Building Strong Grant Collaborations
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Photo: Gift of Jack Leishman, OR
The world is holy. We are holy. All life is holy. Daily prayers are delivered on the lips of breaking waves, the whisperings of grasses, the shimmering of leaves.
– Terry Tempest Williams
And on lips when we speak with collaborative partners…..
Most big funders prefer to fund collaborations knowing that often produce better results and give them more bang for their buck.
But building and sustaining collaborations is an art form. I interviewed Dory Rand for my book and she has helped foster many successful coalitions so I asked her about what it takes to do it well.
She made a point of saying that the focus must be on the long term relationship in addition to short-term objectives and hinge on a willingness to share,
I think it comes down to trust and a willingness to spread the wealth or share the pie. If you have three groups working on something and only one is getting funding, I don’t think it is going to last very long.
So, I think whoever has the funding has to be willing to spread some of it around to the other groups who are doing the work and are helping to make it a success.
What undergirds this willingness is trust that the other parties will be fair and honor their word. Even people who are deeply committed to a common cause won’t be able to function properly if there isn’t clear communication.
During the book interviews, I asked people to share their worst grant experience and what they learned from it. Some of them weren’t pretty and I truly appreciated people’s willingness to show their fallibility in the interest of having others learn from their mistakes. Dory told me,
A long time ago a funder came to me and said “There’s something I would like you to advise me on or help create a program about” and I came up with a program that would require the participation of another nonprofit.
And instead of immediately going to that nonprofit and approaching it in a collaborate manner, I kind of pushed it along further and the other nonprofit got wind of it and was very upset that I had kind of gone around them and became a turf war issue of ‘You can’t do that program, I should do the program.’
Because of that, the program didn’t get done which was a shame. So, I learned not to be worried about who gets the credit or who is in control. Even if you are not sure what’s going to happen, I think people appreciate being brought into the process early on and have an opportunity to shape the process and have input and not be handed a done deal that affects them directly.
The root of communication is respect. Respect is from the Latin re-spectere meaning to see again. To see them again as someone with honorable intentions from their perspective if we take the time to understand them, and as someone who can handle whatever we have to say to them.
What I heard in this quote was that Dory may have just assumed that the other non-profit would go along with her ideas without respecting that they might have a differing opinion. Like most of us, she probably just did it out of expediency – to save time.
And like the rest of us, learned the hard way that not keeping people in the loop and making assumptions adds rather detracts to planning time.
Next week, I’ll share another post about building strong collaborations.
In the meantime, if you’re in the Rochester, NY area I’ll be teaching a workshop on How to Develop Collaborative Grants on June 12th at the Town of Brighton Town Hall. Hope to see you there.
Upcoming Classes
In the meantime, if you’re in the Rochester, NY area I’ll be teaching a workshop on How to Develop Collaborative Grants on June 12th at the Town of Brighton Town Hall. Hope to see you there.
Quote from a past participant in my workshops
“Jana Jane Hexter is an excellent teacher. She has terrific teaching skills, including the ability to adapt her approach to the domain experience of her class attendees. She is able to clearly explain very complicated subject material, making her training a true learning experience for everyone. I highly recommend her course.
Amy Dawson
I’ll soon be teaching this workshop online but in the meantime f you are further afield, check out Element 13 in Grant Writing Revealed: 25 Experts Share Their Art, Science and Secrets.
Photo: Gift of Jack Leishman
“Go to your fields and your gardens, and you shall learn that it is the pleasure of the bee to gather honey of the flower,
But it is also the pleasure of the flower to yield its honey to the bee.
For to the bee a flower is a fountain of life, And to the flower a bee is a messenger of love,
And to both, bee and flower, the giving and the receiving of pleasure is a need and an ecstasy.”
Kahlil Gibran
One of the questions that I asked the top grant writers I interviewed for my book was “Where is the art of grant writing? What makes you masterful?” They gave me a wide array of responses and I’ll share a couple here.
The Spark Within
Top grant developers are storytellers, lovers of logic, and compassionate wordsmiths. Mariann Payne summed this up perfectly,
It’s the art of persuasion. I have a fire in the belly to promote this in a way that will make it compelling. I think you need the ability to grow in knowledge and wisdom and to be able to write with maturity so that you are a good distiller of the truth.
You can hear in her quote that she has a natural passion for her work that isn’t taught but springs from deep within.
Fanning the Flames with Mental Acuity
When we are passionate about something we naturally have a desire to excel. We become curious about the best way of making a case and have a desire to try out new new ideas to find the ones that work best.
That’s where our mental capacities kick in. We are passionate about something, want to excel, and then use our brains to learn and become accomplished.
Top grant developers take pleasure in creating and presenting a truly convincing argument.
The Heart’s Music
But you can be passionate about something and be knowledgeable but still not win consistently. Why?
