Threads: The Key to Successful Grant Writing
Grant writing isn’t just about crafting compelling answers to specific prompts – it’s about making sure that every piece of the puzzle fits together. Without strong threads, federal grant proposals can become disconnected, unfocused, and ultimately unsuccessful.
Grant writing isn’t just about crafting compelling answers to specific prompts – it’s about making sure that every piece of the puzzle fits together. At the core of successful grant applications are threads: the essential connections between the need, the intervention, and the impact. Without strong threads, federal grant proposals can become disconnected, unfocused, and ultimately unsuccessful.
Let’s explore why threads matter and how organizations can strengthen them to create cohesive, fundable grant proposals.
Why Threads Matter in Grant Writing
Grant writing is often seen as the art of answering prompts persuasively, but the secret to success runs deeper. A strong grant proposal isn’t just a collection of compelling responses; it’s a tightly woven narrative where every piece fits together seamlessly. At the heart of successful grant applications are the threads that connect an organization’s needs statement, proposed activities, and intended outcomes.
These essential connections transform a disjointed application into a cohesive, fundable proposal. Funders are looking for well-thought-out projects that demonstrate alignment between need, intervention, and impact. A grant proposal that lacks clear connections between these elements raises red flags. Reviewers might question whether the proposed activities truly address the identified needs or whether the anticipated outcomes are realistic.
The strength of these connections can be the difference between securing funding and receiving a rejection. A disjointed proposal suggests a lack of planning, or worse, disconnection from what should be your area of expertise; A well-connected proposal signals confidence, feasibility, and credibility.
This may seem obvious, but the lack of a cohesive, clear thread is the number one issue with grants I review.
Here is an example: A client was applying for a grant from a funder they had never worked with before. Their research found that the funder had recently released a report highlighting a lack of behavioral health services within a specific part of the regional community. Wanting to align with the funder’s priorities, the client structured their needs statement around this community.
However, when they described their proposed activities, they focused on their existing services—none of which were adapted or expanded to reach this underserved area. I asked how they planned to engage that community, and they admitted they had no concrete plans to do so. What is their reason for focusing on this community? It was a priority for the funder.
By centering their need statement on a community they did not actually plan to serve, they inadvertently introduced confusion and distrust into the proposal. It didn’t make any sense - the need was not connected to their intervention. A grant reviewer would immediately question the proposal’s credibility and feasibility.
Refining Your Focus for Clarity
This may sound like an extreme example, but it is more common than you’d think. Organizations often include broad or unfocused need statements that don’t directly align with their proposed activities.
For instance, another client had a comprehensive need statement outlining all the challenges their community faced. While many of these needs were interrelated, the specific problem the grant project aimed to address could be clearly traced back to one major issue. In these situations, part of a grant writer’s job is to help organizations focus, paring down information to ensure clarity and alignment. Focusing on everything results in losing the thread and your reader.
The reality is that in a year or even three, what can be accomplished is limited, so keep your grant realistic. Focus on what you can accomplish and review your needs statement to zero in on a problem you can impact within your grant period of performance.
While the issues most organizations address are complex, simplifying your proposal’s narrative helps reviewers understand your intentions. A clearly connected, concise proposal improves readability and increases your chances of securing funding.
How to Strengthen Threads in Grant Writing
1. Start with a Strategic Vision Check
Before pursuing any grant, organizations should pause and assess the following:
Does this opportunity align with our long-term impact goals?
How will this funding support our strategic priorities?
On what specific component of our strategic priority can this grant help move the needle?
How does this connect back to a community need? What evidence do we have that this is a community need?
If the answers are unclear, it may be time to refine the project’s purpose before writing the proposal.
2. Identify the Thread at Its Most Basic
If a team can tell me in just a sentence or two (1) a community problem they will address, (2) the actions they will take to solve the problem, and (3) how they will measure that change, I know they’ve thought long and hard and are at a good starting point for writing a grant. If the team talks without taking a breath for 10 or 15 minutes to tell me what problem they want to solve, I know they need facilitation to hone a strong thread.
As you look at a federal grant proposal where you may propose a new, expanded, or adapted program or project, answer the following prompts in one (short) sentence to test how well designed it is.
Problem/need statement: _______________________
Solution/intervention: _________________________
Expected outcome: ___________________________
Then, ask yourself:
Can I simplify these answers or make the connections between these sections clearer?
Does the expected outcome actually make measurable progress on solving the problem I’ve identified in the problem statement?
Why do we believe the intervention will likely lead to the expected outcome?
And even if you use this process before you begin to write, revisit these basic questions during your review process. Often, teams shift the proposed activities (solution) multiple times in a planning process. That’s ok! Explain “threads” to a reviewer, preferably someone who knows nothing about the project, and ask them if the proposal is logical.
When I do a review, this is one of the most valuable things I help clients rework. Simply increasing the clarity of the connection between the problem statement, the solution/intervention, and the expected outcome is game-changing!