Curtail Grant Writing Stress

The key to reducing the stress of developing grant proposals?

Control the deadline - don't let it control you.  

Deadline = Stress

How does GMA help our clients to reduce the stress?.

 Create a Grant Timeline. Then actually use it. Check it every morning and half way through the day.  Set a note on your calendar to check in on your progress and the progress of others. Adjust the schedule at the end of the day.  Mindtool has a great tool that will help you if needed.

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_07.htm

Schedule Collaborate with others. Schedule time to connect.

"The effective person never asks HOW will I get to do this but rather WHO will I get to do this."

Embrace the Draft. Create an outline. Add bullet points under each topic of the items you want to cover. Add more detail than you think it needed. Be as specific as possible about the steps, the methods, the outcomes, and how it will be measured.

Strive for progress not perfection - unknown

Schedule Think Time. Make appointments with yourself and create time blocks for work that you need to complete. It helps me to make a standing schedule that allows for blocks of time on certain days to address specific project needs. Aim to spend at 1/4 of your time thinking. Often it is my think time that produces ideas and insights.

"No person will make a great business who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit." - Andrew Carnegie

Delegate. Give tasks to others. If they can do 75% of the task than reassign it to a team member.

Presence. Work at work and play at home. Enjoy your work - but enjoy your life when you leave the office. Whatever you are doing be in that thing and fully embrace it. Make weekends and vacations relaxation times - not just lighter versions of your normal workday.

“Do three things well, not ten things badly.” - David Segrove

Focus. Multitasking is a myth. Nobody hired you to do everything half-assed.

“One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus; we never concentrate our power. Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular.” – Tony Robbins

Review. The first 30 minutes of every day needs to be a review of your daily work plan by you. Do not start your day until you do this every morning. You may have to triage some activities and cancel some commitments – or delegate them to others. You do not need to attend everything you where invite to attend – but it does need to have the right coverage. I have gone through periods of over a year with double or triple booking through the entire week. You need to delegate and pick and choose those meetings you will attend yourself.

Make hay when the sun shines. Work when you are in the right mental place - when you are not call it a rain day. Don't beat a dead horse. I know when I am in the game and when I am not. If I am not it is time to move to something else. Maybe not even work. What you do when it rains is up to you.

Talking Points. Make talking points - before every meeting decide what you want to say and what result you are trying to achieve. This will help you know what a win looks like before you start and it will make your discussion and meeting shorter. Take a few minutes after and review your results. Where did you hit the mark, where did you miss? And how can you adjust the plan for the next time?

Disconnect. Do not answer your phone. Let it go to voice mail. Check it and respond to calls at scheduled times during your day.

“We’re born, we live for a brief instant, and we die. It’s been happening for a long time. Technology is not changing it much – if at all.” —Steve Jobs

Disconnect. Close your email when you are working at your computer. Most people waste over 50% of their desk time by reading and responding to emails that do not require a response and would be better read and deleted in mass at the end of the day – better to do at the end of the day than stop your activities every 5 minutes to read an email that is irrelevant.

Email Manners. By the way responding to all is the biggest waste of time in the universe – and it also shows everyone else that you really do not understand time management or focus. Do not respond to all – it is just immature. It destroys everyone's time management. Just don't do it.

Email Rules. Use rules to control your email. Have folders set up for certain key email sources such that your email sorts and files these as they come in. Set a few times during the day when you check your emails and email folders.  it the rest of the time. It is a distraction you do not need.

Significance over Importance. Please watch the video - it is a good one.