Because we are not independent beings. We are part of a larger interconnected whole. And we are primarily vibrational in nature. We are made up of matter. Science now shows us what mystics have told us for eons – that at our smallest units we are wave energy or vibrational and not fixed in time or place.
Our thoughts, actions, and words are all vibrational at source and they impact others in a myriad ways even if we are not conscious of it. Just like musical instruments we harmonize with some people, balance some, and are discordant with others.
So, you can write all the pretty words in the world and present a great argument but if they are not aligned with gracious love – for your work, the people you serve, and the funders you partner with – it won’t land, or simply won’t resonate with the funder.
Bill Smith alluded to this,
It’s one string plucked differently. It could be simple one word or phrase that has them say “Ah, that resonates with me this year.” It’s often just a tweak or slant.
Where is your spark and what is your song?
So, some good questions to contemplate this week,
- Where is the fire in your belly? What are you passionate about – so much so that you’re driven to learn and excel in order to see its fulfillment?
- Do you follow through? Are you actively engaged in learning what you need to in order to become masterful? If not, gently ask yourself what you would like to learn next to help you fulfill on fanning the flames of your passion.
- Are you aligned with love? When you write, do you envision the project as an empowering vehicle for love to be present for your clients, you and your organization, and the funder? If not, what can you do to nurture yourself so that it is easier for you to let love flow through your work?
During the interviews for my book, the top grant experts that I interviewed shared their wisdom about building relationships. Here are three nuggets from their vaults.
1. People Give to People Not Projects
Marianne Lockwood is simply masterful in her ability to build relationships with people and she put her finger on the issue when she told me,
People giving to people, to me that is absolutely critical. If you can get to an institution and actually get in the door and talk to somebody you are three quarters of the way there.
It makes all the difference in the world when they have a chance to see the face of the person who is representing the organization and get a sense that you are not just words on a piece of paper. I think it creates a certain amount of trust that really helps when you are trying to make your case.
All the most successful grants that I have gotten have been because I have managed to meet and talk. You can just make your case in a completely different way when you are face to face with somebody that simply can’t do, you can get close on the phone but it is just not the same thing as being there in person.
But of course that is the big challenge, getting in.
Just like human beings, some foundations are friendly and open and some are like locked boxes. It is not always easy to get through door – and sometimes it’s just not possible, but always keep at the forefront of your mind how important it is to try.
2. Get on site visits
Tony Silbert pointed out that site visits can be a precious opportunity for building relationships that we should seize at every chance.
Get on the site visits. There are people who write proposals who either back off or are shoved back into the shadows after they have written a proposal.
But if you work for an institution or even as a consultant you have got to get to the site visits because that is where all the relationships happen. It’s really your only time to have quality time with these people.
I find that meeting people on site visits makes a big difference in my work. I sense the personalities involved, notice what they pay attention to, the questions that they ask and what they appreciate. It gives you a big leg up in preparing a proposal that speaks to them.
3. Make them look good
Sue Caruso-Green used to work for a large bank as their Foundation Program Officer. She pointed out the program officer’s need to perform well in their job,
They have to look good in front of their boss. They have to look good in front of the grant committee.
So, by you creating a really good grant proposal, you are helping them look good in front of the people they need to look good in front of. You’re making the company look good by funding good projects through good strong organizations.
When you switch your mindset from “How can they help me?” to “How can I help them do their job?” I think there is a subtle shift in attitude and actions that you take it creates a context of empowerment. Plus, you just feel better and your work becomes more interesting and fulfilling.
What’s Possible
When you do build good relationships the outcomes can be wonderful. Marianne Lockwood expressed this beautifully.
How wonderful it is when you do get feedback from a program officer. I really appreciate it.
The most important feedback is where they have accepted a proposal but they want to discuss it further and they are willing to have a dialog with you about what the issues are and in a couple of cases where we have received grants the program officers have come back to me and said we like what you are doing, we are going to fund you but here are the issues that we have that we would like you to address.
Then you sit down with them and you get a chance to brainstorm with somebody who is looking at 100 other programs that might be similar to yours and give you feedback on what you are doing that could be made better or how you could maybe change something slightly to be more effective … they said look this is great. This doesn’t really work. Why are you doing it this way? Have you thought about doing it this way?
And because they are already funding you, you don’t make things up so it can be a really honest exchange of ideas that ultimately make your program stronger and also provide you with valuable information on how to approach other funders, because they are giving you a little bit of a tutorial on what other funders might look for in a proposal.
And to get somebody to do that for you is just extraordinary. It’s just too bad, I think there are only a handful of really, really great program officers who will take the time to do that with you and yet it makes an enormous difference.
Be in Action
Which of these suggestions can you take action on today? Here are some suggestions:
- Invite a program officer to an event you are having.
- Ask your program officer if you could schedule a site visit with them.
- Write a list of 5 ways that you could help make a program officer look good and 5 ways you could make their job easier.
- Call a program officer that you are working with and ask them in what ways you could make their life easier and more productive.
