create a project plan that can be implemented, even if he had to be let go because of tight budget cuts. To overcome COVID challenges, 40 families packed meals in their homes instead of in large group settings. This addressed the issue of not being able to meet in person while still providing people a way to give back to their community. The pilot project was a success, and Jim turned to grant funding to help fund the logistics around this transition in operations. From where we left off during the interview, he had created a Funding Strategy and was narrowing down in his list of grant pursuits. Once he had the list down to 2-5 grants, he was going to get to work applying! Good luck, Jim. Keep up the amazing work with your organization!\nFree Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class What Jim Had to Say About Learning With Us Jim said this was his first online course and that “it has been an amazing experience... so for anyone wondering whether or not they should invest the time or money, I would highly recommend this.” If you have been curious about grant writing for years or need to fund a transition in your operations, consider getting professionally trained in grant writing. You can get started by taking our free grant writing class on the 7-steps to write winning grants. ","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Jim had wanted to learn how to write grants for years. Once COVID-19 hit and his nonprofit couldn’t package meals with volunteers, it became imperative to learn grant writing.","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/jim-kamikawa-nonprofit-grant-writer_hu_1ebad3f321a80c97.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/nonprofit-grant-james-kamikawa/","slug":"nonprofit-grant-james-kamikawa","summary":null,"title":"James Kamikawa Learns Grant Writing for His Nonprofit"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" You know when you watch a sad movie and don’t want anyone to see you tear up? Well, this story is like that. Grab a tissue and get ready to fist pump the air in excitement for Katie by the end. Becoming A Grant Writing Unicorn Virtually no one is unaffected by the opioid epidemic. At times it can make families feel helpless, not knowing how to help someone you love. We thanked Katie for sharing her story so openly, so that she might inspire others to give grant writing a try. She said: \"I’m used to sharing it, and if it helps other people that’s really exciting. I struggled with substance use disorder, addiction, and incarceration... I was a train wreck. I got some help. I started volunteering with the Reentry Coalition, and I am now their Board Vice President! I had a couple people in my life that really supported me and thought I could do it. ...I feel like I can do a lot because I've been there, and I know what really truly doesn’t work and what people really truly need. That life experience aspect is helpful. It’s exciting. I really want reentry coalitions to be successful, and I want reentrants to be successful. I’m working pretty hard to try to make it happen.\" To get started giving back to the Kenai Peninsula Reentry Coalition, Katie took a workshop with us and decided to join Grant Writing: From Start to Funded to pursue a $5,000 project idea. Her First Grant Application Only four weeks later, Katie was asked by the Coalition to write a $100,000 grant from the State of Alaska. Reasonable request, right? Yes, but the grant was due in just six days! While we rarely recommend pursuing a grant at the last minute, we looked over the proposal requirements with Katie and encouraged her to go for it. At first glance it didn’t look like that tough of an application. It turns out, it was actually quite complex! Katie said, “I honestly didn’t feel like I could do the grant application...so I just dove into it... I had no real expectation I could do it myself, but I figured I would try.” To get started, Katie said, “When I looked at the evaluation criteria, it was much easier to develop a (grant narrative) outline.\" Heck yeah! We teach preparing a grant narrative skeleton before all else in the course, and we're so happy she put that knowledge to use. (As an aside, you can learn the basics of this process in our free grant writing class here). Letters of Support Miracle While Katie put her head down to write the application, she forgot to coordinate collecting letters of support. An easy mistake to make when you’re doing all the work yourself on your first grant application ever! However, she couldn’t apply without them and still be competitive. We have a unique way of teaching students how to gather quality letters of support. Katie followed this formula and despite being a last-minute request, it worked! Within 24 hours, she received a stack of quality, heart-felt letters of support that propelled the grant application to new heights. Now, you don’t want to make a habit of requesting letters of support last minute! Katie was lucky that it worked out, but it was also because of the strong working relationships she had established prior to the grant deadline. We recommend you get started developing a list of potential supporters now. Gather their contact information and aggregate it in one place. You can download our letter of support contact sheet template at this link as a starting point. After getting the grant application submitted and catching up on sleep, she emailed saying:\n“Your course has honestly changed my life, and I don't say that lightly. Before I started, I really didn't have any goals or plans for the future, but now I have this focus and drive to get where I want.” Hired to Pursue Large Federal Grant Application Thereafter, we were asked by the Central Council of Tlingit \u0026 Haida Indian Tribes to pursue a Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Program (COSSAP) grant application. The COSSAP program is through the