Like many of you, I am constantly reading in my field - sometimes I read in my house too (sorry, I couldn’t help myself). Seriously, I read several online journals and when I come across something particularly good I’ll pass it along to you.

Here’s an especially good article: “Storytelling and the Brand: A Thousand Words….and Loads of Pictures” by DK Holland, in this month’s Philanthropy News Digest. You can read the article by following this link:
http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/npodesign/index.jhtml.

If you’ve found some particularly good reading, please pass it along by adding your comments for others to enjoy.

I just wrote a brief article for the June Grant Writing Coach eNewsletter titled, “Community: Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts.” In it I share my definition of community (an often misunderstood concept) and the need for nonprofits to develop sense of community for the sake of their communities (please pardon the play on words). The eNewsletter will go out Monday, if not before. If you’re not on the free monthly eNewsletter list, you can sign up online at the thegrantwritingcoach.com home page.

PREVIEW
My working definition of community is this: community is the free association of individuals with one another for the purpose of establishing a common identity through shared experience. Granted, this is a very broad definition, but it is functional. Community is important for all of us. We need to be in some sort of community, whether that be church or the community of nonprofits in a given city. M. Scott Peck put it this way, “There can be no vulnerability without risk; there can be no community without vulnerability; there can be no peace, and ultimately no life, without community.”

Purpose yourself today to be an active part of a community - for peace and life.

My daughter shared a quote with me that she found on the internet. I’m passing it on to you because I think it’s a good one. May what is true ring true for you.

“Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment.”
– Barry LePatner

Over the weekend I had a conversation with a friend who shares a common opinion: nonprofits are all poorly managed. Sadly, that is true of some nonprofits, but by no means the majority. The question I’m pondering is why is it such a commonly held belief?

I suspect it’s primarily due to three misconceptions.

1) Misconception: Nonprofits are passion-driven, therefore their executives have no business sense. This is a misconception based in truth. It is true that most nonprofits are run by passionate people who are deeply committed to their mission, but that doesn’t mean they’re poor business people. In fact, most nonprofit managers are excellent at what they do because of their high level of committment. I’ve known nonprofit executives that routinely put in 55-60 hour weeks and faithfully work at continuing education.

2) Misconception: Nonprofits are always begging for funding because they squander their revenues. Headline news aside, this is rarely the case. Most nonprofits squeeze more from a dollar than can be imagined. If our government were as frugal we could pare down the IRS to nearly nothing.

3) Misconception: Nonprofits spend too much time fundraising and not enough time doing what they are supposed to be doing. Actually, if you consider what nonprofits are doing, it’s amazing they can do as much as they do. Here are just a few of the nonprofits we all enjoy: hospitals, schools, churches, camps, social service organizations, community and neighborhood associatons, sports leagues, and the list goes on and on.

I don’t buy into the idea that most nonprofits are poorly managed - if they were, we’d all be in trouble!

The workshop at Whitestone Country Inn was yesterday – what a beautiful setting for The Grant Writing Coach! The Inn is situated on 360 acres of rolling green hills overlooking Watts Bar Lake and the facilities are first class all the way. However, the best aspect of the Whitestone is the hospitality of the staff. A big THANK YOU to Paul Cowen, Joe Castillo and their staff.

The workshop was very well received - everyone was actively engaged, even after the lavish lunch served by the Whitestone staff. I thought you might enjoy a few of the comments written on the evaluations:

- “The use of anecdotes and the multiple references to participant’s specific needs were quite useful in both keeping my attention and helping my understanding of the subject manner… I admit that I was overwhelmed and intimidated at the very thought of attending a grant writing workshop. But after just a few hours of instruction, I now feel that writing a successful grant proposal is actually possible for me!”
Stephanie Kirby, Soles4Souls

- “Excellent Plus! [Especially] the matching of the workbook and the lecture.”
John Clevelle, First Church

- “[I] attended a three-day “How To Write A Grant” seminar supposedly presented on a college level. I really only needed grade school level. Today’s workshop has been exceptional! I now have the tools, instruction manual, and confidence to begin writing my first proposal. Thank you!”
Sandra Armstrong, The Health Center at Standifer Place

- “The detail provided was so much more than I expected, and the emphasis on integrity was truly refreshing. [This was] one of the most eye-opening conferences I’ve ever attended. I expect great things for our organization!”
Debbie Lance, Erlanger Health System

- “The Grant Writing Coach seminar saved our school between the $25,000.00 and $60,000.00 we were about to spend on ‘Donor Surveys’ and ‘Targeting’ our community money. As a Christian school, we are thankful we have found a match in our philosophy of grant writing in Dr. Moucka.”
Paula G. Evans, Maryville Christian School

Here are a few of the questions (and answers) asked at the workshop:
Q. How much should we ask for if we have a million dollars of needs and several projects we’re working on?
A. You should attack one project at a time and ask for that project’s bottom line, or the amount that will not be covered by other revenue.
Q. Our organization’s mission statement is way too long – can I just shorten it for the purposes of the proposal?
A. Go ahead and work on a more succinct version and then run it by your executive director for approval. You may want to use the occasion of writing a grant to prompt your board to consider a new, more effective mission statement.
Q. Which is more important, to highlight our organization’s strengths or our positive reputation in the community?
A. If you craft your proposal artfully you can accomplish both at the same time. There’s no doubt your strengths are the source of your positive reputation. I would identify a few of those strengths and connect them to particular organizations/people that hold you in high esteem.

If you’d like to host a workshop in your community check out the hosting page at www.thegrantwritingcoach.com.