Using Analogy in Grant Proposals

What do you call a seagull flying through the bay? A bay gull (pronounced bagel). This little gem comes from my older son. I begin this blog about analogies with a joke because I think it speaks to the power of double meanings. Even as ridiculous as the joke is, it makes us think a moment and maybe smirk, because we find it clever or even sometimes engaging and intriguing the way we can use words or phrases to mean many things.

Conversely, there are many different ways and words to explain one phenomenon. Here I'm talking about analogies. I can explain a process to you by verbatim walking you through the steps of that exact process or I can find a similar process that you're already familiar with and use that description to explain something new to you.

For instance, I attended a talk by one of our Physics Professors awhile back and she was describing how researchers are going about trying to detect dark matter. To do this she used a pool ball analogy. She said that since we cannot see dark matter, researchers theorize that we can only detect it when it bumps into molecules of regular matter that we can sense and see. She described that this bump is ever so slight, not a direct hit. She then went on to admit that she was not a good pool player and when she hits the cue ball toward a ball she wants to hit in a pocket, sadly she just skims the target ball with her cue ball and jostles it slightly. Such is the interaction with dark matter (the cue ball) and matter (the target ball). So, detecting dark matter is similar to trying to detect the jostling of the target ball (matter), which we can then assume was bumped slightly by the cue ball (dark matter).

Using this analogy, she created a clear visual for her non-expert audience on how she does her work. This analogy gave us an overview of a complicated process using something familiar to us. It was more clear and engaging for her audience than if she'd just stuck to the verbatim explanation of dark matter detection. Other researchers have used military strategy to describe information security or plastic bags to describe cell membranes in their grant proposals. These paint a picture for the reviewers and engage them because you are inviting them to make the connection between the analogy and your research with you. A good analogy can give your audience a sense of discovery and excitement around your research.

So, how do you create a good analogy for your research?

1. Identify the attributes of your research problem and project: Whatever part of your research that you feel is quite complex and needs an analogy, start listing out attributes of how it works, what it does, barriers involved, etc.

2. Compare these attributes with other matching phenomena: As you are listing attributes, you'll likely have some analogous phenomena pop into your head. If, when you're finished listing attributes and you can't think of an analogy, go bug your neighbor or a student and brainstorm with them. Describe the attributes of your research to them and see if you or they can't come up with something in discussion.

3. Test your analogy against your research problem/project: Make sure that you then compare your research to the analogy and that the pieces you're trying to describe line up. If significant pieces of your analogy work differently than your research process, keep digging for a better analogy. As great as a solid analogy is at explaining something, it is confusing when it is not aligned with what you're trying to describe.

It's not simply coincidental that analogies are a strong teaching tool and an effective grant-writing tool. Bottom line is that an analogy is a sense-making tool that allows for more effective communication in whatever form. Beyond that it makes your subject matter far more memorable!

Resources:
The Underused Writing Trick That Makes You More Powerful, Popular and Persuasive - Smartblogger
The Persuasive Power of Analogy - CopyBlogger

Summer e-Seminar Series

This week we released our Summer e-Seminar Series. We plan to focus on planning and maintaining your research and also topics related to equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). You can register here. 

Setting & Maintaining Your Summer Writing Schedule
Wednesday, June 3rd
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Whether you’re in the throes of grant writing, or you’ve got an R&R on your plate, it can be difficult to stay on track with your summer writing. Join us for this faculty discussion on how to set and follow-through with your summer writing schedule that allows you to be productive while still finding balance and having a break!

Problematizing Race as a Variable
Tuesday, June 22nd
12:00 – 1:00 pm
So much of research takes race into account as a variable or category, but does not examine racial constructs critically. This allows researchers in STEM, medicine, healthcare, and beyond to treat race as if it were a biological difference, which it is not. In this meeting, Dr. Naomi Nishi will delve into the history of race and race-making in research. Participants will reflect on how race is understood and used in research and in higher education and identify how to appropriately consider the impact of race, and particularly the role of racism in these systems.

Planning Your Research Agenda for Fall
Tuesday, August 3rd
12:00 – 1:00
As summer comes to an end, what’s your plan to move your research ahead in this academic year. Join us to learn and share strategies for developing a realistic research action plan and learn strategies for staying on track throughout the year.

Considering DEI in Research
Thursday, August 12th
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) seems to be everywhere, but what does it mean in research? How are grant-making agencies talking about DEI and what are they looking for in funded projects? How can we as researchers authentically engage DEI in our research and respond effectively to the calls? In this seminar we will answer these questions and offer strategies for engaging DEI in research.

Resources:

ORDE Seminar Registration

NIH Collaboratory: Including Diverse Participants

The Reviewer's Gaze

I've been reviewing grant proposals for various faculty in the past couple of weeks. As I've done this, it's struck me that as an outsider to these PIs' research, I have the advantage of coming to their project and proposals fresh. And, as I do, I've paid attention to what I find interesting and exciting, what confuses me, and what catches my eye. It is this last consideration that I want to address today. Although it focuses a bit more on the aesthetic nature of the proposal (much of which the PI has little control of given formatting requirements), the reviewer's gaze is important to reflect upon. Here are some key points:

Drawing the eye:

Bolding, underlining, and italicizing are common ways that writers draw the reader's eye to something important. But, be sure you're thinking through where you want to draw your reviewer's eye and that you're doing so sparingly. I have seen grant proposals that use every form of highlighting available to them quite liberally, and this confuses the reader. What is really important? What is worth distracting your reader from starting at the beginning of the page and reading through? Headings are worth the emphasis. Think about when you look at a page of writing before beginning to read. The headings give you useful clues for what you're going to find on the page. I took a speed reading class years ago, and remember that the instructor recommended going through a whole article or book at the start to see what the chapters and headings told us before starting to read.

