Category Archives: grant writing

Like a Penny Looking for Change….

The first instructor in my Masters program was a hysterically curmudgeonly character. In our first class, he described his many years of dealing with troublesome people. He detailed how these “people” caused for him a string of ailments from spastic colon to heart attack. He had developed a wonderful vernacular for leadership that could have filled a third or fourth volume of “The Portable Curmudgeon.”

My grouchy professor shared these gems with us:

  1. “Get your loving at home” – He wasn’t talking about “wide stances” in airport stalls or flying off to South America to some concubine. HEAVENS NO! (although it would certainly apply) He was referring to the fact that we had to be OK with people not appreciating us when we took a stand, when we said “no,” and when we said “yes.”
  2. “Like a penny looking for change” – Which simply referred to someone who was clueless about where they were, what they wanted, or how to go about getting it.
  3. “People you supervise are going to take out unresolved issues with their fathers (or mothers for women) on you” – So whenever I got a particularly undeserved and nasty response from someone to a decision, an evaluation, or anything else I did, it helped me to think about it that way, “What did your parents do to you?”
  4. “When you’re getting run out of town, get out front and present you’re leading a parade.” – Now this he admitted was Abraham Lincoln’s statement but he put it to good use and reminded us that as leaders we could run afoul of the politics of the situation and to be aware of our surroundings.
  5. “Don’t pick a fight with people who buy ink by the barrel.” – Another great quote borrowed from someone else. In other words, make friends of the media. Today it should be something like, “Don’t pick a fight with someone who buys bandwidth by the terabyte.”

I wish I had video tapes of our classes, or at the very least my notes from the class so I didn’t lose any of his sayings. Unfortunately, these 20-plus years later, I don’t even remember his name; but, his amazing crusty personality stuck with me, as did many of his quips and barbs. His cranky sayings spring to mind at times when I run into people with an unresolved daddy complex, or are an aimless and wandering penny.

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You might also enjoy Bless His Cotton Socks, another post by Derek.

Don’t forget to check out GrantGoddess.com for grant writing tips and grant sources.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Distinguish Implementation Objectives from Outcome Objectives

Writing good objectives for your grant can be a challenge.   This post is about distinguishing between implementation objectives and outcome objectives. You can also check out Five Tips for Writing Good Grant Objectives.

Implementation objectives define your targets for implementing the program (e.g., Fifty program participants will be enrolled by June 30, 2010, as measured by intake records) and outcome objectives define your ultimate achievement targets (e.g., Forty students will complete the program each year, as measured by achievement of a passing score on the XYZ exam).

Think of it this way: the achievement of an implementation objective proves that you are implementing the program. The achievement of an outcome objective proves that the program works. While implementation objectives are good, outcome objectives guide the true measures of your effectiveness. Generally speaking, funding sources are most interested in your outcome objectives, and when an RFA refers to “Goals and Objectives,” it is referring to goals and outcome objectives.
Implementation objectives can also be used, but only when you clearly distinguish them from outcome objectives. Occasionally, a funding source will specifically ask you to list your implementation objectives. In that case, of course, you should follow the directions and provide the requested information, but typically implementation information is provided in the design section of the proposal.

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This is Tip 35 from 101 Tips for Aspiring Grant Writers.  Check out the book to see all 101 Tips!

Distinguish Implementation Objectives from Outcome Objectives

Writing good objectives for your grant can be a challenge.   This post is about distinguishing between implementation objectives and outcome objectives. You can also check out Five Tips for Writing Good Grant Objectives.

Implementation objectives define your targets for implementing the program (e.g., Fifty program participants will be enrolled by June 30, 2010, as measured by intake records) and outcome objectives define your ultimate achievement targets (e.g., Forty students will complete the program each year, as measured by achievement of a passing score on the XYZ exam).