Department of Justice. This project was out of our area of expertise, but we knew Katie could write a compelling, informed grant proposal. Our company, SenecaWorks, ended up hiring Katie to be the lead grant writer! It was her first, extremely complex federal grant application, and she absolutely nailed it. We are still waiting to hear back on if the grant was successful or not, but we feel very good about the proposal. From Aspiring Grant Writer to Professional That means, Katie went from an aspirational grant writer, thinking her idea for a $5,000 grant was ambitious, to a professional grant writer in just four months. In that same time, she also took on her first consulting grant writing job. She helped a local non-profit get backpacks funded for homeless youth with a $10,000 grant. Funny enough, a volunteer from that non-profit, also took our grant writing class, Grant Writing: From Start to Funded. She discovered that she didn’t want to become a grant writer, but she was now knowledgeable enough about grant writing to hire a grant writer intelligently. That story is a demonstration of the power of the virtual community we have within the course. Powerful connections are made, whether that’s answering a quick question or finding someone to collaborate with. Four months from zero to hundred is inspiring and possible for anyone. We hope Katie’s story inspires you to see the possibilities in your own career and life. Grant Writing Unicorn Award 🦄 Continuously impressed by Katie’s work, we took her to dinner to give her a grant writing unicorn award! We found a porcelain unicorn at a thrift store and decorated her in stickers. (Watch the fantastic video of Katie unwrapping her gift at the top of this page.) If you are curious about becoming a grant writing unicorn like Katie, check out our free grant writing class on the 7-steps to write winning grants. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class When asked what Katie is most proud of, she said:\n\"Honestly, that I did it. My life a year ago, two years ago, I would have never thought that I would be here or that anyone would trust me to do it. It felt really good that the people who work with me, in fact the woman that did the prior applications, was my probation officer for a short period in time. It’s very awesome that these people show trust in me.\" When asked what advice Katie would offer other grant writers, she said, \"There are a lot of organizations that have resources, but they are not necessarily connecting well to those that need it... I encourage people to form a coalition or team that can work seamlessly and make those connections.\" And to wrap it up, she says, “I actually have decided that I just want to be a grant writer. You get to learn all kinds of stuff!” Katie, you are definitely a grant writer! Feel free to share any shout outs to Katie in the comments section below and we will share them with her. ","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Katie struggled with substance use and had even been incarcerated. She decided to pay it forward by learning to write grants for her local Reentry Coalition.","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/katie-cowgill-unicorn-trophy_hu_f32b1d2910434c79.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/grant-writer-katie-cowgill/","slug":"grant-writer-katie-cowgill","summary":null,"title":"Reinventing Oneself As a Grant Writer"},{"author":"","author_photo":"","card_title":null,"content":" Right off the bat we knew we liked Tsēmā. Thankfully we didn’t see her website until after teaching her to write grants! She is a wicked talented artist that we now kind of fan over like groupies. Advice for Artists Pursing Grant Funding In fairness, she has her own Wikipedia page. #goals. Aside from her delightful personality and powerful body of work, Tsēmā has great advice for other artists looking at grants. The interview was filled with gold nuggets. Before we walk you through the conversation, we had to pull her advice to other artists pursuing grants. Advice for fellow artists pursuing grants:\nDon’t write so much. Focus on one project at a time. Don’t use the kind of language that you use in art school. Use plain language with clear projects and clear artistic value. You have to listen to how she said it to fully appreciate the painful lessons she learned the hard way in acquiring that knowledge! Tsēmā was encouraged to get on a peer review board through the Canada Council on the Arts. She said, “You read hundreds of grants. You get so much from that!” If you can find a local grant review committee, try to get on it! You will learn so much reviewing other grant proposals that can immediately help improve your own writing style. She noted that one of the reasons they rejected grants is because there was more concentration on the philosophy of the artist than on the broader community impact. Whether pursuing an art grant or not, it is critical to see beyond ourselves and paint a bigger picture for why the project is urgently needed and significant. Tsēmā added, “Keep on trying!” Even after being on the review jury, she was rejected on grant applications to the Canada Council on the Arts and elsewhere. She says she continues to learn and that helps her get better with every application. Her Grant Writing Wins Tsēmā joined Grant Writing: From Start to Funded in April, right as the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold. Since finishing the coursework, she has submitted four grants. She has won two of those, lost one, and is still waiting to hear back on the third. While she admits taking it very personally when not winning a grant (we agree — it’s hard not to!), she said she is still thankful to have applied as it forced to turn her nugget of idea into a real project. It also led to preparing the subsequent applications with that preliminary project in place. While she doesn’t like