Your Challenge: Be (more) Intentional with Your Giving
Cultivating intention in giving
If you are of a certain age, you will remember this. If you are not, consider it a trip down Your Money Mom’s memory lane...
We get little “snail mail” any longer, but when we did, we would receive dozens of requests per month asking for money. There would be a coin, or a holy card, or (oddly) a small blanket inside the envelope or package. And of course, there would be a pitch to encourage donations to the charity.
I cannot remember what a blanket had to do with a charity or why I should give to it, but I put the blankets in our dress-up box for the kids to use.
In the defense of the unsolicited gift-giving: at Christmastime there were often wall calendars, and some were lovely.
The most frequent “gift” sent by charities was return address labels.
I would dutifully save them to use while paying bills when we used to have to write out checks, put them in the return envelope, and mail them back. Doubtless that sounds positively 18th century to young ones reading this, but I promise you virtually all people were doing this just a few short years ago.
I would also save the labels for return labels for Christmas cards. (digression: since we do not receive these any longer, but we still send Christmas cards–and other cards–I use this label stamp I designed. A true time saver!)
Anyway, there was a time I would actually save all—or at least most—of the requests for money.
And then very occasionally, my husband and I would go through them and decide if we wanted to give money to the causes.
Over time, we developed a group of worthy and important charities to us. We would donate to these groups, usually during Lent and Advent, two times that are traditional for giving.
Phone calls, legit and not
I also remember receiving countless phone calls over the years from many charities. Some we had relationships with; some did not. Some are legitimate; many were frauds.
And like many people, my husband and I still receive occasional calls from our alma maters, with current students encouraging us to give to their campaign.
[In fact, just the other night, my husband received a voicemail from the university our daughters attend. It was a student, God bless her, calling to ask if we would give to the parents’ fund. I thought, doesn’t paying tuition count for this right now? LOL].
Reading a book like Frank Abagnale’s Scam Me If You Can: Simple Strategies to Outsmart Today’s Rip-Off Artists has further educated me on things to watch out for when we consider charities to give to.
Even before I read the book, I rarely answer a phone call from an unknown number, or even a known one if I am not expecting it. It is easy and common is to “spoof” a specific phone number. I am not the only one who has received phone calls on my cell phone from my cell phone number!
Over time, I have developed some general rules about giving:
*Consider not giving “on the spot.”
I rarely give to donation requests at check-outs or in or outside stores. (And part of me feels a little guilty to admit this, even though I know it is not the best way to give!)
This could include the ones in which you give a dollar to a “fill in the blank charity”–a children’s hospital, cancer charity, or other worthy cause. Then you write your name on a paper representing a hand or other object. It is then displayed it with dozens of others. And there are a lot of other ways.
My ready response is, “Oh thank you anyway, we give privately.” I used to feel guilty about this, but the checkout is not the place to be making charitable giving decisions. And we give privately. Consider those requests as an encouragement to find out more about the group rather than a guilt trip to donate right now.
This is true both and often when it relates to the specific charity. Giving “on the spot” is not the most efficient way to give money, and it is not a good way to decide about giving to charity.
And I do not give to the handwritten jar on the counter-type charities, since it’s unclear where the money will go, and , and often not used for the intended person.
*Give pro-actively, not reactively.
Being pro active rather than reactive is a good general personal finance skill. And it applies well in the giving department.
Instead of going through the mail, e-mail, or other requests for money, take some time to think about causes that are important to you and/or your family. What are some local or other charities that help with this issue? What is the best way to give to that group?
*Give more money to fewer charities.
Like many people, our weekly donation to our local church makes up much of our giving each year.
Apart from that, in the past, we used to donate to a a small amount of money ($10 to $50) to a lot of different charities. This probably exacerbated our problem of getting too much mail & too many phone calls asking for money.
Over time, we have gradually decreased the number of charities we give to. That allows us to have a greater impact in areas that matter to us.
A bonus is that giving big donations feels fantastic (and “rich”). I was going to write out, “write out a big check.” However, this has become a quaint anachronism these days, since people rarely write checks.
Give locally and in the wider world.
The maxim “charity begins at home” is a maxim for a reason. But it is not either/or.
This is very personal, because some people feel the need to give all or most of their money locally. And some people want to give to a specific non-profit far away in the world.
The secret is learning to be intentional and specific in giving, so as to have a greater impact.
*Give more than just money.
This is good for everyone, not just those who feel cash-strapped. And being generous with your time and talent does not have to be only for a registered 501(c)3, or “official” charity. Get creative!
In no particular order, here are some altruistic ideas:
- volunteer at a soup kitchen.
- donate clothes or other goods to a place like Salvation Army or Goodwill.
- (once the coronavirus time is past) visit people in a nursing home.
- step forward to be a youth group leader, adult mentor, or Sunday School teacher.
- bring a meal and/or some groceries to a new mom.
- (even better) offer to watch a mom’s kids so she can have a few hours to herself.
- tutor kids at a local school.
- spend an hour or two (perhaps with family or a small group of friends) picking up trash in a local park or neighborhood.
- do yard work for a neighbor who is older.
- volunteer professional services in your field (law, teaching, medical care) to a local group serving a needy population.
- help out at a registration table, water stop, or other area of a running race.
- give food from your garden to a food pantry.
- volunteer to cleanup or restoration at local mountain biking or hiking trails.
There are countless other ways to give. What are some ways you give with intention?
