I am in the mood to talk about the things that make me thankful to be a grant writer. This could become an entire series but I’ll start with one post and see how it goes. I’ve decided to start with the top ten things I am thankful for.

1. I am thankful that I get to work with great people. I’ve met the most interesting and wonderful people since I set out on this career path. I’ve met many energetic, intelligent, kind, thoughtful people who are committed to a cause. So many of the people I’ve met are really inspirational.

2. I am thankful for the difficult people I work with too. Of course there have been a few turds in the punch bowl, but that’s life isn’t it? I’m still thankful for those people. They taught me valuable lessons like having a thicker skin, understanding that not everyone will like me or see things my way, and that usually when someone is being a jerk it isn’t about me (but when it is, I need to consider changes).

3. I am thankful for having the luxury of time to practice the craft of grant writing and the art of writing.

4. I am thankful for not being stuck on a salary schedule.  It always offended my sense of fair play when I saw people receiving range and step increases for nothing more than breathing and working to contract.

5. I am thankful that I get to go wonderful places for conferences, meetings, and training. It’s a benefit of being a consultant that never gets old.

6. I am thankful that I get to do a variety of tasks with my computer from writing to graphic design to web work. It is never slow and it never gets old because it’s always changing.

7. I am thankful for earning enough money to pay my bills and sometimes a little extra for the luxuries.

8. I am thankful for hot coffee every morning and really good snacks on our “grazing counter” in the kitchen. That’s where anyone may put food for everyone to share.

9. I am thankful I live in the USA where working as a consultant and making a decent living at it is still possible.

10. I am thankful for all the supportive family and friends who encouraged me to go out on my own as a grant writer leaving a secure, well-paid government job to work for myself. Their faith in me helped me gain the courage to go out on my own.

As you can see there are many things to be thankful about as a grant writer. I’m sure I could list ten more without any effort at all, like the fact that my wonderful old Civic started again this cold November morning and got me safely across the causeway and through the fields to work (thank you Honda).