You Already Wrote Your Next Grant… If You’re Using Templates
Sick of rewriting the same three paragraphs for every proposal?
You’re not alone. And the fix isn’t more coffee or late nights - it’s building a system that works for you, not against you.
Here’s the good news: if you’ve ever written a grant before, you’ve already done most of the hard work.
The key is learning how to repurpose what you’ve already built - and knowing what should be reused, what should be rewritten, and what just needs a quick tweak.
(I’ve got a free cheat sheet coming your way that breaks it all down - feel free to skip ahead if you’re the “just give me the tool” type.)
But if you’re ready to finally break free from the constant reinvention treadmill?
Stick with me. Because the nonprofits I see thriving - not just surviving - have one thing in common: They don’t start from scratch. They start from a system. Some of the most successful (and shockingly calm) grant professionals I know rely on a master grant template. Not because they’re cutting corners. Because they’re building capacity.
Templates aren’t shortcuts. They’re scaffolding.
And in a sector defined by tight deadlines, limited resources, and high expectations, the orgs with strong systems win.
🧠 What Happens When You Don’t Use Templates?
Let’s be honest: if your team is writing every grant from scratch, chances are high you’re…
Repeating the same research and phrasing over and over
Burning out your staff with unnecessary time pressure
Missing deadlines - or barely hitting them with rushed content
Wasting time formatting instead of focusing on strategy
Failing to communicate consistently across applications
It’s not just anecdotal. Industry averages suggest that a single federal grant proposal can take 80–100 hours to develop, and much of that time gets swallowed up by formatting, structure, and content you’ve already written elsewhere.
And as Professional Grant Writer points out, federal applications are “significantly more complex (and time-consuming)” than shorter foundation grants - often requiring multiple narratives, appendices, and attachments that become overwhelming without a system in place.
Without a solid template, you’re not spending more time on strategy. You’re just stuck recreating the wheel - again.
TL;DR: Templates aren’t just a “nice to have.” Not using them slows you down, stresses your team, and weakens your proposals.
🛠 Templates Aren’t a Shortcut. They’re a Capacity Strategy.
Now for the good news: if you’ve written even one grant proposal, you already have most of what you need. The secret is turning that work into a system you can reuse, revise, and repurpose.
So why bother?
Because beyond avoiding burnout, bottlenecks, and missed deadlines, templates can be game-changers for the way your organization works. And I’m not just saying that:
First Carbon Solutions reports that templates boost both proposal quality and funder confidence by ensuring teams include the right elements—without rushing or reinventing.
Visme highlights that templates dramatically cut down on repetitive writing, freeing up time for strategy and storytelling.
And Stackby calls templates “the backbone of modern grant systems”—especially for small teams juggling big goals with limited bandwidth.
Templates don’t just save time. They create space for stronger collaboration, clearer thinking, and bolder ideas that win funding.
So how do you actually put them to work?
That’s where smart planning comes in. Because the best grant professionals I know follow a golden rule - not just about templates, but about every successful proposal process.
Let’s talk about the 80/20 strategy.
⚖️ The 80/20 Rule: Plan First, Write Fast
Here’s the golden ratio every smart grant writer swears by:
80% planning. 20% writing.
If that sounds backwards compared to how you’ve been working, you’re not alone. Most nonprofits spend way too much time trying to “just get words on the page”—and not nearly enough time mapping out how those words connect to the funder’s goals, their own data, or the actual story they’re trying to tell.
The 80/20 approach flips that script. And templates are what make it possible.
According to the Pallottine Foundation, grant teams should “spend 80% of their time planning for the grant application and only 20% actually writing.” Why? Because when you plan well by building reusable assets like program descriptions, evaluation strategies, and budget narratives, you can focus your writing time on what actually needs to be customized.
Templates support this approach by giving you a solid foundation to build from. You’re not staring at a blank page - you’re starting from structure. Which means less panic, less rework, and a whole lot more strategy.
Planning is where you clarify your impact. Writing is where you connect it to the funder.
If you’re doing it the other way around? You’re working harder than you have to, and your proposals are probably showing it.
📋 What Actually Belongs in a Grant Template?
Not everything should be templated. But a lot more can be than most people think.
The trick is knowing the difference between core organizational content (which stays relatively stable) and funder-specific strategy (which needs thoughtful tailoring every time).
Let’s break it down.
✅ Absolutely Template This
These are your evergreen essentials - the backbone of almost every proposal:
Mission + Vision Statements
Organizational Background & History
Staff Bios + Key Personnel
Core Program Descriptions
Budget Format & Justifications
Standard Outputs, Outcomes & Evaluation Methods
Equity, DEI, or Community Commitment Statements
These sections form the reusable foundation of your narrative. With occasional updates, they can live in your template library for months or years.
⚠️ Customize Every Time
These are the sections that must reflect the specific funder, their goals, and the unique angle of your proposal:
Need Statement / Problem Narrative
Program Alignment with Funder Priorities
Outcome Metrics and Success Benchmarks
Funder-Specific Language or Buzzwords
Requests for Amounts or Matching Funds
Even if you have boilerplate content to pull from, this is where you lean into your 80%.
🤔 Template-ish (Use With Caution)
Some content can start with a template—but should be refreshed often:
Logic Models (template the structure, customize the flow)
Theories of Change
Evaluation Tools & Instruments
Partnership Descriptions
Recent Success Stories or Testimonials
These are great to keep on file in modular chunks, but they need regular review. Your impact is evolving - your language should reflect that.
✨ Want the full list? ✨ I’ve got a free cheat sheet that breaks down what belongs in your template, what doesn’t, and how often to update each section. I’ll drop the link at the end of this article.
🙋🏻♀️ “Won’t This Make My Proposal Sound… Generic?”
Not if you’re doing it right.
Templates are a framework - not a script. They’re not here to replace your voice. They’re here to protect your time. The problem isn’t using templates. It’s misusing them.
As Grant Goddess warns, “Reusing old proposal content may result in a lack of adaptability and failure to address the unique needs of the new project.” She also notes that copying content without customization can raise plagiarism red flags and seriously undermine your credibility.
And guess what? Even funders use templates - especially in government grantmaking. NIH peer review guidelines show that reviewers are trained to look for consistent, structured responses. They expect clarity and alignment, not originality for originality’s sake.
So no, templates won’t make your proposals bland. But bad template habits absolutely can.
Common pitfalls that can cost you the grant:
❌ Failing to tailor language to funder guidelines
❌ Reusing outdated stats or impact data
❌ Copy-pasting irrelevant or off-brand messaging
❌ Missing opportunities to show learning or evolution
Grant Goddess says it plainly: overreliance on templates “does not promote the development of your skill as a writer in general and as a grant writer, specifically.”
Use templates to elevate your work, not to avoid the strategic thinking funders expect.
Think of them as a launchpad - not a landing zone.
🔁 Want the shortcut without the sloppiness? I put together a free cheat sheet: What to Template, What to Customize, and What to Retire
It’s your step-by-step guide to making grant templates work for you.
🕒 30 Minutes Could Change Everything
You made it all the way through - YAY! That tells me you’re not just dabbling in strategy; you’re ready to do funding smarter. Reading about it is a powerful first step. But turning that insight into action? That’s where the real shift happens.
Let's turn that energy into action, starting with a free 30-minute Meet & Greet. We'll talk about where you are now, where you want to go, and whether we're a good fit to work together. No pressure, no obligation - just a conversation about what's possible.
Book your Meet & Greet here. Together, we can Do More Good.