Think of it this way: the achievement of an implementation objective proves that you are implementing the program. The achievement of an outcome objective proves that the program works. While implementation objectives are good, outcome objectives guide the true measures of your effectiveness. Generally speaking, funding sources are most interested in your outcome objectives, and when an RFA refers to “Goals and Objectives,” it is referring to goals and outcome objectives.
Implementation objectives can also be used, but only when you clearly distinguish them from outcome objectives. Occasionally, a funding source will specifically ask you to list your implementation objectives. In that case, of course, you should follow the directions and provide the requested information, but typically implementation information is provided in the design section of the proposal.

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This is Tip 35 from 101 Tips for Aspiring Grant Writers.  Check out the book to see all 101 Tips!

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Grant Writing Rejection

Grant writing rejection can be hard to take. Nonprofit consultant and grant writing expert, Derek Link, provides some tips on what you should do if your grant is rejected.

One reason that grant writers can fail is by taking on too many low percentage grants that are unlikely to be funded. Selecting grants to write is a delicate thing because as a grant writer you get so many requests from unqualified applicants.

It would be easy to take on lots of contracts from clients you know don’t have a prayer of getting funded, but then your reputation is nothing but a house of cards. Unless you want to move from state to state on an annual basis where nobody knows how unsuccessful you were the year prior, success is important!

Your reputation as a grant writer relies primarily on one thing – getting grants funded. Be prepared for rejection from time to time, because not every grant can be funded; not even the best written ones. Grant rejection is hard to take when you’ve written what you believe to be a good narrative. Getting rejected means doing some damage control with the client as well as preparing for resubmission when the opportunity arises.
Here are some ideas about what to do when your grant is rejected:

  1. Always ask for the readers’ comments. Funding agencies don’t always have the staff to provide these so often your request will be denied. If you do get them, study them carefully and try not to focus on the things that the readers obviously missed. I’ve heard grant writers get all wound up about some reader missing something that cost them points. OK, it happens and it stinks, but move on to why did they miss it? Was it in the wrong section? Maybe it needed to be repeated, bolded, underlined. On the rewrite, make sure that point is easier to find and repeated so even the slowest reader can find it.
  2. If you find that the readers really missed the mark on your proposal, then file a challenge and detail the reasons you think that the readers got it wrong. There has to be a truly egregious error for a negative funding decision to be reversed. Remember, they’ve probably already sent out the notices to all the people who were successful so it’s unlikely they are going to eat crow and reorganize the whole field to fund your proposal. But it can happen, so sometimes it’s worth a challenge. If it’s a federal grant, your appeal needs to demonstrate that a standard other than the approved scoring criteria was applied.  That is nearly impossible to demonstrate.
  3. If you can’t get readers’ comments then it’s a good idea to request copies of some of the winning proposals so you can compare them to what you submitted. Write down the reasons you think that the proposal was rejected and keep it on file for the following submission. It’s better to do it right after you learn why you weren’t funded.
  4. If you planned with a collaborative that meets regularly, discuss the rejected proposal with them to talk about why it wasn’t funded and whether the group is capable and willing to make changes in the proposal design so it is more likely to be funded the next time around.

It’s a terrible experience to have to give a client disappointing news about a grant being rejected. Your clients put a lot of faith in your writing abilities and failure hurts your reputation as a “grant magician.” A failed grant in the early stages of a client relationship can ruin your relationship with them. Be wise about which grants you write and try to steer clear of lower percentage competitions with a client until you’ve had some success and demonstrated your competence. Once your relationship has been established, and your abilities are enshrined in the annals of their annual report, then you can survive a few rejections here and there.

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Visit GrantGoddess.com for lots of great tips and ideas to help increase you grant writing success!
 
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Grant Writing Rejection

Grant writing rejection can be hard to take. Nonprofit consultant and grant writing expert, Derek Link, provides some tips on what you should do if your grant is rejected.

One reason that grant writers can fail is by taking on too many low percentage grants that are unlikely to be funded. Selecting grants to write is a delicate thing because as a grant writer you get so many requests from unqualified applicants.

