Congratulations!

Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go.

Dr. Seuss

When I pursued the art of grant writing I didn’t realize at the time “oh, the places I can go.”  Like most other grant writers, I fell into this career by happy accident.  I’ve always loved reading, I’ve always loved writing and I loved being able to help people in my own unique way.  Writing grants felt natural to me and when I discovered that it was something that could bring even greater reward both personally and professionally I was ready to sign on for good.

Whether you’re brand new to writing grants or are an old pro, I want to challenge you to think of how you can use this skill – what it allows you to do.  Here are just a few ideas for your consideration:

Transform a Nonprofit – There’s an observation that floats around the grant writing world.  I don’t know how scientific it is but I like it and.  Eighty percent of grant writing is dedicated planning and twenty percent is actual writing.  A well-written grant proposal is dependent on the planning that an organization does ahead of time to prepare before the proposal is sent to the funder for consideration.  Good planning includes bringing together staff, the organization’s Board of Directors, partners, volunteers and those being served to answer the question “what does our community need most from us and, in turn, what program do we need most financial support for?”  Answering that question is vital to both the organization and the community it serves.  If you are a grant writer for your organization, get these groups together and see the great change that was just waiting for you to orchestrate.

Become an Independent Consultant – Have you always dreamed of working for yourself rather than others?  Become a grant writing consultant!  Hundreds of grant writers have branched out on their own contracting with a variety of nonprofits to write their grant applications and have a satisfying and rewarding career doing so.  Start-up costs are practically non-existent and you can work from anywhere allowing you freedom and flexibility.  Have a professional take care of the legal stuff, market yourself like crazy and keep up your good reputation in the nonprofit community.  With more than a million and a half nonprofits in the U.S. alone, there is much, much greater supply than demand of grant writers.  You will always be needed.

Ready to get started?  Download a no-cost guide here.

Work for the Feds – Okay, perhaps this one isn’t on your bucket list but it can be rewarding to go through the process of being on a team of federal grant reviewers.  You get to travel, you get to meet interesting people from across the country, the opportunity gives you a certain cache and you even get a small stipend.  No, you won’t get rich but consider what you do gain:

• Stronger grant application skills
• Contacts that can help you in the long run
• An in-depth understanding of the federal grant awards process

Again, these are just a few ideas off the top of my head.  What can you think of that you can do with the skill of writing grants?  I’d love to hear your ideas and about your experiences!