As seen in:
How we can help you with our grant writing and academic career programs
Hi, I’m Ana Pineda, PhD, and I help scientists like you focus, write and get funded, all with a mindful approach.
Because if you’re going to spend the rest of your academic career writing papers and grant proposals, I want you to learn how to do it well.
And without putting the rest of your life on hold every time a deadline comes around.
We work with researchers from all kinds of fields who want to write big grant proposals (e.g. ERC, DFG, NWO, and more!).
My mission? To help more conscious academics get funded, so they can have a thriving career they love.
Proudly trusted by scholars at
and many more!
New level, new devil in your academic career
You’ve written papers and grant proposals before. But now the grants are bigger, and the rest of the job has expanded too.
There are students knocking on the door with one question, endless meetings, teaching, papers to finish, a team to build, plus everything happening at home.
Earlier in your career, maybe you could lock yourself away for a month or two and finish a proposal. Now you need a way to write a project that will take months, in the middle of doing everything else, and still feel like you hold the control.
This is the messy middle of an academic career.
A big research grant needs more than good scientific writing
A grant proposal is not a scientific paper.
At this level, you need time to think, a way to manage a project that lasts for months, writing that helps busy reviewers understand the value of your idea, and the confidence to sell your work without exaggerating or feeling gross about it.
For me, selling with integrity means showing the evidence. If you did something unusually creative, say it. If the work you’re citing came from your team, make that clear. Don’t make the reviewer guess why you are the right scientist to do this project.
If "selling" is something you struggle with, we'd love to help you with that!
The Academic Launchpad
This is our group coaching program for established researchers writing major grants.
You work on a real proposal while you’re inside the program. We help you plan the months ahead, make the writing happen alongside the rest of academic life, and communicate your idea so reviewers understand why the project matters and why you are the right scientist to do it.
Because this probably isn’t the last proposal you’ll ever write.
Hi, I’m Ana, scientist turned academic coach
I did a PhD and spent about 10 years as a postdoc, so I know this career from the inside. I’m also still crazy about insects, microbes, plants and ecology (who is not?).
Since 2020, I’ve helped more than a thousand scientists and academics focus, write and get funded.
But a big part of what I teach now came from building I focus and write. Learning about storytelling, copywriting, marketing and sales made me see grant writing differently.
And now, I bring those worlds together, along with the mindful approach that has been part of this business from the beginning.
If grant writing isn’t on your list yet
Start with my FREE Guide: Starter Kit for a more Mindful Scientific Writing.
It will help you look at your writing habits, your time and the mindset stuff that can make sitting down to write much harder than it needs to be.
One of the most beloved resources I've created that changes how you approach your writing and time management.
For universities and research institutions
I also work with universities and research organisations that want to support their scientists with the skills academia usually expects them to somehow pick up along the way.
That can mean grant writing, storytelling, narrative CVs, productivity, mindful scientific writing, or helping researchers build a way of working that lets them do ambitious work without running on stress all the time.
I’ve taught researchers at places like Cambridge, Oxford, Wageningen University and Max Planck, and I also design customised workshops and programs for institutions.
Selected blog posts about academia...
