What do you do if the perfect grant application comes along, but you don't have the bandwidth to tackle it all on your own? Consider finding a partner or some extra sets of hands to help you get the job done. Even if you are a grant consultant of one, a fellow solo-preneur may be the perfect solution. Check out how cohost Kimberly tackled and won her largest grant award of her career ($25M) thanks to collaborating with a fellow grant professional who had the right client, right grant, but not th...
Jan 19, 2023•34 min•Season 6Ep. 2
While there are hundreds of thousands of grant opportunities in the United States, not every funder or application fits the mission and need of your organization. Rather than wasting time chasing after dollars you will never win, consider a targeted approach to your grant seeking. We'll tell you how.
Jan 05, 2023•47 min•Season 6Ep. 1
We switched up this year's top ten favorite things list by asking each member of the Grant Pro Book Club (of which we're members) for their favorite productivity tool. We're sharing a wide variety of tech of other means used by grant pros, each with 10+ years of experience in the field. It's a great way to plan for success in 2023 and beyond.
Dec 08, 2022•50 min•Season 5Ep. 24
Working in the nonprofit sector means we focus on wealth and charitable donations, while juggling sustainability, investments, and the future. Today we are talking to fundraising expert Cherian Koshy about planned giving, stock transfers, decolonizing non-profit strategic planning, and so much more. He knows the artful balance of doing the work today while planning for the future needs of your community.
Nov 10, 2022•47 min•Season 5Ep. 23
Productivity tools are always helpful, but sometimes it feels like the product is running you instead of you running the product. Today we are talking about the things that distract us from getting the work done and ways in which you can enhance your productivity by focusing on the work.
Oct 27, 2022•44 min•Season 5Ep. 22
You have a brilliant idea, but how do you bring it to market? Today we are talking to Gauri Manglik, CEO & Co-Founder of Instrumentl, a tool for nonprofits to get matched with the right funders while tracking and managing their grants. She shares how Instrumentl was first imagined, developed, and launched - it is a great learning experience for anyone wondering what tips and tricks an entrepreneur would share about their product beginnings, launch, and continued success.
Oct 13, 2022•37 min•Season 5Ep. 21
We spend many episodes dreaming of the way we WISH funders would operate - and today we are flipping the script. Learn about funders who are doing things right, earning praise from grant professionals far and wide. Plus, learn how you can lift up those funders who deserve all our praise and recognition. It's a great way to set an example for the hundreds of thousands of others who should step up their game.
Sep 29, 2022•36 min•Season 5Ep. 20
Your Fundraising HayDay cohosts are big believers that reading is a vital component to quality writing skills. We share what reading does for your vocabulary, sentence structure, and so much more. Whether you love paperback books, audio books, newspapers, magazines, grant proposals, letters, or any reading medium, the written word is a powerful thing that impacts our own writing.
Sep 15, 2022•45 min•Season 5Ep. 19
If you work in the nonprofit profession, you will interact with your organization's board of directors. They are instrumental in your fundraising efforts, but that does not mean they are seasoned fundraisers and grant seekers themselves. So how do you best interact with your board towards building a flourishing collaboration? The Board Pro, Christal M. Cherry, joins us with some incredible advice, insights, and positive framework for doing just that.
Sep 01, 2022•48 min•Season 5Ep. 18
Whether you develop grant proposals or work with donors, we are all storytellers. And it's vital that we share the same messages about our organization, the community we serve, and the work we do. T. Clay Buck knows a thing or two about the power of messaging, and he shares insights on how we can all work together to get the job done.
Aug 18, 2022•51 min•Season 5Ep. 17
Dana Schuler Drummond has a long and storied career in the field of grants and fundraising. She writes grant proposals; she teaches nonprofit courses at a local college; and she developed a grant management software tool when her post-it system failed her. No two people have the same career trajectory, but Dana has a story that will resonate with us all.
Aug 04, 2022•57 min•Season 5Ep. 16
Dear funders, we appreciate when you offer a grant workshop. It is ALWAYS helpful to learn more about an upcoming application process and have the opportunity to ask questions of you. But not all funder-led workshops are created equal. Join us as we talk about the aspects of these workshops that drive every grant professional to bang their head against the wall, and hear our dream world about the perfect workshop experience.
Jul 21, 2022•54 min•Season 5Ep. 15
These days, grant professionals and fundraisers are often asked to tag team on capital campaigns. When raising a significant amount of money in a set time frame for a new building, large technology upgrade, an endowment, a fleet of new vehicles, or any other large-scaled project, it is typically all hands-on deck. We're offering a step-by-step process, highlighting how grants can and should play a role in the process.
Jul 07, 2022•44 min•Season 5Ep. 14
You have probably been there before. You already have a full-time job as a teacher, firefighter, major gifts manager, city clerk, accountant, volunteer coordinator, or "fill-in-the-blank job" here. One day your boss comes in and adds grant research and writing to your other duties as assigned. You don't even know where to begin, much less how to submit a completed grant proposal. Trust us when we say, you are not the only individual in this position. We're talking with Joy Day, the Mayor of Jone...
Jun 23, 2022•44 min•Season 5Ep. 13
As grant and fundraising professionals, we work with colleagues, boards, partners, other nonprofit agencies, funders, donors, and many other stakeholders. Our job is so much more than bringing in funding. If we are serious about building diversity, equity, and inclusion, we need to build better relationships with all our community stakeholders - making the funding world a better place for every recipient. Don't know how to start? We have a few tips.
