(Principles are basic truths that, when applied, cause success to come to you easier and quicker.)

 

“Give until it hurts” was the fund raising slogan used by a charity several years ago. The wording was apparently intended to cause people to want to give money to their cause. It was not a highly successful campaign.

Many people seem to think that giving can be stimulated by guilt, shame, obligation, and should, as in “you should give back because you have received so much, etc.”

However, there is no “should” in giving. If a should is present, something else is going on. Either you re “paying back” or “paying forward” or trying to feel good or “balancing the scales” or….

Giving is about “want to” not should. Giving is only giving when it is unconditional, when you have no need for anything to come back to you. Giving is about feeling joy, not about becoming pain free.

Surprisingly, being unattached to getting anything back ends up returning more to you than you can ever receive and in ways you never imagined.

 

Coaching Point: What is your first thought when someone mentions giving? Noticing how you react will show you something important about how you see your place in the universe. Do you want to give?

 

Copyright 2006 Steve Straus. All rights reserved.