Lightning Fast Grant Writing Tips: Give Your Charity an Advantage by Starting on Your Budget Early

One of the most important things I like to teach in my Lightning Fast Grant Writing Workshops is the suggestion that charities should start working on their project budget right away.

Too often, charities work on their budget at the last minute. They will only focus on the budget after they have written much of the grant which is odd, when you think about it, because the grant writer would have a better idea of what to write if there was a realistic budget to work off of...

Ironically, busy grant reviewers will often skim (or not read at all) the text of the charity's grant application and instead turn to the budget to make an informed decision about whether the charity has a clear enough plan and a realistic understanding of their proposed project. In this context, it is easier to understand why a strong, detailed, accurate budget will always give an agency an unfair advantage over its competition.

One of the best ways to get started on your budget is to work off of a copy of an existing, winning budget. You can obtain copies of winning budget examples from other agencies, off of the internet, or from your own agency's previous grant applications.

A Couple of Great Ideas for Researching Grant Possibilities

My aim is to speed up the process of winning grants. This means that I like to bring fresh eyes to the grant writing process and place my stress on techniques that make it easier for you to move decisively and quickly when it comes to researching funders and preparing applications for them.

One of the ironic things about teaching "grant writing" classes is that a lot of the success you experience is actually due to "grant researching." Accordingly, it is important to know where to look for funding for your project.

In my experience, people who dive into the Internet searching for grants are quickly overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information available to them. I like to simplify things by recommending the three most important sites I use to get information about potential grant opportunities.

I turn to the Foundation Center in New York for information on corporate and foundation grants.

http://www.foundationcenter.org

I turn to the federal government's special site for federal grants.

http://www.grants.gov/

And, finally, I look to another site for full information on potential scholarship applications.

http://www.fastweb.com/

With these three sites at hand, you'll have about 90% of the resources you need to find grants for yourself, your clients, or your non-profit agency. Also, please don't forget that it is okay to ask other for help. In a fix, I like to contact the staff members of your Congressional representative for your district or your city manager's office for assistance.

Networking (oasis) for grant writers. http://ping.fm/o5HCD

Analyze impact of stimulus package on your neighborhood - go to http//:www.recovery.gov

Keep on Keeping On: Don't Get Spooked By a Bad Economy

As you may know, Tricia and I are enjoying a good year economically. Although she was laid off in March 2009 - and is still looking for work - our grant writing consulting business is growing nicely and producing more than enough to keep us afloat. Nevertheless, these are dark times for our U.S. economy.

As you can see from the private employment chart above, this particular recession is much worse than previous recessions from the standpoint of overall employment numbers. The good news for grant writers, however, is that foundations are still required to give away 5% of their assets no matter what. Even if the charity doesn't have enough money for staff, it usually has enough money squirreled away to cover the cost of a grant writing consultant to help them put together a series of winning grant proposals.

Moreover, there are a lot of people making a lot of money. Government employees are doing well. Certain sectors of the economy are taking off even as other portions of the economy slide. The danger kicks in only when you allow yourself to get discouraged and stop trying with your soliciation efforts, grant writing, and normal follow-up activities. No matter what, tough times don't last...but tough people do.