Jun 09, 2022•47 min•Season 5Ep. 12
It's the dreaded question most funders ask: how are you going to sustain this program when the grant is over? If we are being brutally honest, the answer is probably to write another grant. But we want to be funded, so a more comprehensive and multi-faceted answer is required. Learn all about the benefits of collaboration, fundraising, and more to create the best sustainability answer possible.
May 26, 2022•48 min•Season 4Ep. 11
The work is piling up - grant deadlines, conference presentations, a new capital campaign, the next fundraising gala, and other duties as assigned. You feel like you're a jack of all trades, but a master of none. How do you get to the place where you feel good enough and are okay with that? Join our conversation with Jess Pettitt, author of Good Enough Now, as she shares how to "do the best we can with what we have some of the time."
May 12, 2022•47 min•Season 5Ep. 10
You know the drill. A funder asks a series of questions, then gives you anywhere from 100 to 1,000 CHARACTERS to answer each question. When you have a million things to share, but a very limited space to do so, how do you fit it all in? Today we're talking writing tight.
Apr 28, 2022•48 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Sure, we all speak English, but are we talking about the same thing? Fundraising is not an exclusively American thing, so we are talking to our friend across the pond. David Burgess, and his firm Apollo Fundraising, provides consultancy, training, and support to arts and cultural organizations. Turns out, we have more in common than we think - and more to learn from one another in getting the job done well.
Apr 13, 2022•54 min•Season 5Ep. 8
It's the Fundraising HayDay annual episode that is ripped from the headlines. We are talking grant fraud stories and the consequences that happen when the rules are broken. We've got stories about a university professor and a local mayor. We're also following up on a story from last year's episode about the Tennessee state senator who was accused of using federal grant funds for personal gain.
Mar 31, 2022•31 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Most every grant proposal requires the creation of goal(s) and objective(s) to demonstrate the change your program will bring about during the grant period. If you have ever wondered how to come up with specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-oriented objectives, this is the episode for you.
Mar 17, 2022•48 min•Season 5Ep. 6
It's not unusual to specialize in a specific field of the grant profession. So how do you determine which one fits your career? The best way is to learn as much as you can about the differences between them all. Today we are highlighting Olivia Smith-Daugherty and her work in K-12 education. She manages the grant needs of entire school system, serving students, teachers, and administrators. Could this be the grant specialty for you?
Mar 03, 2022•52 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Whether you are a one-woman grant office, a consultant with a slew of sub-contractors, or a giant grant team, there are always a million tasks that must be accomplished in the grant profession. So how do you keep up with it all? It's the age-old question for grant pros around the world. Today we are talking with Allison Boyd of Boyd Grants. In 2021 she earned her clients $38 million, which helped transform the lives of 5.5 million people. She is the master of systems and scheduling to crank out ...
Feb 17, 2022•57 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Last episode we spoke about the whys in grant - as in why do grant applications have such limited character counts to complicated questions and why are grant portals so complicated? In part two of this discussion, we are lifting up organizations and individuals who are fighting the good fight, working to make the grant space more equitable. Learn how you can amplify their voices by participating in activities and processes aimed at making the world a better place for us all, one wonky grant proc...
Feb 03, 2022•50 min•Season 5Ep. 3
If you have spent any time preparing a grant proposal, managing a grant program, or dealt with the many requirements centered around grant funding, you have most likely thrown up your hands in frustration, and probably more than once. From limited character counts and ridiculous online portals to the abysmal funding levels awarded to nonprofits serving and led by people of color, it's enough to make you want to burn the whole system to the ground. In part 1 of this discussion, we are asking all ...
Jan 20, 2022•49 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Everyone wants grant money for their organization, and why not? It helps fund programs, staffing, infrastructure, equipment, and so much more. But to be competitive in the grant funding world, you need all your ducks in a row to ensure your organization is grant ready. From compiling needed paperwork and creating documents, to ensuring that your organization's board of directors is on board with all the work needed to create quality grant proposals, it is a lot of work. Is your organization actu...
Jan 06, 2022•45 min•Season 5Ep. 1
On November 5, cohosts Amanda Day and Kimberly Hays de Muga joined Lucy Morgan (aka My Fed Trainer) for an "Ask Me Anything" workshop at the 2021 Grant Professionals Association Conference in Seattle, Washington. In this episode, you can listen in on that session - where we cover topics from confessing the biggest grant mistake made to fighting inequities in the grant field. Questions were fielded from both in-person and online audiences. Come learn with us.
Dec 09, 2021•55 min•Season 4Ep. 24
As tradition goes, Kimberly and Amanda share the things that brought them joy throughout the year. Join our annual top ten favorite things, and see what made the list for 2021.
Nov 11, 2021•45 min•Season 4Ep. 23
Whether virtual, on-site, or a hybrid model, professional conferences are a great way to find tips on raising more through grants and fundraising. But they can be overwhelming and exhausting, even if you are attending in your pajamas. In this episode, learn how to get the most from your professional conference experience from an introvert's and an extrovert's point of view.
Oct 28, 2021•46 min•Season 4Ep. 22
Fundraising leaders are required to do so much: help donors give with joy, manage the programs, write quality grant proposals, direct their staff, and so much more. And at the heart of it all, they should care about the work they are doing. Join our cohosts as they speak with Margaret Katz Cann of Fundraising Leadership, an organization who grows nonprofit leaders through coaching and training programs. Margaret has been on both sides of the grant and fundraising tables, and she knows a thing or...
Oct 14, 2021•39 min•Season 4Ep. 21
