Fit & Diplomacy Check

Two quick gates before you write. Should you pursue this at all (Habit 2), and is your language about others funder-safe (Habit 9)?

Should we pursue this?

Answer honestly. The great grant writers decline more than they pursue.

It funds one of our actual programs, existing or genuinely planned

The type of work funded is the type of work we do

We could deliver everything required with the staff and time we actually have

The strings (reports, restrictions, match, timelines) are acceptable

Winning would move our identity toward our mission, not away

If we could not tell anyone the dollar amount, we would still want this project

Tick the boxes to see where this lands.

Never bring a funder into your drama. Rewrite any sentence that names or blames another organization into a documented gap.

A sentence you were tempted to write about another organization The same truth, told with a documented gap and no names

The test: does your rewrite name any organization but yours and the funder? If so, cut the name. Show what remains undone, not who failed.