Have you been stuck when it comes to writing grants? Leone Williams-Rohr shares her secret weapon of Mind Mapping for your Nonprofit grant writing. Leone is the executive director of a nonprofit, Parents Empowering Parents of Children with Disabilities (PEP) and is CEO of Crafting My Powerful Life. Leone is the executive director of a nonprofit, Parents Empowering Parents of Children with Disabilities (PEP) and is CEO of Crafting My Powerful Life. She started PEP in 2013 after advocating for her...
Jun 27, 2018•43 min•Ep. 34
Are you getting funding for your nonprofit or project? Yay! That’s amazing! Just don’t forget to give thanks to the funders and donors who are supporting your project. In this episode, Holly shares 15 Creative Ideas to say Thank You to Funders. Are you racking your brain trying to find cost-effective ways to say, "Thank you"? Or, worse yet, did you totally forget to thank those foundations or corporations who gave you a hefty check for a project? Or are you just trying to find different ways to ...
Jun 21, 2018•17 min•Ep. 33
Are you struggling to secure foundation grants, facing constant rejections, or unsure where to even begin your search? In this episode, Holly Rustick breaks down how to use GuideStar.org as a powerful and accessible resource to find the best-fit foundations for your nonprofit projects. She walks you through four key elements to look for when researching funders so you can stop wasting time on poor-fit opportunities and start applying to grants that align with your mission. Holly emphasizes the i...
Jun 14, 2018•20 min•Ep. 32
Do you know the difference between a grant and a contract? And more importantly—are you leveraging contracts as a funding stream for your nonprofit? In this episode, we break down the key differences between grants and contracts, and why contracts can be an incredibly powerful (and often overlooked) way to fund your organization—especially when it comes to covering operational costs. We dive into how contracts work, why they can provide more consistent and flexible funding, and how they fit into...
Jun 08, 2018•22 min•Ep. 31
Have you been seeing a flood of emails asking you to “opt in” or confirm your subscription? That’s not a coincidence—it’s because of GDPR. In this episode, we break down what GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) actually is, why it doesn’t just affect organizations in the EU, and what it means for nonprofits and grant writing consultants around the world. Even if you’re not based in Europe, GDPR has global implications. If your organization collects or uses data from EU citizens, you are re...
Jun 01, 2018•31 min•Ep. 30
Ready for a crash course in federal grants? If you’ve ever opened up Grants.gov and immediately felt overwhelmed—you’re not alone. And if you’ve been searching for grant writing tips that actually help you move toward an awarded grant, this episode is exactly what you need. In this episode, we break down how to navigate federal grant announcements in a way that’s clear and manageable. You’ll learn how to review opportunities on Grants.gov without getting lost in the details—and how to identify t...
May 24, 2018•48 min•Ep. 29
We made it. Grants.gov. For those of you who have been following this podcast series on How to Find Grants , you are probably ready to dive in and start finding grants. We ain’t quite ready, yet, though. Believe you, me, it’s all about getting SET up and understanding the layout of the grant world before you dive in and get overwhelmed. You may have been using Grants.gov for years, but have only ever used it to search or apply for grants. Or you may be new to Grants.gov and have never visited th...
May 17, 2018•28 min•Ep. 28
Grants.gov is the haven for federal grants. Are you registered? Need some tips on all the "pre" enrollments, such as EIN, DUNS, and SAM to then be able to register on Grants.gov. Check out this short podcast on the process and go to www.grantwritingandfunding.com to see the short video on how to apply on Grants.gov and getting the new templates for SAM notarization. Favor, please? If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener? This...
May 09, 2018•20 min•Ep. 27
“Obscurity is a bigger problem than money,” quotes Grant Cardone and this could not be truer when it comes to finding grant funding sources. If these funding sources are hidden away in some obscure world to your nonprofit, then this becomes the main root of not having any grant money. If you cannot find the sources that hold the money, then you will never be able to tap into the funding. Thanks so much for listening! Favor, please? If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and lea...
Apr 27, 2018•24 min•Ep. 26
To find grants, it is first important to understand what they are and what they are not. Let’s start with what they are not. Let me say this very clearly. 1) Grants are NOT free money. I mean, sure if you handle them correctly it is money given to you that you do not have to pay back. Holly, how is that not free money? Well, because you have to spend the money on what you said you were going to spend it on, reach the objectives you stated you were going to reach, and send a report to the funding...