It would be easy to take on lots of contracts from clients you know don’t have a prayer of getting funded, but then your reputation is nothing but a house of cards. Unless you want to move from state to state on an annual basis where nobody knows how unsuccessful you were the year prior, success is important!

Your reputation as a grant writer relies primarily on one thing – getting grants funded. Be prepared for rejection from time to time, because not every grant can be funded; not even the best written ones. Grant rejection is hard to take when you’ve written what you believe to be a good narrative. Getting rejected means doing some damage control with the client as well as preparing for resubmission when the opportunity arises.
Here are some ideas about what to do when your grant is rejected:

  1. Always ask for the readers’ comments. Funding agencies don’t always have the staff to provide these so often your request will be denied. If you do get them, study them carefully and try not to focus on the things that the readers obviously missed. I’ve heard grant writers get all wound up about some reader missing something that cost them points. OK, it happens and it stinks, but move on to why did they miss it? Was it in the wrong section? Maybe it needed to be repeated, bolded, underlined. On the rewrite, make sure that point is easier to find and repeated so even the slowest reader can find it.
  2. If you find that the readers really missed the mark on your proposal, then file a challenge and detail the reasons you think that the readers got it wrong. There has to be a truly egregious error for a negative funding decision to be reversed. Remember, they’ve probably already sent out the notices to all the people who were successful so it’s unlikely they are going to eat crow and reorganize the whole field to fund your proposal. But it can happen, so sometimes it’s worth a challenge. If it’s a federal grant, your appeal needs to demonstrate that a standard other than the approved scoring criteria was applied.  That is nearly impossible to demonstrate.
  3. If you can’t get readers’ comments then it’s a good idea to request copies of some of the winning proposals so you can compare them to what you submitted. Write down the reasons you think that the proposal was rejected and keep it on file for the following submission. It’s better to do it right after you learn why you weren’t funded.
  4. If you planned with a collaborative that meets regularly, discuss the rejected proposal with them to talk about why it wasn’t funded and whether the group is capable and willing to make changes in the proposal design so it is more likely to be funded the next time around.

It’s a terrible experience to have to give a client disappointing news about a grant being rejected. Your clients put a lot of faith in your writing abilities and failure hurts your reputation as a “grant magician.” A failed grant in the early stages of a client relationship can ruin your relationship with them. Be wise about which grants you write and try to steer clear of lower percentage competitions with a client until you’ve had some success and demonstrated your competence. Once your relationship has been established, and your abilities are enshrined in the annals of their annual report, then you can survive a few rejections here and there.

————————————–
 
Visit GrantGoddess.com for lots of great tips and ideas to help increase you grant writing success!
 
Become a fan of the Grant Goddess and Creative Resources & Research on Facebook!

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Grant Writing is Like a Symphony

I have a colleague who likes to equate grant writing with all sorts of things like peanut butter, sausage, donautes and the like, but I think grant writing is more like a symphony.

There are many different parts to a grant and each of those parts on its own can be very complex, yet all of the parts come together to make a whole that is truly much greater than the sum of all its parts.

In the composition of a symphony, how you put the pieces together makes the difference between noise and music, and between a piece of music that is simply o.k. and one that is inspirational. Sure, the technical aspects of putting it all together are important. In a grant application, if you don’t connect all of the parts (needs connected to goals and objectives, which need to be connected to project design, and so on), you’ll end up with a product that looks like noise, and it probably won’t be funded.

In a truly great symphony, the composer goes beyond the technical aspect of composition and creates art. The same is true for grant writing.  A highly skilled and successful grant writer will move beyond the technical aspects of the writing and the composition of the grant and will use those to create a work of art – a grant application that speaks to the reader, demonstrates commitment, and inspires the reader to take action (the right kind of action – recommending the proposal for funding).

The next time you write a grant, create a symphony.

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Take a look at our YouTube video on Pulling All the Parts of Your Grant Together.

Get grant writing tips in the palm of your hand.  Try the Grant Tips iPhone app!

Want even more tips? Try our new book, 101 Tips for Aspiring Grant Writers.

