#11: Grant Writing and Client Feedback

When do you ask your client to read your draft grant application? And what kind of feedback do you want, when?

Working with short deadlines forces me to share drafts sooner than I'd like. My client often sees a draft that looks nothing like the finished product. But I need feedback on the content.  Are the facts right? Am I emphasizing the right points in the evidence?

Seth Godin's blog entry about giving good feedback is useful in thinking through how to ask your client for feedback on that early draft. 

Seth's Blog

In the interest of promoting your career, making your day at work more fun, improving the work life of your colleagues, and generally making my life a whole lot better, I'd like to give you some feedback on giving feedback. As usual, the ideas are simple--it's doing them that's tricky.

#10 Saving Time Using Two Screens

If you aren't using two screens, start now. I know it seems like an indulgence, but the benefits far outweigh the costs. Besides, you probably have an old monitor sitting unused in a corner.

Glenn bugged me for months. "Ruth, you really should add a second monitor." I thought he was being silly and I resisted. But grant writing involves pulling together information from multiple documents and so much cutting and pasting.

Having a second screen makes it possible to keep my draft on the main screen and my source documents and the RFP on the second. I usually keep my email open on the second screen, as well, so I can see the answers to those time-critical questions as they come in.

Technically it's pretty simple, especially if you're using a laptop. Just connect the monitor and change a few settings. Voila! your desktop stretches across two screens.

I really recommend it. Your IT guru can help you set it up, if you're not adventurous. Save yourself time, stay more organized, keep what's important in front of you.

Thanks for pushing me, Glenn.

#9 Google Government Search, Now With State Filtering

Google Government Search, Now With State Filtering

One of the most useful blogs I follow is ResearchBuzz. She keeps track of resources and tools for researching on the web.

Now she's gone a step further. She's improving the tools out there. I was delighted when Google introduced Government Search. But the addition of state filtering makes it perfect. WOW!

And thanks, ResearchBuzz.

Any advice?

When I realized I hadn't posted here since mid-May I thought back over the month. It's been difficult. We spent much of the month away from home. Glenn's brother died - a blessing, but none-the-less a loss. Since working efficiently while traveling has been a goal, I thought my systems and tools were in pretty good shape.

But I wasn't very productive this time. I've had a tough time refocusing, too.

Any recommendations for how to be productive on the road?

#8 Use Strong Language

Which is stronger?

In our youth work we try to draw upon proven
models...

In our youth work we draw up proven
models...

Of course, it's the second one.

But this week I reviewed a grant application written in house for a client. It was rife with wishy-washy words that communicated a lack of confidence in their ability to successfully implement their proposal.

I didn't have time to write the application for them but agreed to review what the
staff wrote and offer some suggestions. I've worked with them long enough to know they are extremely competent and manage several effective youth programs.

So why the weak language?

Humility. They thought they should be humble. It's a problem that plagues us all when we begin marketing our services to potential clients or funders. We're shy about saying we're good at what we do.

Unfortunately, it weakens the proposal.

You have to go for strength. Take out the passive tense. Eliminate the we try's and we believe's and we want to's -- go for strength, action, confidence.

Prove you're worthy of the money you're asking for.

What do I look like?

Someone asked what I look like. This will give you an idea!

#7: Who Proofreads Your Stuff?

When I'm finishing up a grant I can't find my typos, misspellings, or grammar errors. I see words that aren't there and miss words that fail the spellchecker. My punctuation deteriorates into scattered dashes and dots.

I never was much good at grammar. And my spelling -- well, some people find it entertaining.

So before I put an application to bed it's time for someone else to take a look.

I always ask my team to read the grant for content and clarity, but it's rare that they're any good at proofreading. But when someone shows a penchant for editing, I ask them to do a careful reading for me.

One person is good; two is better.

Now I have a handful of people I ask to proofread for me. Some, like Candace, enjoy doing it and will squeeze me in whenever I need them. My errors jump out at her. And its a break from her usual people-problems work.

If you don't have a sharp reader you might want to try a service like www.ProofreadNow.com They're professional, painless, and fast.

They also publish a neat weekly newsletter that focuses on one grammar tip a week. I read it religiously.

It's brief (takes about three minutes to read) and entertaining (can you imagine entertaining grammar?). And I find that these tidbits tend to stick in my mind as I write.

So who's proofing your work? Tip #7 - find someone. Don't do it yourself.

ProofreadNOW.com, Inc.

#6: Survey your clients -- how are you doing?

I once had a new client tell me I was the first grantwriter who hadn't yelled at her and lost my cool at some point during the process. She wanted me to know she really appreciated it, and she's become a regular customer.

