Generosity doesn’t make a lot of sense in a world of consumption and people being people. But as I learn more about generosity, through a couple of pivotal experiences in my life recently, I am finding that giving away money is a lot of fun! And there’s an extra level of fun when it’s your own money instead of someone else’s money (in contrast to someone like Ellen giving away sponsor money and gifts, not that there’s anything wrong with that.)
Confounding, right?
My friend who’s an financial advisor said that many of his clients don’t make any charitable donations, and don’t care to, regardless of any tax-saving advantages or the opportunity to direct how their obligatory payout is spent. (what I mean here is, that when it comes to income tax time, you can either pay the U.S. government or you can donate to charity, the bonus with the latter is you get to direct how that money is spent.)
In the coming months, and for the rest of my life, I’ll be talking more about generosity and 2 other things in my MSG life priorities.
Why I Want to Talk More about Generosity and Giving Money Away
Short version: I worked 10 years in the philanthropy world, and currently also work for a project that is funded by a philanthropist, and I want to share the keys of generosity so more people can experience the fun and dreams can come true for those needing funding.
Tom and Bree Hsieh are experiencing so much satisfaction and fulfillment by living below their means and giving away most of their money—watch this video:
Long version: People who know me have said that I’m generous with my time and my networks. I have an open calendar where people can schedule a phone call or an in-person meeting. I don’t carry the weight and responsibility of leading an organization or business hustle where I have to tightly control my time, for which I am very grateful.
Last year, through the sovereignty of God and serendipity (depending on your faith persuasion), I was re-introduced to a group called Generous Giving. They’re a unicorn of a nonprofit, because they’re privately funded and run a simple little program that’s powerfully life-changing (they call it heart transformation.)
Their little program, Journey of Generosity, gathers a small group of peers for a 24-hour experience to talk about money and generosity. They create a safe place to talk about something that most people don’t talk about with peers because we don’t know how to, because we get those queezy feelings, and most people don’t want to talk about it with a nonprofit charity nearby because of the “ask” or the strings attached.
What’s amazing about this experience is how it’s setup: the whole event is paid for by a generous host. Typically that means 3 free meals and optionally an overnight stay at a comfortable location. As if that’s not enough, there’s more.
This nonprofit will never ask you for money. They won’t tell you how much to give or where to give to. That makes it safe to hear about stories of generosity, how other people are thinking about managing their money and giving away their money.
I was trained as a faciliator for this Journey of Generosity experience and I’d be more than happy to bring this experience to you and to tell you more if you’d like to experience it for yourself. Come with your doubts. Come with an open posture. Come and experience life change.
Yes, it’s more fun to talk about giving money away than about making it. I’ve experienced it; you can too.