Visit our Grant Writing Resources page for links to a plethora of great grant writing resources.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Grant Writing is Like a Symphony

I have a colleague who likes to equate grant writing with all sorts of things like peanut butter, sausage, donautes and the like, but I think grant writing is more like a symphony.

There are many different parts to a grant and each of those parts on its own can be very complex, yet all of the parts come together to make a whole that is truly much greater than the sum of all its parts.

In the composition of a symphony, how you put the pieces together makes the difference between noise and music, and between a piece of music that is simply o.k. and one that is inspirational. Sure, the technical aspects of putting it all together are important. In a grant application, if you don’t connect all of the parts (needs connected to goals and objectives, which need to be connected to project design, and so on), you’ll end up with a product that looks like noise, and it probably won’t be funded.

In a truly great symphony, the composer goes beyond the technical aspect of composition and creates art. The same is true for grant writing.  A highly skilled and successful grant writer will move beyond the technical aspects of the writing and the composition of the grant and will use those to create a work of art – a grant application that speaks to the reader, demonstrates commitment, and inspires the reader to take action (the right kind of action – recommending the proposal for funding).

The next time you write a grant, create a symphony.

——————————-

Take a look at our YouTube video on Pulling All the Parts of Your Grant Together.

Get grant writing tips in the palm of your hand.  Try the Grant Tips iPhone app!

Want even more tips? Try our new book, 101 Tips for Aspiring Grant Writers.

Visit our Grant Writing Resources page for links to a plethora of great grant writing resources.

Focus on Your Mission for Grant Writing Success

Non-profit consultant and grant writing expert, Derek Link, shares some important thoughts on how focus on your mission can lead to grant writing success:

Sometimes when I need to write a blog post, I’ll sit there in front of the blank screen, and unfortunately, my mind is as blank as the screen. So I just start to write, as I am now, waiting for a spark of inspiration. Just like some well-intentioned non-profits, I just want to “do” something, I haven’t a clue what it is yet.

Chasing the money isn’t an effective way to achieve your vision. Your grant seeking should be driven instead by the mission of your organization. Your mission is the “what we DO.” A mission should be laser-like and specific, and it has to lead logically to your vision.

People sometimes call me and say, “We want grants but don’t know how to write them, can you do that for us?” I say, “I’d be happy to help you. What do you need grants for?”

This is where the conversation can bog down. The client responds generally, “Oh, you know, we work with kids and we do recycling, so…well… grants for just about anything to do with kids or the environment would work. I’ve heard there’s lots of grants out there for kids and environmental projects.”

I revise my question, “What is it you want to do?” If the response is still vague then I know they are just chasing money. It is sad to me that the truest answer for many struggling nonprofit organizations that call me is, “We need grants to fix a budget problem. And, we don’t really care what the money is for, we can do anything so long as we get the money.”

The clear, specific mission is vital in grant making for these key reasons:

  1. It focuses your grant searching.
  2. It defines who will (and won’t) fund you.
  3. It is convincing because it logically leads to your declared vision.
  4. Your full commitment to it inspires confidence in your ask.

If your mission is, “we want to improve the environment”, then how can you convince a grant maker interested in reducing pesticide use that your recycling program deserves funding? Unfortunately, you probably can’t, because there is a mismatch in your missions. So if your mission is wide angled, like the environment, or youth, or senior citizens, you need to focus it down to what you are actually doing or want to do to help in those areas before you look for grants or you’re going to waste a lot of valuable time chasing money that’s not available to you.

Using a wide angle lens is not the way to find grants. It’s only a starting place to define your mission. Zoom in, then zoom in some more, and then get the magnifying glass out.

Grant seeking is a little like comparing the grooves on two keys (missions) to make sure they’ll fit the same lock; if one little groove is out of place, the key simply won’t unlock the funding for you.

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Want more information on how defining your mission can help you acquire grant funding?  Become a member of GrantGoddess.com and visit the Non-Profit Dream Center for step-by-step detailed assistance!