For more ideas, check out Element 6 in Grant Writing Revealed: 25 Experts Share Their Art, Science and Secrets.
Want to learn more about building authentic relationships that serve everyone involved? Join me next Wednesday for a 2-hour intensive workshop How to Build Relationships with Funders Without Feeling Like a Phony
And, I’ll be posting details about six new workshops soon.
Making cold calls intimidates 99% of the population. But it is a necessary action if you want to win grant funding so I’m going to devote this article to the topic.
One of the people I interviewed for my book is Linda Butler, a fun, kind and creative consultant based in Ohio. She is also a social worker with over 30 years of experience. She helps her clients prepare for cold calls to foundations by writing a script or doing a role play. She also helps them see how what they do already and is in their comfort zone is similar to the new thing that they are attempting. For example, they might already speak to staff at the United Way about their programs and so Linda will help them see that calling other program officers is similar.
For me, I prepare to make cold calls by remembering that it’s an interaction for greater good and to put the focus on why I’m making the phone call.
The first thing to do when you are getting ready to make a phone call that you don’t want to is to be honest with yourself about your hesitation. The reason that many of us hate this process is because it brings up other times when we have stuck our necks out and suffered as a result; whether it was the rejection in middle school by a boy or girl or ridicule of a teacher or parent when you reached beyond our bounds. When we step outside our comfort zone, it brings up those yucky memories and emotions and we back off.
I find that it really helps me to recognize that I’m feeling nervous and then acknowledge that I am now a middle-aged adult about to have a conversation with another adult about something that I’m deeply committed to. Framing it that way, helps me to step over my discomfort and make the call.
Then I try to put myself in the program officer’s shoes. Think about the last time that you met with a program officer and recall all the banter that went on in your head, probably along the lines of “I must tell them about x, what if they ask me something I don’t know, will they think I look/sound smart, I really want them to give me a grant etc., etc., etc.” Notice that the banter is all about you? Now imagine spending your whole life interacting with people in that way. It can’t be very nice to be on the receiving end of that.
I believe that the best approach is to notice all the banter in our heads, choose to set it aside and create some space for a real connection and conversation to occur. Try assuming that the program officer is a nice person who could be earning a lot more money in private industry but decided that they wanted to work for society’s betterment. Remember that they have kids and the normal concerns that you and I have.
Imagine if you had five minutes with Mahatma Gandhi, Amelia Earhart or Cleopatra. Would you be concerned about they think of your dress? No. You’d be excited about talking to them and finding out what they think about and why. What is on their mind? What are they worried about or excited about?
Try to treat conversations with program officers this way. You have 5 minutes with Cleopatra. When you can have a conversation about what they are interested in and what motivates them it is likely to be much more interesting for you both of you.
Think big picture and have a conversation about the reason that both of you get up in morning and go to work. Question how you can help them succeed. It’s bound to be more interesting than the usual banter.
If you want to get more comfortable building relationships with funders consider joining me for my class on May 8th How to Build Relationships with Funders without Feeling Like a Phony
Making Information Beautiful
By · CommentsOnce upon a time, proposals used to be straight text with maybe a chart or two. Then we got the capacity to insert artwork and photos and they became much more appealing. And now, we have some neat internet sites than can help to present information beautifully.
Infographics are a way to display complex data and make them visually appealing and quickly understood. They are the perfect addition to a proposal because they convey a lot of information in reasonably small space and are memorable. Done well, they tell a story. Here’s a good example, that explains what they are and why they are important.
It used to be that you needed to design these from scratch. But there are some new sites that allow you to create infographics and I think they are perfect for use in grant proposals.
Here are a few articles that give links to websites for creating infographics and how to go about designing them.
This blog post lists 9 websites that you can use to make great visuals
This is a clever use of infographics on hubspot – 5 infographics that teach you how to create infographics in Powerpoint.
This article by Kristi Hines includes 20+ resources to get you started
And….just for time crunched grant writers – How to Create Stunning Infographics in 30 minutes or less and is the source of the infographic above.
I’d love to hear a) about other resources you’ve found useful and b) examples of infographics that you create. Please add your comments below.
And for those you who work on large government proposals, we still have a couple of spots left in our class tomorrow How to Prepare a Government Proposal Without Losing Your Sleep or Sanity.
Getting government proposals out while simultaneously juggling your real job can seem like a herculean task. Maybe seem is an understatement…it is a herculean task. Preparing government proposals takes dozens of hours and more if you’re not used to doing it. When you are trying to fit that in around doing your full-time job, you end up feeling fractured, drained, and have that gut-wrenching feeling that you are jumping from one thing to another and just not doing anything as well as you’d like. And it can feel like that even if your full-time job is grant development.
It can be easier and much more rewarding both financially and emotionally. I have spent the last 15 years writing grant proposals and raising millions of dollars. In this class, I’ll share with you some approaches and tools that will save you hours and produce a better proposal at the end.
“This book is a must
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