to follow up with the funder, she promised to work on doing it more often. She learned from the unsuccessful application that the funder didn’t like that she was trying to fund several projects in one. It was a reminder to focus on one single project at a time. With the successful grants, she has been able to pivot plans from the original projects and make them digitally available for virtual enjoyment. We have actually included one of Tsēmā’s successful grant narratives in the course in our example grant narratives packet. On Why She Took the Course “I was looking for bigger grants.” Tsēmā is working with a nonprofit to infuse art and culture into culture revitalization, mentorship of youth, and community-based monitoring programs from a contemporary and ancestral perspective. The course was recommended to her by Curtis Rattray, a former graduate of the program. He valued the templates we provided to short cut the grant development process. He encouraged Tsēmā to take the course so that they would be on the same page regarding grant pursuit strategy. Their Funding Strategy Speaking of grant pursuit strategy! Tsēmā’s nonprofit met with the Vancouver Foundation, something she said she would never have done before. They are eager to apply for a testing grant that funds up to a $100,000 for testing a system change. Here’s the kicker and why we loved this part of the interview! They had a great discussion with the funder and identified how to prepare their program to be most competitive. They took that information and are taking the time to apply it. She says they will apply for the grant a little over a year from now, giving themselves plenty of time to prepare. In that comment alone, we knew that our course had an impact on Tsēmā! It can be extraordinarily tempting to have a shot-gun approach to grant writing. That approach, however, is exhausting and fairly ineffective. Taking the time to pick out the right grants to pursue in the first place, and then make sure you are positioned as well as possible to succeed, is the true distinguisher of good from great grant writers. Be sure to head on over to Tsēmā’s fantastic website and get lost in it like we did: https://www.tsema.ca/ If you want to up your game as a grant writer, or get into it as a beginner, check out our free grant writing class on the 7 steps to writing winning grants. We guarantee you will learn something new! Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Photo cred: Trail Head, Flagging Tape, Horse Hair, Dowel, 2016\n","date":"2020-08-15","description":"Tsēmā Igharas drops the hammer in our interview on tips for artists pursuing grants! Tsēmā is a practicing interdisciplinary artist that blends the best of art and indigenous culture into modern living.","formatted_date":"August 15, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/success-stories/grant-writer-tsema-igharas-image1_hu_966273bed38d2451.jpg","permalink":"/blog/success-stories/tsema-igharas-advise-artists/","slug":"tsema-igharas-advise-artists","summary":null,"title":"Tsēmā Igharas' Advice for Artists Seeking Grants"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" If you want to increase your success rate writing grant proposals that win, you must decide which grants are worth applying or not. When we are deciding which grants to pursue, we use any or all of the three “tests” below: Does the funding agency’s giving history align with our organization and project? Grant programs can look like the perfect fit when you review them online. The trouble, however, is that a funder’s website does not always reflect their current giving priorities. It also does not tell us if the funder grants sufficient funds to be worth pursuing. The fastest way to confirm whether a private foundation actually funds what they say they will is to review their 990 form with the Internal Revenue Service. 990 forms tell us who the private foundation funded in a given year and in what grant amount. Searching 990 forms can provide a wealth of good information! Check out this blog post for a detailed overview of how to search for 990 forms through the Foundation Center or an Instrumentl subscription. If the funding program says it funds fighting obesity, saving the polar bears, and art and culture, look at their 990 form to confirm this is true. Perhaps then you see that they actually only fund arts and culture projects in the state of New York, so don’t bother applying with your initiative to save the polar bears! If you are not applying for private foundation funding, you can still get an understanding of what type of projects the funding agency supports by reviewing past awards posted on the website, press releases, or contacting the funder directly. How competitive is the grant program and do we have at least a 20% chance of getting funded? You calculate this by dividing the total number of applicants by the number of awards made. You will do this for the last funding cycle. Many times, you cannot figure out how many applicants applied based on what you can find online. You will have to contact the funding agency and ask. This is an easy question to open up communication with the funding agency representative. Ask the funder by email or phone, “We’re trying to understand how competitive your grant program is. How many applicants did you receive last year and what percent of those were successful?” We target a ratio that is no less than 20%. If there are 100 applicants and 24 of those are funded, that means we have a 24% chance of getting funded. You're good with those odds. Sometimes, we may dip down into the 13-15% range, but must have strong reasons for doing so. Now, you may argue that your proposal will be stronger than the rest and therefore have higher odds of success. We hope that is true, but it is subjective. It is better to know at the outset that you have decent odds of success before committing hours and