If you listen to that question mark suit guy on the late night infomercials, you’d think there was an unlimited pool of government money out there for the taking, if only you’d grab his directory. Well, there is a great deal of government (our tax) money out there that you can get, but usually it’s not just like falling off a log. The government only gives money for special purposes, and typically to specific groups of people. There are almost 1,500 government grant programs and nearly all of them are structured to allow special groups of people to benefit from the grants.
That’s great news, I don’t want just anyone grabbing their share of my share that I worked until May for. However, it also smacks of favoritism, something the Feds excel at. Perhaps the best known government grant programs are for students. If you ever went to college, there’s a good chance you were a beneficiary of a Pell grant or knew someone who was. There are also many grants available for small business; either to start or grow them. In fact, the majority of government money is used for this purpose. Nearly 60% more money is allocated for small business grants than for education grants.
The government also doles out grant money for research and development, minorities, women, and community development. Your first step is to find a grant that offers money for exactly what you’ll be using it for. There are, as I noted above, numerous examples. If you are a n actual 501(3c) non-profit you’ll have the best chance, but you can get money as a plain Joe/sephine also. The key to getting government grant money is to request the grant for a specific purpose that falls within the narrow requirements the specific grant program is looking for. The other factor is to write the grant request exactly as the bureaucrats would like to see it. You need to conform exactly to their expectations, and use the proper language, if you would like to see any money from Uncle Sam.
What goes into writing a government grant request? You’ll need to write a cover letter first. Inside the request you’ll need to demonstrate you, or your organization’s need for the funds. You’ll have to show a use plan to explain exactly how you’ll use the money as well. If you’re really lucky, the agency offering the grant will have an application form for you to fill out. Otherwise, you’ll have to remember what you learned in your creative writing classes back in college. Some of these apps can be real whoppers too, so limber up your typing fingers.
There’ll be a grant application kit you’ll have to get from the government agency offering the grant. In it will be everything they’ll require to give you the best chance of prying the money out of their clammy paws. There may be a template that will be very specific in what the agency is requesting. Some of the more common information required by the template will include who’s applying for the grant, a detailed description of the project the grant will be used for, how much grant money is being requested, a timeline for its completion, what contribution the requestor will make toward the project, how the project will benefit the grantor, and personal/contact information for key members of the team.
There will most often be a list of deliverables the granting agency will be expecting, so you’ll know just what to documents and data include, and how to organize them.
One last thing; don’t be picky. There are often multiple grants available from the same and different agencies that you may be eligible for. You should apply for every last one of them in order to maximize your chances success. It’s easy to be debt free if your money was free, just don’t waste it.
That’s great news, I don’t want just anyone grabbing their share of my share that I worked until May for. However, it also smacks of favoritism, something the Feds excel at. Perhaps the best known government grant programs are for students. If you ever went to college, there’s a good chance you were a beneficiary of a Pell grant or knew someone who was. There are also many grants available for small business; either to start or grow them. In fact, the majority of government money is used for this purpose. Nearly 60% more money is allocated for small business grants than for education grants.
The government also doles out grant money for research and development, minorities, women, and community development. Your first step is to find a grant that offers money for exactly what you’ll be using it for. There are, as I noted above, numerous examples. If you are a n actual 501(3c) non-profit you’ll have the best chance, but you can get money as a plain Joe/sephine also. The key to getting government grant money is to request the grant for a specific purpose that falls within the narrow requirements the specific grant program is looking for. The other factor is to write the grant request exactly as the bureaucrats would like to see it. You need to conform exactly to their expectations, and use the proper language, if you would like to see any money from Uncle Sam.
What goes into writing a government grant request? You’ll need to write a cover letter first. Inside the request you’ll need to demonstrate you, or your organization’s need for the funds. You’ll have to show a use plan to explain exactly how you’ll use the money as well. If you’re really lucky, the agency offering the grant will have an application form for you to fill out. Otherwise, you’ll have to remember what you learned in your creative writing classes back in college. Some of these apps can be real whoppers too, so limber up your typing fingers.
There’ll be a grant application kit you’ll have to get from the government agency offering the grant. In it will be everything they’ll require to give you the best chance of prying the money out of their clammy paws. There may be a template that will be very specific in what the agency is requesting. Some of the more common information required by the template will include who’s applying for the grant, a detailed description of the project the grant will be used for, how much grant money is being requested, a timeline for its completion, what contribution the requestor will make toward the project, how the project will benefit the grantor, and personal/contact information for key members of the team.
There will most often be a list of deliverables the granting agency will be expecting, so you’ll know just what to documents and data include, and how to organize them.
One last thing; don’t be picky. There are often multiple grants available from the same and different agencies that you may be eligible for. You should apply for every last one of them in order to maximize your chances success. It’s easy to be debt free if your money was free, just don’t waste it.
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