Grant CEO: Where Experienced Grant Writers Become CEOs
Let me guess, when you dreamed about starting your own grant-writing business, you did not dream about working long hours, answering emails late at night, or saying yes to every little thing that client asks you. Am I right?
Grant CEO is the podcast for experienced grant-writers and grant consultants who have mastered their craft (and even reached the big 10K months) but are now struggling to run a grant-writing business that feels true to their values, goals, and dreams.
I’m DeaRonda Harrison, founder of June First Firm and creator of the You Are the Prize™ Framework. I’m here to help you ditch the grind and step fully into your role as the CEO of your grant writing business.
Each week, we're diving deep into one of the five pillars of my proven framework — Power, Pricing, Packaging, Positioning, and People. At the end of each episode, you’ll know how to:
⏰ Set boundaries that protect your time, peace, and profit
🥇Position yourself as the go-to grant professional in your niche
💰 Price your services with confidence and clarity
📦 Package and sell your grant writing offers for consistent revenue
🎯 Build a capable team so you can lead, not do it all
Through honest conversations–solo coaching episodes and guest interviews with successful 6-figure grant writers–you’ll learn how to turn your expertise into a scalable, sustainable grant writing company. One that supports your life, not drains it.
Whether you’re exploring grant-writer retainers, raising your pricing, or looking to hire a team member, this podcast gives you the tools, mindset, strategies, and motivation to grow from grant-writer freelancer to Grant CEO.
It’s time to stop overdelivering, undercharging, and working nights and weekends.
It’s time to run your grant writing business like a CEO.
Episodes
10 episodes
E9. How to Lead and Retain a High-Performing Grant Writing Team
What happens after you hire great people for your grant writing business? In this People-focused episode of Grant CEO, we’re talking about what it really takes to retain a strong grant writer team without overworking them, underpaying them, or ...
E8. You’re Not Greedy For Paying Yourself First: The Key to Building a Sustainable Grant Writing Agency
What if the reason you feel stretched thin in your grant writing business isn’t your team, but how you’re paying yourself?In this People-focused episode of Grant CEO, we’re talking about a quiet pattern many experienced grant consultants...
E7. How to Build a Grant Writing Agency: From Freelance Grant Writer to CEO with a Team with Isatou Bittaye-Jobe
In this episode of Grant CEO, we’re diving into the People part of a grant writing business. Eighteen months into her business, Isatou wasn’t struggling with how to get grant-writing clients. She was struggling with delegation, boundaries, pric...
E6. Grant Writer Pricing: They’re Not Paying for Hours. They’re Paying for THIS!
Are you still charging hourly in your grant writing business? In today’s AI-powered world, that pricing model could be the very thing limiting your revenue, growth, and ability to scale.As AI speeds up research, drafting, prospecting, an...
E5. Mission Isn’t Enough: How Grant CEOs Evaluate Client Renewals with Clarity and Confidence
When you care deeply about a nonprofit’s mission, it can feel wrong to question whether you should keep working with them. But mission alignment alone does not make a sustainable grant writing business.In this episode of Gran...
E4. $25 an Hour? How Pull and Pricing Help Build a Scalable Grant Writing Business with Victoria Lamar
Just two years ago, Victoria Lamar didn’t even consider herself a grant writer. Today, she leads a team of seven, supports 12 charter schools, and has recently secured a nearly $1 million federal grant for one of her clients....
E3. Grant Writer: When Positioning Is Clear, Competition Disappears
If you have ever thought that there are too many grant writers for you to be successful, this episode of Grant CEO will shift how you see (and do) business.Today, I’m unpacking a concept that stood out to one of my coaching clients: “
E2. You’re Not “Just” a Grant Writer: The Power Shift Every Grant CEO Must Make –with Daphney Jean
What happens when a skilled grant writer finally owns her expertise? In this episode of Grant CEO, I sit down with Daphney Jean, founder of SMJ Consulting, to talk about what it really looks like to step into your power as a grant writing busin...
Grant Writer: Is This You?
Let me guess, when you dreamed about starting your own grant-writing business, you did not dream about working long hours, answering emails late at night, or saying yes to every little thing that client asks you. Am I right?Grant CEO is ...
E1. The 5 Pillars to Scale Your Grant Writing Business
Welcome to Grant CEO, the podcast for experienced grant writers earning consistent income but tired of doing everything themselves. If you’re negotiating your rates, customizing pricing for every client, sending proposals that get ghosted, or w...