hours to preparing an application. When grant programs get super competitive, it does not matter if you have a perfect application - others will as well. What is the cost of grant preparation and is it less than the value of the grant? Even simple applications have a cost for preparation. Take your hourly rate and add 20-30% for your benefits (like healthcare, retirement savings, insurance, etc.). Multiply that by the number of hours you would spend on this project. Do the same for anyone else involved. We may think our time is free, but it is not. It is good to be clear on what those costs are, so you use the precious resource of time wisely. If the grant is only worth $1,000 and will require eight hours to apply and likely another eight to manage, then the grant award does not cover the cost of pursuing it. We’re not suggesting that you ignore smaller grants. New nonprofits often need to start with small grants to build trust with funders. Our point is that it is vital you consider the true cost of pursuing funds to determine if it is worth your energy, time and resources. Key Takeaways: Research the giving history of each funder to confirm they support projects and organizations like yours. Calculate competitiveness of each grant program and seek applications with at least a 20% chance of getting funded. Estimate the true cost of grant preparation (and management) when deciding if a grant is worth pursuing. If you are looking for more actionable tips like this, you can download our free audiobook on the grant writing process here. Free Audiobook We have turned the book into a podcast that makes it easy to listen to on-the-go. Get instant access after you provide your email below. Get Free Audiobook ","date":"2020-08-01","description":"If you want to increase your success rate writing grant proposals that win,\nyou must decide which grants are worth applying for or not.\n","formatted_date":"August 1, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/video-tests-to-decide-grant-worth_hu_34a31e0de19309b4.jpg","permalink":"/blog/grant-writing-tips-3-ways-to-decide-if-a-grant-is-worthy/","slug":"grant-writing-tips-3-ways-to-decide-if-a-grant-is-worthy","summary":"If you want to increase your success rate writing grant proposals\nthat win, you must decide which grants are worth applying or not.\n","title":"3 Tests to Decide if a Grant is Worth Pursuing"},{"author":"Tara O'Hanley","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/tara-ohanley_hu_794cade3469088a1.jpeg","card_title":"Using the FOIA to Get Copies of Past Successful Grant Applications","content":" A Word on Our Culture One of the best things about our unicorn community here at Learn Grant Writing is a widespread willingness to share our best ideas and resources with everyone who can use it, whenever they need it. When it comes to doing tough work, there is nothing better than a supportive environment that helps projects grow and develop in an open and transparent way. Frankly, if you’re not having an instinctive reaction, vehemently agreeing with this statement right now, then I’m jealous of you. As a hardened survivor of more backbiting shenanigans than I care to remember – be it across academia, business, or even the grant writing world of nonprofits – I’m all too familiar with this counterproductive, ugly habit and the insidious impact it can have on the work we produce. Instead, I choose to live by a motto I learned decades ago, which says “What blesses one, blesses all.” That’s why, after too many years of suffering a crooked neck from having to watch my back in every professional realm, I feel extraordinarily lucky to have crossed paths with founder, course designer, and author - Meredith Noble. She and her team exemplify this generous way of seeing the world in many and myriad ways. In that spirit, I wish to share with you one of the most game-changing secrets I’ve used in my professional grant writing career. First, though, let me share with you a quick story to explain how I even came to discover this possibility in the first place. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class A Unicorn Bearing Gifts A few years back, a colleague and I had tried our hardest to hire Meredith to help us with our grant writing efforts but, unfortunately for us, at that time she was up to her ears while writing How to Become a Grant Writing Unicorn as well as finalizing her grant writing training at Learn Grant Writing, so pretty much the last thing she wanted to do was to jump into the cauldron with us. Instead, she graciously provided us with a rundown of tips and tricks and (this was clutch) she actually GAVE us copies of winning grants she’d written in the past! I was floored. Not only that, but her examples were actually for the same funding opportunity that we were struggling to compose at that very moment. In a world where even the closest colleagues are often hesitant to disclose the most minor details, such as which communities they were pursuing funding for, never mind which specific projects, this seemed earth-shattering to us at the time. Don’t get me wrong: we weren’t complete noobs. We’d actually been successful applying to this exact program in the past and had won multiple millions of dollars in funding for several large-scale infrastructure projects from this agency over previous cycles. Still, we knew that our work was stale. Regurgitating the same-old, same-old could only cut it so many times. We also knew how fiercely sought-after these funds were – as a matter of fact, the Grantor contact from this federal agency has actually shared with me that she likens successful applications to this program with winning the lottery: the competition is that steep. Now obviously, everyone knows that nobody strikes the lottery twice . . . but here we were, going back to the through for who-knows-how-many times. We genuinely needed all the help we could