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Focus on Your Mission for Grant Writing Success

Non-profit consultant and grant writing expert, Derek Link, shares some important thoughts on how focus on your mission can lead to grant writing success:

Sometimes when I need to write a blog post, I’ll sit there in front of the blank screen, and unfortunately, my mind is as blank as the screen. So I just start to write, as I am now, waiting for a spark of inspiration. Just like some well-intentioned non-profits, I just want to “do” something, I haven’t a clue what it is yet.

Chasing the money isn’t an effective way to achieve your vision. Your grant seeking should be driven instead by the mission of your organization. Your mission is the “what we DO.” A mission should be laser-like and specific, and it has to lead logically to your vision.

People sometimes call me and say, “We want grants but don’t know how to write them, can you do that for us?” I say, “I’d be happy to help you. What do you need grants for?”

This is where the conversation can bog down. The client responds generally, “Oh, you know, we work with kids and we do recycling, so…well… grants for just about anything to do with kids or the environment would work. I’ve heard there’s lots of grants out there for kids and environmental projects.”

I revise my question, “What is it you want to do?” If the response is still vague then I know they are just chasing money. It is sad to me that the truest answer for many struggling nonprofit organizations that call me is, “We need grants to fix a budget problem. And, we don’t really care what the money is for, we can do anything so long as we get the money.”

The clear, specific mission is vital in grant making for these key reasons:

  1. It focuses your grant searching.
  2. It defines who will (and won’t) fund you.
  3. It is convincing because it logically leads to your declared vision.
  4. Your full commitment to it inspires confidence in your ask.

If your mission is, “we want to improve the environment”, then how can you convince a grant maker interested in reducing pesticide use that your recycling program deserves funding? Unfortunately, you probably can’t, because there is a mismatch in your missions. So if your mission is wide angled, like the environment, or youth, or senior citizens, you need to focus it down to what you are actually doing or want to do to help in those areas before you look for grants or you’re going to waste a lot of valuable time chasing money that’s not available to you.

Using a wide angle lens is not the way to find grants. It’s only a starting place to define your mission. Zoom in, then zoom in some more, and then get the magnifying glass out.

Grant seeking is a little like comparing the grooves on two keys (missions) to make sure they’ll fit the same lock; if one little groove is out of place, the key simply won’t unlock the funding for you.

———————————

Want more information on how defining your mission can help you acquire grant funding?  Become a member of GrantGoddess.com and visit the Non-Profit Dream Center for step-by-step detailed assistance!

Control or Collaboration? You Can’t Have It Both Ways

I’m working with a client on a grant writing process for a project that is due in about 2 weeks. I am accustomed to working with multiple project partners in a collabortaive planning and program development process, but I have also worked with clients who had more of a “top down” approach through which an administrator or small group of administrators developed a program design, made the decsions, and passed their decisions on to me.

However, this grant process is a bit different because the client is trying to use both approaches.  Well, they are trying to walk through a collaborative planning process, while doing their own planning behind the scenes and trying to steer the collaborative planning process in the direction they want. Sure, I have seen this before, but usually the faux “collaborative” process is not nearly as extensive as this one is.

As you might expect, people who think they are participating in a real collaborative process are beginning to bristle at the not-so-subtle control being wielded by those at the top.

What does this mean for the grant writing process?  It will be slow.  It will be contentious at times.  It certainly is not the best way to plan a program.

Real collaboration has many benefits beyond being able to write that you went through a collaborative process.  It helps leverage community resources and it builds relationships that will pay off far into the future.

Short circuiting the process so you can maintain some extra control is really not worth it in the long run.  In fact, your collaborative partners would be grateful if you were upfront about your intentions at the beginning.  If the collaborative process is not going to be real, they have better things to do, just like you do.

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Related Posts:


Trust the Grant Writing Process


When Partnerships Go Bad

The Importance of Respect When Working Collaboratively with Others

Visit GrantGoddess.com for more grant writing help!