While clients won't use a grantwriter who can't bring in the awards, they'll also shy away from one that is tempermental, disorganized or difficult to deal with. But when the deadline is staring us in the face, we grantwriters don't always know we're being difficult. We're just getting the job done.

So I've found it's wise to ask for feedback from my clients.

About once a quarter I put together a simple on-line survey asking them to rate my service and comment on what they like and what can be improved. (I use www.surveymonkey.com -- it's free for surveys under 100 responses.) Sometimes I get surprised. It's always instructive. And when the comments are positive, it feels really good.

So don't be shy. Ask. And don't just ask the boss. Whether you freelance or have a position on staff, it's a good habit to periodically survey all the people who work with you preparing applications and proposals.

Resource # 5: Checking the Latest Research

Foundation Center - Research Studies - Regional Trends

I always want to know the latest research published on my topic before I start writing an application. It helps inform the proposal - everything from the field's buzz words to the design of the program.

The Foundation Center's PubHub is a good place to start that research. It's a repository of reports created with foundation money, so you know the content reflects funders' agenda. You can search by subject, keyword, publisher, foundation - and a mix of all of these.

Happy reading.

#4 ReadPlease

ReadPlease - Downloads - Text-to-speech software that lets your computer talk

When you write a grant you are having a conversation with the evaluators. You want to talk with them, not write at them. It's easy, but disastrous, to fall into bureaucrat-speak.

I find that the best way to check myself is to have someone else read my copy outloud. (When I read it I can put the inflection just where I want it to go, so it's not a real test.)

Unfortunately, I don't always have someone handy who can drop everything to read to me. So I use ReadPlease.

ReadPlease has a free version that does just fine for me. The voice may be flat, but I can hear what is awkward or muddled. Or pompous. It's great for comparing versions, too.

Check it out.

Resource #3 - I'm from the government and I'm...

Grants.gov - Get Started

Well, this time it's true. They are here to help us.

If you're interested in Federal grants this is the place to start. You can sign up for their daily email of newly issued RFP's, browse and access RFP's for open requests, and get lost as you wander through a world of government sponsored resources.

This is also the site to start your treacherous journey to on-line grant submission. Did I ever tell you about the time... well, we've all played beat the clock to submit our applications. We'll all trade war stories someday.

I must admit I prefer on-line submissions to handling all that paper. But I'm getting pretty annoyed when we have to do both.

But this, too will pass.

Resource #2: Basecamp

My friend Tom told me about this collaboration software and after two days I don't know how I managed putting together a grant without it. Tom works for a start-up company that has a handful of employees seldom in the same place at the same time. Things change rapidly and everyone needs to be in the loop on decisions. As he described how they use basecamp I realized its value to me.

Putting together a grant requires input from a team of people, all busy with their real jobs. And when the grant is for a coalition...well, you know how complex the communication becomes. Keeping track of who's providing what and making sure they know when you need it. Keeping everyone apprised of the program changes (oh, no, that component got dropped 3 days ago. The budget wouldn't stretch that far.)

Well, Basecamp has messages, to-do's, milestones, writeboards for brainstorming and drafting. It's web based so you can access it from anywhere. There's a free version that handles one project at a time. That's what I thought I'd use but I quickly realized the benefit of having several seperate projects going. And my clients have found it simple to use and really seem to appreciate it. (Do any of you want to comment from the client side?)

Take some time to look at it. Read the case studies. Sign up for the free level to try it out. You'll like it, too. It's worth five, maybe even ten, resource entries.

Why 79?

I know. It's rather cheeky of me to name this site 79 Grant Writing Resources You Can't Live Without when I've only listed one so far. The operative words in that sentence are "so far." I've got at least 79. Probably 179. And you probably have that many more to share.

But I can't stop what I'm doing to add all 79 at once. And if I wait, I might never get it done. It will become like the piano lessons I've promised myself I'd take and never have.

So, I thought I'd start. And maybe some of you will find the resources useful. And maybe you'll be inspired to share some of your resources. And day by day the list will grow -- way past 79.

Resource #1: CareerZone

Career Zone is on my mind because I happen to be working on a grant to prepare young people for the world of work. This is a pretty neat site where young people can explore careers that match up with their personal interests. CareerZone

Career Zone can be a useful tool in any youth development program that has a component focusing on work and careers.

Test Post for 79 Grant Writing Resources

I've wanted to start this blog for quite some time. I finally carved out some time this afternoon. It's a break between taxes, a bidders conference, and settling down to write this next grant.

So this post will test all the settings and give me a look at the template.