Apr 13, 2018•21 min•Ep. 25
First you will want to know what the needs are (through the Needs & Strengths Assessment), identify potential projects, and then evaluate those projects and refine your objectives. Don’t get scared by the term “Data Management Plan” which sounds super academic. Basically what this means is that you need to show: Why you are getting information? What are your project goal(s) What are your objective(s)/ data elements? What information do you desire? What data needs to be collected? Who collect...
Apr 06, 2018•24 min•Ep. 24
“Why should I evaluate a project and why we even talking about that before we just start the project? Can’t I just make the project happen and then look back at it and give my review of it worked or didn’t work?” I hear these types of questions when nonprofits may just want to move. Heck, I asked these same sorts of questions when I was just starting out as a grant writer myself. When we are all pressed for time and ready to go this may seem to make more sense, the ‘do it imperfectly and get it ...
Mar 30, 2018•21 min•Ep. 23
Where to begin. You have the information of what the need is in the community, now it’s time to establish what your team needs for the the specific project. If you found that there is a huge need for transporting clients to services, what do you need to help overcome the transportation barrier? Would it be possible to create an Uber-like project? By establishing local or regional programs in areas that are easily accessible, giving out bus passes, creating a carpooling activity, connecting with ...
Mar 09, 2018•18 min•Ep. 22
How to Do a Boss Needs and Strengths Assessment for a Nonprofit Organization Projects. The very word makes some nonprofits scurry around and try to develop something trivial out of thin air to look like they are doing something. Or, sadly, to develop something that they may not need just because there is grant funding out there for that type of project. The former is referred to as draining the money, and the latter is coined chasing the money. Before you even get to projects, you need to make s...
Mar 02, 2018•27 min•Ep. 21
Annual planning is where it’s at. Where what is at? That amazesauce level of productivity you see in highly successful nonprofits—the kind that makes you wonder how they do it (or maybe even makes you a little jealous). Here’s the truth: those organizations aren’t just lucky—they’re intentional. And the good news? You can be that nonprofit too. In this episode, we break down why annual planning is the foundation for sustainable success and how it helps you move from reactive scrambling to strate...
Feb 20, 2018•12 min•Ep. 20
Sometimes nonprofits exist inside a vacuum. This is not conducive for sustainability, let alone the chance of survival. One reason for this segregation, that I often hear, is that one thinks another nonprofit organization will ‘compete’ with them and limit their ability to obtain funding. Another reason is that many nonprofit staff and executives can never seem to get out of the office to meet with potential partners. The thing is, partnerships are resources . Partnerships can literally make the...
Feb 16, 2018•15 min•Ep. 19
Is your nonprofit stuck in survival mode? Planning is key, but taking the time to do it is where you need to start (refer to Episode 15 to see how to set a schedule). Once you have taken the time and have reviewed your previous year, it is time to set your goals, objectives, and activities, so you can go from struggling to thriving. So what the heck are the differences between goals, objectives, and activities? Goals are the overarching, comparable to a large globe of aspirational destinations y...
Feb 06, 2018•15 min•Ep. 18
Are you struggling to figure out how to crowdfund for your nonprofit, especially when most advice seems geared toward products instead of causes? In this episode, Holly Rustick sits down with Steve Vick, Founder of Nonprofit Ally, to break down how nonprofits can run successful crowdfunding campaigns that actually generate results. Drawing from his experience as Executive Director of Noble Paws, Steve shares what works—and what doesn’t—when it comes to crowdfunding in the nonprofit space. They d...
Jan 26, 2018•50 min•Ep. 17
You’ve started your organizational strategic planning, now you are ready to evaluate last year and move into planning for this year. If you haven’t, no worries, just go ahead and listen to episode 15 on Grant Writing & Funding. Or better yet, visit our website at www.grantwritingandfunding.com/15 to get the free downloadable to set yourself up for your upcoming year You may be at the point where you have completed your “Why,” reviewed your organization’s mission and vision statements, conduc...
Jan 17, 2018•21 min•Ep. 16
It’s a new year and you are ready and organized with all your quarters outlined, projects in place, and all fund-raising events set up, right? I mean, you know when you will be applying for grants and have your calendars synced for all employees and board of directors…or do you? Or, like many other nonprofits, you are starting 2018: ● stuck in survival mode ● too busy to make time for planning ● have been meaning to do some research but are preoccupied ● don’t even know where to start as things ...