get. For all these reasons and more, Meredith’s willingness to be completely transparent and open with the work she’d produced in the past was a literal game-changer for us. The chance to read her eloquent way of communicating strategy, and see the elegant way she’d laid out her document, served as a breath of fresh air: it reinvigorated our efforts and proved to be an invaluable resource that led to yet another successful funding cycle for a program that is a lifeline for the communities we serve. Now, if you’ve been at this grant-writing game for any length of time, yourself, you may already be aware that some funders (the very generous ones… the very, very kind and wonderful ones…) will even post examples of winning proposals for you, on their website or through another source. But if you know that, then you probably also know that these beautiful souls are about as easy to come by as a needle in a haystack. All of which begs the question: What’s an applicant to do when they’re putting together a complicated proposal for a challenging program for the first (or hundredth) time? It’s a Fact of Life: Grant Funding Doesn’t Come Easy When funds are as tight as we know them to be, and when everybody’s vying for the same pot of dollars, it is simply unrealistic to expect any of your colleagues – or heck, even your friends – to just hand over their hard-earned best ideas, as our fearless leader unicorn did for me on that warm spring day a few short years ago. It’s well-known among experienced grant writers that the prep time for some large government grant applications can be upwards of 200 hours – not exactly a gamble to enter into lightly, especially given how busy and overworked your organization undoubtedly is. How can you up your chances significantly and gain the upper hand when you need a guidepost to follow, but there are none to be found? The answer, dear reader, lies in that often-debated, sometimes-maligned cornerstone of transparency in American government, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). An Inauspicious Beginning to a Very Important End President Lyndon B. Johnson reluctantly signed the FOIA into law on the 4th of July, 1966 – at his Texas ranch and far away from the nation’s capital, press conferences, and television cameras – once it became clear that Americans weren’t going to let him off the hook, in spite of his best efforts. The act had only one day to go before dying of presidential neglect in the form of a pocket veto, and it has scarcely become more popular with government officials in the years since. Nevertheless, it has also spawned parallel “sunshine laws” in all 50 states and has served as a model for nations around the world trying to make governments more accessible and accountable to their citizens. All complaints aside, a core premise underlying the FOIA is that taxpayers have every right to know exactly how government funds are being spent, both at the state and federal level. As change-makers seeking to develop programs that benefit our communities, we can learn a great deal by looking at how other applicants have crafted compelling arguments and designed successful projects of their own. Following these “best practices” laid out in prior successful applications can allow our own funding to go further, be put to better use, and ultimately help more people in the future. Putting the FOIA to Work for You The Freedom of Information Act and its related laws are in place to protect the public good and to lend transparency in governmental affairs. Over the past 54 years, these laws have compelled federal agencies to yield millions of documents relating to government operations and performance. According to privacy and information policy consultant Robert Gellman in Washington, D.C., “more than 90% of FOIA requesters get everything they want.” [1] Watch a webinar replay here on leveraging the FOIA Watch the Free Webinar Watch Video As an aside, you can watch all our live training replays here. In the FOIA webinar replay, we outline how you, too, can get everything you want using this vital tool of our participatory system of government. We will walk you through several topics related to FOIA requests, including: A quick-and-dirty overview of the Freedom of Information Act’s fascinating history: how it came to be, what it’s used for, its surprising list of supporters and detractors, and important precedents that have resulted from it What you can learn from an FOIA request and how to know whether it’s worth pursuing What the process looks like, including how to submit a request, what to expect when communicating with government agencies, possible associated processing fees, and how far in advance you need to submit your requests Valuable tips for streamlining your request to maximize the benefit and minimize the effort of everyone involved – including that of your funder Reasons why your FOIA request may be denied (don’t worry; there aren’t very many and they probably don’t apply to your situation) Reasons why you might not want to submit a FOIA request (again here, there aren’t many – but in this case they’re significant and worth your careful consideration) A general overview of other existing options for getting examples of prior winning proposals from various funding agencies What to look for when reviewing previously funded projects that will help you assess your own organization’s competitiveness so you can prepare the most complete and compelling applications moving forward Successfully competing for federal grants is about more than following the application instructions. Savvy grant seekers have many tools in their back pocket, and the FOIA just may end up being the game-changer you’ve been looking for. If you want to learn more about grant research and how to write winning proposals, check out our Free Mini-Course on Grant Writing in 7 Easy Steps, and follow us on Instagram. ","date":"2020-07-27","description":"Federal grants are hard enough! Get a leg up by learning\nhow to use the Freedom of Information Act to get copies of past successful grant applications.