Wednesday, November 30, 2011

How much?

The people who get the most media attention for giving are very, very rich. Bill and Melinda Gates seem to have started a trend, and now sixty-nine billionaires have signed their pledge. This is great, and I commend them.

If your grandpa leaves you a fortune, congratulations. But most of us are fresh out of inheritances or billion-dollar companies.

A few years ago when I was hired at a nonprofit, I asked if I could decline some employee benefits so the organization wouldn't waste its money on me. The HR representative looked surprised and said such a thing couldn't be done. “Are you independently wealthy?” she asked, frowning. I guess she couldn't imagine that anyone would turn down benefits unless they already had more money than they knew what to do with.

This is the kind of mindset I'm trying to change. You don't have to be rich to be generous. It might be easier for people with heaps of money, but those of us who have to think about rent and groceries can still do a lot. My grandmother donated 10% of her income for as long as she controlled her own money, even when she was living off social security checks.

Start where you are. Does 10% feel terrifying? Start with something lower. What would $100 feel like? What would 1% feel like? What things could you shift around to make that possible? An average American income is $32,000, so 1% is $320. Enough for a nice phone, or for saving about one life.

Whatever we're used to starts to feel normal after a while. After trying a year of 1%, you may find that 2% or 5% feels doable. And beyond that – who knows how far you'll go?

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Counting our blessings

Several studies have found that if you get people to write down things they're grateful for, they report better mood and more satisfaction with life. (This is compared to people who wrote down gripes, or people who did some other unrelated task.) One study assigned people to write and personally deliver a thank-you letter to someone who had been kind to them but had never been properly thanked. The letter writers reported increased happiness for a month afterward — and I imagine the recipients felt good, too! A gratitude journal, in which participants daily wrote down three good things and what the causes had been, had even greater effects. The journal writers experienced increased happiness and decreased depression for six months afterwards.

You don't even have to be some kind of naturally grateful person. Counting your blessings makes you happier even if you do it just because some researcher asked you to. It doesn't have to well up spontaneously — make it a habit. Part of the childhood bedtime routine I had with my parents was listing things we were thankful for, and now that Jeff and I are married we do the same before falling asleep.

And what does this have to do with giving? If you enjoy what you have, you're less likely to clutch at more. It's easier to let go.

It being Thanksgiving Day, I'll close with a table grace that's popular in my family:

Thank you for this food, this food
This glorious, glorious food!
And the animals
And the vegetables
And the minerals
That made it possible.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

How to get charities off your case





What to do:

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Why you need a plan

I know a lot of well-intentioned people who give haphazardly. A check to some charities they get mail from, a pledge to the organizations that call them, a few dollars in the Salvation Army kettle, change to homeless people.

(The most extreme case I've seen, from my days working at a nonprofit, was an elderly man who sent $3 checks to 75 charities. Since it costs more than that to process a donation, this poor guy was spending $225 to take money from his favorite organizations.)

That's not to say you have to pick only one cause to donate to. Maybe you want to give to organizations that benefit you, like your public radio station or place of worship. Maybe it warms your heart to give that guy on the street corner a few bucks. Maybe your daughter's school is doing a fundraiser and you want to support her.

There's nothing wrong with spending money this way. It's like buying a magazine subscription, or lunch with a friend, or anything else that nourishes your spirit or your bonds with other people.

The problem is when you give some money here and there as the mood strikes you, and by the time you think about giving to something that saves lives, you think, "I've already done my part."

But random donations are not the same as effective charity.

$50 toward the utility bills at your church is not the same as $50 to vaccinate a child against a disease that may kill him. $500 to your alma mater is not the same as training a community health worker in Mozambique who can help her neighbors stay healthy. If your child were in danger, you know how you would choose to use the money.

So make a plan. Figure out who is doing good work in a field you think is important, and decide how much you're going to give in the next year or so. Then, budget a separate amount for feel-good giving.

That's something you can feel good about.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

The most for your money









Thursday, November 3, 2011

Good news: you're rich!












Wednesday, November 2, 2011

In which we begin

"Philanthropy and the good life"? What's that about?