Jan 06, 2018•31 min•Ep. 15
Lead generators, oftentimes known as free opt-ins or email list builders, are essential for nonprofits. Online businesses have this down to a T and use lead generators on a regular basis. Lead generators are catching on in the nonprofit sector and websites, but some of you still may be saying, “Lead-what?” Just what is a lead generator? Favor, please? If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener? This helps others find the podcast...
Dec 14, 2017•13 min•Ep. 14
Oh boy. That’s right. It’s time to address it. The big W. Your Website. This episode is a nonprofit’s crash course on different types of websites, how to communicate your brand, and what you should NOT do on your website. Nonprofit websites, in particular, can be a little overwhelming and are known for being the cause of one too many headaches. With the prevalent combination of tiny fonts, non-contrasting colors, and a scream to “Give! Give! Give!” with no clear vision of why one should give or ...
Nov 22, 2017•25 min•Ep. 13
Why your nonprofit needs a website and not just a Facebook page You can have the most awesome nonprofit or business in the world, but in this day and age, you need that awesomeness to be reflected online. And by online, I don’t just mean social media or a mediocre URL. Do you still have a website that was created in the early millennium? You know the one that I am talking about. It is crammed with information in small font and looks more like a brochure than a website. I see this a lot, especial...
Oct 04, 2017•14 min•Ep. 12
✨✨ Visit www.grantwritingandfunding.com to get the proven G.R.A.N.T.S. formula to write winning grants ✨✨ So why do this fancy analysis? Well, it is very important to conduct an analysis of what stage your organization or company is and where you want to go. This is especially true when you have a new administration come in, or if you are expanding and growing. For instance, your organization may get some new grants and expand to a different target demographic. Or you may launch a new product to...
Sep 15, 2017•13 min•Ep. 11
✨✨ Visit www.grantwritingandfunding.com to get the proven G.R.A.N.T.S. formula to write winning grants ✨✨ What is your why? Or more specifically, what is the why of your board members, employees, volunteers, and beneficiaries? This question may seem like a no-brainer until you actually try and answer it. Is your organization, or the nonprofit you work with, challenged by poor governance, a high turn-over staff rate, or disgruntled beneficiaries? It may be due to not asking these four questions t...
Aug 30, 2017•14 min•Ep. 10
✨✨ Visit www.grantwritingandfunding.com to get the proven G.R.A.N.T.S. formula to write winning grants ✨✨ The six questions that will refine your mission and vision statements from 'meh' to amazing! Get clear and concise on your culture while creating the credibility that funding sources require. Do you need to listen to this podcast? If you, your staff, or your board of directors has to google your mission statement, then, yes, you do need to listen to this. Favor, please? If you love this podc...
Aug 17, 2017•13 min•Ep. 9
✨✨ Visit www.grantwritingandfunding.com to get the proven G.R.A.N.T.S. formula to write winning grants ✨✨ Part Five of the 5 parts to writing a winning grant. You will learn how to write about the following elements to write a winning grant in this podcast: • Activities • Selection process • Location • Challenges, contingencies, and sustainability plan • Nonfederal partners and resources • Leveraged resources • Oversee and monitor nonfederal resources and partners Looking to advance your grant w...
Aug 02, 2017•25 min•Ep. 8
It’s time to talk about the money. The budget. The good news is you don’t have to be a CPA to write a budget. You do, however, need to understand budgets. In this podcast, you will learn how to write a consistent budget and budget narrative in the format that grant reviewers appreciate. You will know which category to put each item of your budget and how to calculate costs. ABOUT HOLLY RUSTICK Grant Writing & Funding (GWF) has a Global Movement to Secure $1 Billion in Grant Funding for Good ...
Jul 19, 2017•39 min•Ep. 7
This section of the grant is where the magic happens. Once you know your problem statement (listen to the previous podcast), you can figure out clear objectives, goals, and outcomes. This is the backbone of your project. A grant is like a big jigsaw puzzle, and this section is really the backdrop and what guides you to be able to find and connect each piece of the puzzle. It’s the part of the puzzle that is the backdrop fence or the house with the clean line you use to connect the pieces. If you...
Jul 06, 2017•17 min•Ep. 6
Needs. We all have them, but how do you make yours stand out? How do you get funding sources to think your needs are crucial? How do you even identify the community you are serving? Welcome to the second in the series of the five basic parts of writing a winning grant. This podcast will articulate your target demographic, how to clearly state (and cite) your needs, and how to write a powerful problem statement to get funded. ABOUT HOLLY RUSTICK Grant Writing & Funding (GWF) has a Global Move...
Jun 22, 2017•12 min•Ep. 5