\n","formatted_date":"July 27, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-foia-past-grants-1400w_hu_cc5521b4fee4b472.jpg","permalink":"/blog/foia-requests-for-grant-applications/","slug":"foia-requests-for-grant-applications","summary":"Learn the fascinating history of the freedom of information act,\nhow to submit a FOIA request, and other important considerations.\n","title":"FOIA Requests for Grant Applications"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":null,"content":" Often when we have a big idea, our first thought is, \"I should start a nonprofit!\" But before you jump into a huge pile of paperwork, let’s look at what you need: Tax exempt status Administrative infrastructure, and Funding Did you know you could use a fiscal sponsor for these needs?\nWe love the way Propel Nonprofits talks about this topic and you can check out their YouTube video linked below . Coincidence it features a unicorn?! (The unicorn is our mascot 🦄) This video does a great job of explaining why it can be beneficial to test the waters with your idea before jumping all in with becoming your own nonprofit. But first…\nWhat is fiscal sponsorship? A fiscal sponsor serves as the administrative “home” for your cause. A more detailed fiscal sponsorship definition is this: Fiscal sponsors are existing nonprofit organizations that provide fiduciary oversight, financial management, and other administrative services to help build the capacity of charitable projects. Why would we want you to use a fiscal sponsor? There are a lot of good reasons!\nEven if you were to become a new nonprofit, you don’t have much street credibility managing grants yet. It can be strategic to partner with an organization that already has a strong history of managing grants. You can work together for a few years before branching off on your own. You may discover that you never need to form your own nonprofit. You may find that your mission can be achieved within the structure of the fiscal sponsor. This keeps you from all the paperwork and headache of creating an entirely new entity. The most common reason for wanting a fiscal sponsor is because you don’t have the resources to manage administration. You want to be doing the work - the part that inspired you to start in the first place! Consider a fiscal sponsor if you have an all-volunteer organization. This way you don’t burn out your volunteers dealing with tedious administrative responsibilities. It is also reassuring to a funder when there are paid staff to manage grant reporting, expense tracking, etc.\nAnother reason to consider having a fiscal sponsor is when your idea is a project with a clear beginning, middle, and end. You never intend to be a permanent organization. For example, we worked with a group of artists who were developing an international pan-arctic art project. They partnered with a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization to receive philanthropic donations and grant funding. This arrangement let the artists focus on their passion, while the nonprofit handled grant management. Let’s recap that… how can fiscal sponsorship help you? As an unincorporated community group, you can:\nReceive tax-deductible contributions from grant agencies and donors. Do the work you are passionate about; not be stuck waiting for nonprofit status. Benefit from name recognition of your nonprofit sponsor. Receive technical assistance and administrative support. Support can include payroll and accounting services, office space, publicity, and capacity building. Discover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class What else should we know? For this arrangement to work, your project has to have a charitable purpose. It needs to naturally align with the fiscal sponsor, and it should have a clear life span. What are common fiscal sponsorship fees? It is common and acceptable for the fiscal sponsor to charge an administrative fee, which is usually a percentage of all funds held on behalf of the sponsored group. Typically this is 5-10%. If a fiscal sponsor managed $50,000 for your charitable project and they take 10%, the fiscal sponsor would keep $5k. How do we find a fiscal sponsor? 👉 Believe it or not, there is actually a fiscal sponsorship directory! Here is the National Network of Financial Sponsors website. They are a membership organization that promotes the understanding and professional practice of fiscal sponsorship. 👉 If you are doing community-based work, we encourage you to check out Ioby.com. They provide fiscal sponsorship, access to their crowdfunding platform, and a personal coach to help you build support from your community. 👉 Your other option (and the one we recommend starting with) is looking local for a fiscal sponsor. Start by brainstorming a list of nonprofits that have organizational alignment with yours. Ask others in your network what ideas they have. Once you have a healthy list of 10 options or so, start reaching out. Email or request a phone meeting to ask if the nonprofit organization provides fiscal sponsorship. You should have a 1-2 page overview of your project prepared to send them. Ideally you find an organization that has experience being a fiscal sponsor. They will be more efficient because they have processes in place. If possible, meet in-person with those that express interest in your idea. Is there good synergy? Be sure to know what benefit they get out of housing you under their wing. Is it a great public relations building project? How do you align with their mission? If you are a good match for each other, you can then get into negotiating the specifics of how you will work together. At its root, you want to be extremely clear about the expectations of both parties. In our online grant writing training, we provide sample fiscal sponsorship agreement templates. Get started with our Free Grant Writing Class. