Giving to Give

by Tim Staton
The Entrepreneurial G.A.P.

The holidays are upon us!  For many entrepreneurs this is the make or break time of year when all the stops are pulled out and the competition for attention is fierce.  Customers are being inundated with advertising at every turn. Even our charity has become a strategic part of our advertising.  Getting the most exposure possible out of every humanitarian effort seems to be the primary reason for giving in many cases.  Is it any wonder that the recipients of our “generosity” seem to be less and less grateful?  Perhaps a shift in strategy might just be in order this holiday season.

Anonymous Gifts are Best.

Many years ago I was attending a local church where the congregation was raising funds to purchase a new piano.  The campaign went on for several months as small portions of the weekly giving were added to the account as directed by the donors.  I will never forget the Sunday morning when the pastor announced that an anonymous donor had made a substantial contribution to the piano fund which made it possible to complete the purchase.  He then said something which continues to ring true to me today.  He said “anonymous gifts are best…they make you think good thoughts about everybody”.  He was right, because I had been sitting there looking around the congregation imagining each of the people there giving the donation.

Our True Motive

What is it that makes us want to give?  Is it an overflowing of the blessings which have been heaped upon us which has created a desire to be a blessing to others?  Are we giving to give or giving to get?  I am convinced that our motive for giving will often determine the response to our giving.  Here is a challenge this holiday season.  Find a way to be a real blessing to someone whom you know cannot repay you and without any expectation of reward. 
  

• Do a serious inventory of your motivation to give. 
• Let go of any desire to gain anything external from this exercise.
• Be on the lookout for a need that you can fill.
• Find a way to meet the need anonymously.
• You may need to identify a neutral third party to deliver the “blessing” but be as discreet as possible and insist on remaining unknown to the recipient.
• Let go of the results.  You are not giving so that the recipient will feel gratitude, you are giving to give.
• Pay special attention to how this makes you feel. 
• Lather, rinse, repeat.

Tim Staton is passionate about gratitude, appreciation and praise (G.A.P).  He is an author, coach, public speaker and a fellow entrepreneur.  Visit him at https://www.facebook.com/timstatondotcom