Today we’d like to introduce you to Holly Guthrey.
Hi Holly, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I initially got into grant writing because of circumstance more than choice, having started my career as an academic that needed to continually apply for grants to fund my research. Over time, I realized how much I enjoy the process of creating compelling narratives that will win funding and also that grant writing is actually a pretty unique and valuable skillset for which organizations are willing to pay.
In Fall 2022, I moved back to Dallas-Fort Worth after having lived abroad in New Zealand and then Sweden for the last 12 years and was faced with an immense challenge of starting a new life here, including finding work. The previous 9 years I spent in Sweden had a profound impact on me from a cultural standpoint, stranding me in a sort of limbo where I felt too Texan for Sweden while I lived there but then too Swedish for Texas upon moving back. This conflict played out in particularly frustrating ways when it came to searching for a new job in the US, where candidates need have a kind of bravado during the interview process, which had become completely foreign to me in comparison to the reserved and humble Swedish approach to which I had become accustomed.
At least in part because of that, I struggled to figure out the US job market and what type of positions I would be the most competitive for. Along with that, I honestly had a lot of anxiety about how work life would look at a US company in comparison to work life in Sweden, which emphasizes workers’ rights, manifested in a strong work/life balance, ample—and mandatory— vacation, and flexibility. I started to wonder if a “traditional” career path was really right for me.
Not long after I moved back to Texas, I met a woman named Casey at a networking event who owns a growing vacation rental management company (Red One Management), and after getting to know other entrepreneurs in her network, the seed of an idea for starting my own business started to take root. I started introducing myself as a grant writer in professional settings and began consistently meeting people that would comment about how either they were on the Board of a nonprofit or had a friend with a nonprofit and knew that these organizations had grant writing needs. Casey encouraged me to really consider starting my own business and gave me lots of advice about how to get started. (She actually also ended up being my first grant-writing client!)
I eventually decided that I was actually in the perfect position to give starting my own grant writing business a try and officially launched Limelight Consulting Services LLC in May 2023. For this business, I’ve been able to leverage my research and writing skills gained from my PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies, organizational and budget expertise from various roles I’ve held as Program and Project Manager, creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit as well as over 9 years of grant writing and management experience to offer tailored and effective services to clients.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest challenge in starting my business was getting over the initial worry of “Can I actually do this?” and “Are people really going to pay me for this?”. An advantage of my business model is that start-up costs can be pretty low because I’m able to work remotely from a home office and did not need to invest in, for example, products, equipment, or additional training. I basically just needed my brain and my laptop to get started.
Not to diminish how challenging it can be to start a new business, but I was very pleasantly surprised at how quickly I started getting requests for consultation calls—the majority of which turned into paying clients—after putting a little effort into marketing Limelight on LinkedIn. I did have a relatively steep learning curve in teaching myself Squarespace and Canva, as I really wanted to have a strong website, logo, and brand in place before I started marketing my business. However, it was honestly quite rewarding to be able to figure all that out myself and design things exactly the way I wanted.
And a seemingly smaller, but to me, significant obstacle was coming up with a business name that would resonate with both me and potential clients. Pretty much every name I came up with at first was already in use and/or not sufficiently descriptive, so it took a lot of time, brainstorming, and asking friends for feedback to land on something that felt right. I also wanted something a bit catchy that also lent itself to branding. Ultimately, Limelight Consulting Services felt like the right choice, with enough flexibility to add on additional services over time without having to change my name, but also allowed for the possibly cheesy, but hopefully memorable, tagline: “Are you ready to put your organization in the Limelight?”
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Limelight Consulting Services?
Limelight Consulting Services’ mission is to help organizations and individuals achieve their goals by securing funding through effective grant proposals. We are dedicated to providing personalized and professional services, working closely with our clients to understand their unique needs and develop compelling narratives that inspire funders to invest in their projects.
We strive to uphold the highest ethical standards, ensuring transparency and accuracy in all aspects of the grant-writing process. With a passion for making a positive impact in the world, we are committed to using our skills and expertise to support organizations and individuals who are making a difference in their communities and beyond.
We offer 4 types of grant writing services to individuals and organizations seeking funding for their project from start to finish, with a particular focus on nonprofit organizations and small business clients.
1) Grant Research. In this service, extensive research is conducted to identify potential grant opportunities that match your project goals and priorities. A comprehensive list of funding opportunities that meet your criteria and guidance on which grants to apply for is provided.
2) Grant Proposal Writing. This service includes customized grant proposal writing for different types of funding sources, including foundations, government agencies, corporations, and individuals. Based on research that identifies the right funding opportunity that align with your project goals, compelling proposals that maximize your chances of securing funding are written and submitted to the appropriate funding agency.
3) Grant Proposal Review. If you’ve already written a grant proposal, this service offers a thorough review and edit of your proposal to ensure it meets the requirements of the funder and is well-written and persuasive.
4) Grant Management. If you’ve already secured funding or need help managing a grant that Limelight Consulting Services has helped you to win, this service helps you manage your grant, including writing progress reports, preparing financial statements, and ensuring compliance with the funder’s requirements.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
I generally use 3 keywords to describe my most important characteristics in professional settings: resourceful, creative, and collaborative. These aspects of my personality and way of working are paramount to my success as a grant writer and also as a business owner. If I don’t know something offhand, I will research to figure it out; I always have fresh ideas and am able to think about things in unconventional ways, and I love working with other people to get the best outcome for a project.
These characteristics, bolstered by my expertise in Grant Writing and Grant Management, Strategic Planning and Project Management, Funder Relations and Conflict Resolution, Multilingual, and Multicultural Competence from having lived and traveled abroad for the last 12 years, and my Academic and Research Background make me an adaptable and effective grant writing consultant.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.limelightconsultingservices.com/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/limelight-consulting-services/?viewAsMember=true
