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Want to Increase Your Giving Back to the World? Treat it like a Savings Plan!


Last Saturday I met one of my closest friends and her family for brunch. As is want to happen in New York, the subways were delayed and it would have taken me quite a long time to get there, so I opted to call a Lyft.

As soon as I got in the car my driver started a conversation about his life. He mentioned that he had so many good intentions but it was hard to have discipline. He specifically wanted to be more consistent with how he saved money. He had it coming in but spent it almost as soon as he made it.

Being the helper that I am, I immediately offered a few ways to make his savings plan easier. More importantly I reminded him to be gentle with himself and to start small and keep adding to the process until he’d reached his goals.

It dawned on me right then and there that that’s actually a wonderful way to increase your Giving Back to the world as well. So here’s my breakdown of how to treat your Giving Back plan like a savings plan:

  1. Celebrate the fact that you want to Give Back more.

  2. Start small. Giving Back doesn’t have to take a lot of time or money.

  3. Find a Giving Back “Bank”-An organization that provides you with multiples ways to Give Back.

  4. Share your progress. When you set your intention to Give Back more and stick with it, let your progress be the light that inspires others. This in turn will inspire you to continue.

  5. Set your intention for how much you’d like to Give Back each month and then write it down EVERYWHERE...your calendar, your favorite app, your dry erase board in your kitchen, etc.

  6. Understand that it takes discipline. You can’t save if you don’t put money aside each week. In the same way, in order to increase your Giving Back you have to commit to the process and acknowledge when you may be going off of your path.

  7. Be gentle with yourself. Sometimes we have the best of intentions but don’t follow through. It’s ok. You’re human. And much like my driver who’d tried to save again and again, all that matters is that you try again and don’t beat yourself up in the process.

You see, you can uplevel your Giving Back game by treating it like you would a savings plan. Set your intentions, have a bit of discipline, set a schedule for Giving Back and celebrate all of the good that you bring in the world.

I know that you can do it. And I’m here to help if you can’t find your way.

Gail Anderson, CGO (Chief Giving Officer) Giving Back With Gail www.givingbackwithgail.com

Gentle Reminder:

My newest segment on the Instagram page is called “Why I Give Back Wednesdays”. Each week, a new person will be highlighted as they tell us why they Give Back. I need your help to move it forward. If you’d like to share why you Give Back, please send a video 60 seconds or less to gail.anderson@givingbackwithgail.com.

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