Do your background work. Identify exactly what sort of nursing project you want to do. Come up with a working title. Suppose, for instance, you want to study how to improve communication with patients, your title might be "Developing Effective Nurse-Patient Communication."
Organize your supporting ideas into an outline. Work from your draft and craft a thesis statement that summarizes the study you want to conduct. Finish your introduction with another two or three sentences, that quickly summarize what you intend to do.
Use the five Ws -- who, what, when, where and why -- to establish exactly what your intended study will entail, and how it will be evaluated. Support this with a review of the relevant literature.
Draft your proposal to the clinical nurse leader. Write in clear, objective English. Don't use a big word when a small one will do. Vary your sentence length so that your proposal doesn't sound monotonous. Use internal summaries and forecasting to indicate where you are going with your proposal, as it will make it easier for the clinical nurse leader to follow.
Give your draft proposal some time and distance. Review it with a critical eye and correct any typing or grammatical mistakes.
Put yourself in the clinical nurse leader's place and read your proposal aloud. Listen carefully to how it sounds. Make sure you maintain a professional tone, and that the points you raise are well explained and supported by facts and evidence.
Ask another nurse with good editing skills to review your proposal. Inquire to see if he has any suggestions on how to improve it.