It can also be useful to bold or highlight essential pieces of your proposal, like your driving hypothesis or research question. Things that it may be helpful for your reviewer to note before reading the whole page. Specific aims or project goals are other items that may be worth bolding, but I recommend stopping there. I've seen some PIs bold the word "very" and other hyperbole by itself. Although the use of the word "very" is generally used to emphasize something and bolding may seem like a logical progression, ask yourself 'Is seeing the word "very" worth distracting my reviewer for?' Probably not.

The Reviewer's path:

Often when PIs are putting their proposal together, they assume the order of the proposal as presented to the reviewer is also the sequence that the reviewer will use to read it. However, we know this is not the case, reviewers report that they usually begin with the abstract and/or Specific Aims or Project Overview, but then they may skip to the methodology to see how you're going to do this great work. Or, they'll skip to the biosketch to better understand who you are as a researcher. Then they might flip to the budget to get a better sense of your project scope and what you are prioritizing monetarily in the work. Think through the reviewer's potential paths through your proposal, because it may spur you to include information in different places. For instance, say your reviewer flips to your biosketch or methodology early on, are you including language in both places to build confidence in them that you're the perfect person to conduct the research? Or, might you be assuming that they read one or the other first? To help you understand the reviewers' paths, ask your internal reviewers to share with you what order they read your proposal in and weigh this along with the other feedback they give to you.

The Squinting:

As you know, unless this is the first time you're reading my blog, I'm a big advocate of including visuals in proposals. They break up blocks of text and give reviewers' other, sometimes easier-to-understand, ways to grasp your project and its significance. However, as much as I love visuals, I frequently find myself squinting at a diagram or table for one of two reasons. The first may be because the text is too small. This is a fatal flaw; if it's hard or impossible to read, you will have not only wasted space with a visual that is uninterpretable, but also you will have likely annoyed your reviewer (refer to Nishi's cardinal sin of grant-writing: Thou shalt not annoy your reviewer!) The other reason I find myself squinting at visuals is when I can't make sense of them. Sometimes a key is missing. Sometimes things are mislabeled or vaguely labeled. Sometimes the visual is so complicated I decide that I would need to earn another degree if I had any hope of making sense of it! Again, if this is the experience of your reviewers, it is akin to wasting space and again likely violating our cardinal rule. So, make sure your visuals are as simple as they can be, are clear, and are readable.

Considering these approaches and getting internal reviewers' fresh eyes on your proposal can help you combat issues that may otherwise muddy your proposal for reviewers.

Resources:

Grant Application: Top Tips for a Visually-Successful Application - Enspire.Science

Secrets to Writing a Winning Grant - Nature

Beating Writer's Block

Well, we're at the end of the semester, and I don't have to tell any of you what an academic year it's been! For me, I feel like everything this year has taken more energy that I didn't feel like I had. In the midst of this, summer seems like a respite, seems like it'll offer a bit of a break, and perhaps allow us to do the things we didn't get to this year, like writing perhaps.

But, as I turn to the task of writing, even this blog, I'm lacking motivation. So, what better than to review some approaches to beating writer's block and dealing with writer's fatigue - which may be an even bigger problem this year!

1. Give yourself a break
Let's face it, we all need a break, so take one. Do it intentionally. If your break is just you feeling bad about all the work you should be doing, it won't be a break. So, make it real. Maybe get away for a bit once you're vaccinated. Put your out-of-office on your email and your phone. Read a book, hang out with loved ones, binge watch a tv show, cook, go for a walk or run... you get the idea. Take a break; you need it and deserve it!!! 

Ok, once you've taken a real break, you may find yourself begrudgingly approaching your writing, in short you have a bit of writer's block. If that's the case, try these:

2. Just start writing
I realize that this is the most annoying tip, but for me, it's always the most useful. My writer's block often stems from my dreading the task of writing. I may not be sure I know what I want to write or my angle or I've been mulling things over a bit too long and have now moved into procrastination mode. In these situations, the best way out is often to just sit down and start writing. Whether you're free-writing or putting together an outline, just the act of writing can allow the wheels to start turning and the writing to start flowing.

3. Find an accountability partner
Many faculty I know, particularly early-career faculty find that having a thought partner or a writing group can give them the accountability they need to get writing. Having deadlines for yourself sometimes just can't get you writing, but sometimes being accountable to a colleague or colleagues is enough to get you to keep at it!

4. Read
There are those times when you are writing and you find yourself stuck or running out of steam. When this happens, sometimes you just need to do a bit more research to get yourself humming again. Sometimes finding more evidence for your work or even getting a sense of how others have structured their argument or developed their case can give you the fodder to keep you writing.

5. Take a walk
Sometimes staring at a screen when nothing is coming becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy where the longer you sit there, the more lost or blocked you feel. Break this cycle by going for a walk or exercising. This can get your blood flowing, including to your brain. I've found that oftentimes I'm able to solve a puzzle, make a decision, or plan out a proposal or manuscript when I'm walking or running around.

6. Start drawing
When you're not sure where to go in your writing, sometimes creating an outline can help, and if you're not quite ready to outline, perhaps you're ready to start drawing. Create a mind map or conceptual diagram of your argument or all the pieces you can think of. This can help you decide what you want to include and the order in which you want to tackle all your points.

There is a theme that connects all of these strategies - the idea of switching it up. When you're able to look at a problem or your writer's block from a different situation, sometimes it helps you to see around it!

Resources:
How to Overcome Writer's Block - Goins, Writer
How to Overcome Writer's Block - reedsy