Give when you have none

I read an interesting story the other day. An Irish-American billionaire who had kept his philanthropy a secret for 15 years has given away $7.5 billion to charity and plans to give all his wealth before his dies.

Chuck Feeney, 82, has given away 99 per cent of his fortune to health, education and civil rights causes around the world through his foundation.

Feeney, who still has $2 million in the bank, made his money from his duty-free shops around the world and quietly began giving it away in the 1980s.

His generosity was largely unnoticed until 1997 because he even made his beneficiaries keep the source of their donations secret as he did not want to draw attention to himself.

AGAINST THE GRAIN

Feeney’s ‘giving while living’ philosophy is what inspired Bill and Melinda Gates to establish their foundation.

That story fascinated me. Here is a man doing something quite contrary to the norm.

People are struggling to make more and more money and here is a man desperate to die broke in a world where the slogan is “get rich or die trying.”

This reminded me of a man I met who had a profound influence on my life.

That is Tony Robbins, the high-energy motivational speaker and best-selling author who helps people achieve their life goals.

When Robbins was 11 years old, his family was living in poverty and did not have food to celebrate the American Thanksgiving holiday.

While they were seated in their living room, a stranger knocked on their door and brought them groceries, enough to have a feast.

Robbins never forgot the impact of that stranger’s kind gesture that changed their holiday.

That led him later in life to embark on a personal crusade to do the same for others.

Through the Anthony Robbins Foundation, he has now has given away millions of meals to people in need across the United States.

Senseless materialism is not only pointless, it is harmful and draining.

As we clamour for more money, bigger houses and vehicles we should realise the rewards of selfless giving.

What should put your life in perspective is helping someone in worse shape than yourself.

There is no greater way to put your life perspective.

When you serve something bigger than yourself, you are served.

Many of you are reading this and saying “that is all good but let the rich do it, I don’t have enough for myself, leave alone extra to give others.”

That is where you may be getting it all wrong.

If you focus mostly on what you do not have rather than what you have, you are going to be extremely unhappy.

I remember a female messenger at an organisation I once worked at, who every Sunday on her way from church would buy French fries and sausages for at least four children who were living in the streets.

How did we find out about her actions? A colleague once found her sitting with homeless children at Jeevanjee Gardens.

The colleague was so inspired by what he saw, that he rallied the rest of the staff to become part of the initiative started by a junior member of staff.

HOMELESS CHILDREN

Thus, every Friday, we would donate money towards her Sunday outing with homeless children.

Through this, the number of homeless children she was feeding increased.

We lost touch after I left that organisation, but I want to trust something good must have come out of that blessed act.

The secret to living is giving.

Life is calling on us to be more than just about ourselves and that is when we get that spiritual uplifting.

For some people that comes with parenthood.

Giving should be extended to others, not just your offspring.

For others, that pleasure comes with involvement in activities within their community.

TOUGHEST TIME

Actually the best time to give is when you have nothing.

The best time to plant your seed is when you have almost none left.

You want to know why?

When you are going through your toughest time and you find someone who is worse off and you give assistance, you suddenly realise you have no problems.

The author is a life coach and founder of Peak Performance International- a human potential development firm.