The Truth About the Forty-Dollar Government
Grant Game
by Niquenya D. Fulbright
We have all seen those late night infomercials
and boldly embossed postcard mailers boasting of guaranteed government
grants for a
$40, one-time-only application fee. You will learn all of the
hidden
secrets of how to find and secure these elusive funds. Grants
are available for everything and anything from buying that new
car
to finally paying off that overbearing student loan. These offers
sound much too good to be true.
In fact, they are not true.
Grant applications
take time and a lot of hard work. You will need to write a
really good, detailed business
plan that
clearly outlines
what your business entails and then rework it into a grant
proposal that must be submitted to the individual granting
organizations.
Government grants are highly competitive and there are
many different agencies which distribute the funds. These can
be at the federal,
state, city or even county level; each having very separate
and unique requirements.
You will need to do careful
research to determine what is required by each individual organization
for each
type of grant you
plan to pursue and then skew your application to meet
those requirements.
Your business will most likely not qualify for most of
the available grant opportunities. The local chapter
of the Small
Business
Association (SBA) can often help with business plan preparation
and grant proposal
writing for a nominal fee. Another service that can prove
helpful is that of Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. (PPLSI)
business plan.
These plans provide both quality legal services and business
consultation by a panel of expert retired business owners
for a relatively low
monthly fee.
Invest your planning budget wisely. You are
much better off paying the SBA or the PPLSI fees. You may even
benefit
more
by going
to an experienced independent plan/proposal writer
rather than one
of those $40 scam artists. These offers are usually
really just a list of possibly outdated grants which are freely
available to anyone who knows where to look.
About the
Author
© 2006 by Niquenya D. Fulbright-All Rights Reserved. Niquenya D.
Fulbright is a Chicago area executive life coach, professional
speaker and corporate trainer with over 10 years experience
specializing in business, career, life and relationship coaching. For more info
or to schedule a complimentary coaching session, visit http://www.niquenyafulbright.com.
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