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class Fiscal sponsorship in a nutshell! Hopefully the concept of having a fiscal sponsor inspires you to get started. It’s a great way for you to work on what you most care about without getting mired in paperwork. Have you used a fiscal sponsor in the past? Shoot us a DM on Instagram to share your experience! (@learngrantwriting) ","date":"2020-05-27","description":"Before you start a non-profit, have you considered fiscal sponsorship?\nLearn what it is and why it’s a great option to consider for a variety of reasons.\n","formatted_date":"May 27, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-fiscal-sponsorship-1400w_hu_c8494de525f6768c.jpg","permalink":"/blog/what-is-fiscal-sponsorship/","slug":"what-is-fiscal-sponsorship","summary":"Before you start a non-profit, have you considered partnering with one that\nalready exists? In this post, learn the benefits of fiscal sponsorship.\n","title":"What Does Fiscal Sponsorship Mean?"},{"author":"Meredith Noble","author_photo":"/lgw/images/headshots/meredith-noble_hu_5473daa685466008.webp","card_title":"5 Strategies for 'Invite Only' Grant Funders","content":" The grant world is competitive. It has only become more competitive in recent years. Private foundations are becoming increasingly “invite only” meaning that they “do not take unsolicited proposals”. Does this mean that you should take them off your list? On the contrary! The fewer the open opportunities, the more proposals they receive. It makes sense to divert your grant winning strategy to taking time to be 'invited’. Here are eight outreach strategies to get the invite.\nDiscover Grant Writing as a Career If you\u0026rsquo;re interested in becoming a grant writing consultant, check out this free training on how you can pull off a meaningful career change.\nAccess Free Class Connect Through Your Current Funders The best method is asking your current funders to provide an introduction to the ‘invite-only’ organizations. It’s a small world. The funders know each other. Getting an introduction through someone that the ‘invite-only’ funder knows will give you a warm introduction. Warm introductions are always better than cold introductions. It is worth taking the extra time to earn those warm introductions. Here’s how we recommend this playing out in the real world. If the Murdock Charitable Trust, for instance, funds your organization, you would approach your program officer with the ‘invite only’ funder’s name and ask if the program officer has a relationship. If so, ask if they would be comfortable making an introduction to the invite-only funder. Nothing is more validating to a funder than being introduced by someone already investing in your organization. Use Your Funding Strategy You can use the aforementioned tip even if you haven’t received funding from a certain grant agency. One tactic we teach in Global Grant Writers Collective® is to bring your Funding Strategy to the grant funders you are considering. It can be strategic to share your Funding Strategy with prospective funders. You get to illustrate that you have a plan for funding your entire project. You can also show where you see their funder fitting into the “domino line up.” You should ask for the funder’s feedback if they agree with your strategy. When you do this, you can ask for an introduction to any funders that are ‘invite-only.’ Remember, it’s perfectly okay to share a draft Funding Strategy. The hardest part is getting that list of 10+ grants down to the top 2-5! Let the funder you CAN talk with, help guide you. If the prospective funder is willing to provide an introduction to the invite-only funder, this is a good sign for two reasons. First, they trust you and are willing to put their reputation on the line to make an introduction. Second, they like what you are doing but would like to see other funders get on board first. Your Network is Bigger Than You Think Quick pep talk. Having a healthy and supportive network is key for success in anything you do in life. Even if you are introverted, look for ways you can develop your network before you need it. If you don’t like big group settings, that’s okay! Find small luncheon events to attend or reach out to someone (ideally also via a warm introduction) for a coffee date. Aside from leveraging your own network that might have connections to that elusive ‘invite only’ funder, you should ask if your board members or organization leadership have connections. Ask your board members and top leaders to think about which foundations and grant-making agencies they may have connections to. If you find a funder that seems very connected to your cause, send out their board member and staff list to your leadership team to review. Often, someone with a connection to your organization only has to send an email or sign a cover letter for you to get a meeting! Always Have a Power Prospectus Prepared Let’s say you landed the warm introduction. Great! Now, how are you going to make the most of your limited window to connect with them? The strategy we teach in the online course of the Global Grant Writers Collective® is to prepare a one page overview ahead of time. Send this document to the funder ahead of time so they have time to familiarize themselves with your organization. This simple and effective one pager succinctly describes the problem, how your organization is uniquely solving it, the cost of the project/program, and the impact of your work. This is something we’re really passionate about! First, you communicate that you are prepared and respect their time. Second, it’s impossible to get on the phone and not start pitching yourself if you have to start from scratch orienting them with your organization. That’s