Grant proposal writing is a skill that could be developed with time and practice. Having acquired the skill, you can work as an independent contractor, full-or part-time development officer, consultant or as a freelance writer.
Income potential depends on various factors; hence, there is no single way to explain the limit of the income. However, do you like to know, what enables a good writer, to produce consistent cash flow? How an average person or to that matter even a beginner could ever make a living through writing funding proposals? As a writer, I kept asking these questions to myself. I am sure some of you are thinking like me since we all have legitimate bills to pay.
I myself being a writer of a faith-based organization, realize that there are some attributes needed to acquire by grant writers. Regardless of my experience and position, I see these principles working cross-culturally. The said attributes are my observations, nether-less, you are free to have your own opinion on any of these points. Let us have a look;
1. Flexibility: As a proposal writer you need to think and act as per your donor’s need, and the application process, which often keep changing. Hence, you can’t stick to one approach.
2. Goal Oriented: It is one thing to set goals and another to keep attaining those goals. Grant proposal writers don’t just set goals but often carry out them, through focused efforts.
3. Skills of Research: Due to limited space, I can’t elaborate this important issue here. However, it is worth to note that, research is not about scrolling thousands of pages or websites for information, but rather the skill of indexing quantified information to match the need.
4. Tech Savvy: As more and more funders and donor organizations are upgrading to a paperless digital world. Be a tech-savvy to keep pace with this changing pattern of technology.
5. Skills of Communication: Not only writing but speaking skills are equally important. These skills are required for presentations and articulation of vision meetings during donor visits.
6. A vision for your Passion: Though you are a fundraising professional, is not all about money. Be sold out for your passion. I strongly believe every writer carries passion and gets associated with an organization that he/she believes of having a similar passion.
7. Credibility: Writing develops trust factor between them and client-funder. Hence, grant writers should understand that ‘people give money to people’ not to organizations.
8. Multitasking Ability: You may juggle from one end to other to complete the task, right from researching to submitting the grant application. The ability to switch gears between different tasks makes grant writer a unique personality.
9. Inter-Personal Relationships: It is not the computers or robots, but humans make funding decisions. Developing a human relationship with donors and engaging them in field visits and presentations, as and when required is a must to any grant writer.
10. Persistence & Consistence: Timid personalities can’t survive as grant writers; be bold enough to accept rejections. It doesn’t matter how hard and well you have done. Rejections are common and may have various reasons.
These attributes are my observations; however, the list is not exhaustive. You are free to have your opinion and add more to it.