not the point of this conversation. Third benefit, and there are plenty more, is that so few organizations prepare a project overview ahead of time and it will make you stand apart. In a webinar we hosted with Instrumentl, our fave grant database, we talked about how to find the best grants for your organization and how to stand out in a sea of applicants. Included in this webinar is a training on how to build and use a Power Prospectus starting at minute 21:23. Go Meet the Invite Only Funder Another strategy is to meet your funder by being in the same place at the same time. Good fundraising teams regularly research and attend events where key foundation staff and board members will be. These can be conferences, events, partner/like-minded agency dinners, workshops, or government meetings. When you get exposure, don’t be shy! Approach the funder like you would a major gift prospect. Simply get to know him or her on a human level and exchange contact information. Don’t pitch your project or organization at this time! Save that for later when you can have a sit down meeting. The objective here is to get contact information so you can request a meeting later. Small steps go a long way. When you get exposure, don’t be shy! Approach the funder like you would a major gift prospect. Simply get to know him or her on a human level and exchange contact information. Don’t pitch your project or organization at this time! Save that for later when you can have a sit down meeting. The objective here is to get contact information so you can request a meeting later. Small steps go a long way. Remember to give first. What can you do to help this funder before you ask for anything? Bringing that mentality to everything you do will always yield better results. Find their Contact Information and Reach Out Google is a grant writer’s best friend. If you know you want to contact a foundation, but don’t have contact information, check out their website thoroughly or search for the specific individual you seek online. We often recommend meeting with a Program Manager or someone that handles projects to get valuable insight into what the organization cares about. With this information in hand, you are better prepared when contacting higher level leadership. LinkedIn has become a means to connect with new professionals, though it is still less effective than getting people on the phone or putting information directly in front of them in an email. Make sure you keep your social media accounts very up to date, with professional resumes and photos and a wide network of recommendations. While we don’t generally use it to contact funders, we know it’s an important way for them to find information about us. We want to be easy to find and to always imbue the messaging that our work is meaningful and engaged in the community. Grant Writing Unicorn Book #1 bestseller on Amazon for nonprofit fundraising and grants. Do you have a copy of, \u0026ldquo;How to Write a Grant: Become a Grant Writing Unicorn\u0026rdquo;?\nGet a Copy Now Create a 7-Star Experience for Your Beneficiaries and Donors We have this weird thing about offering advice in 7-steps. It is never our intention but must be our lucky number! Our 7th bit of advice is playing the long game. The most effective way to get the invite, is to get the attention of the invite-only funder naturally. Foundations are invite-only because they only want to bother with the best programs and services. They want to work with the organizations that are the most innovative and effective. This is a blog post topic onto itself but consider these two ideas when you evaluate your organization and activities. First, does every step of your offering focus around who you serve? Check out design thinking for training and inspiration to make sure that what you do, truly makes the best experience for your beneficiaries. Second, how can you create a 7-star experience for anyone that comes into contact with your organization? We borrowed the 7-star experience idea from Airbnb’s founder, Brian Chesky, in an interview you can listen to on here (go to minute 9). It is what we think about here at Learn Grant Writing all the time. It takes a little getting the hang of, but if you let your creative juice flow wildly, you can come up with lots of low cost and free ways to make your organization exist on a whole new level. And THAT will get the attention of invite-only funders. Use a Well Branded Program to Get an Invite This strategy is only last because it is indirect. It is likely the most effective way to get noticed and to get traction with invite-only funders. Foundations are invite only because they only want to bother with the best programs and services. You can make yours the best with a stellar branding and communications strategy that celebrates what you are doing through traditional media and social media methods. Creating buzz can lead the honey to you. Knowing someone is the best route, but in the process, make your program or project speak for itself! Keep reading our blog articles or check out our FREE Class on Writing Grants in just 7 easy steps! If you don't already, be sure to follow us on Instagram. Free Grant Writing Class Learn the 7-steps to write a winning grant application and amplify the impact you have on your community.\nAccess Free Class ","date":"2020-02-08","description":"You found the perfect grant pursuit but the funder's website says,\n“apply by invitation only”? Here are our top tips for overcoming\nthis barrier!\n","formatted_date":"February 8, 2020","image":"/lgw/images/blog/blog-tips-for-invite-only-funders-1400w_hu_52282c1ca7659b5.jpg","permalink":"/blog/invite-only-grant-funders/","slug":"invite-only-grant-funders","summary":"What do you do when the funder says their grant program is 'invite-only'?\nCheck out these tips before giving up.\n","title":"8 Outreach Strategies for 'Invite Only' Grant Funders"}]