#charityfocus

Ah the obligatory Christmas post. I should've followed retail trends and typed this up immediately after Halloween, but Christmas for me doesn't start til Charlie Brown brings that weak tree home and gets depressed.  And well.. I think that was on this past weekend. 

Or maybe I just saw the commercial for it.  Whichever.  Side note: If you haven't read Charles Schulz' biography - it's fascinating.  

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hearing Nipun Mehta speak about giftivism and his belief that most people will pay-it-forward when given the opportunity. Very powerful and insightful stuff that really resonated with me.

If you get a chance check out his organizations as well: CharityFocus and KarmaKitchen. Like I said - good stuff.

People often buy things to fill some void. For example, I used to buy something every time a company rejected me, and in my case that meant I was buying a lot of things. When my mom passed I think I spent a lot of money on drinking and eating out. Thankfully I didn't get fat. Whew.

At both times, like most people, I justified spending money because I thought I deserved to be happy. I've since learned that happiness doesn't come easy, and that I don't really deserve anything, you got to put in work (that's what getting a lot of rejection letters will do to you; make you humble). Regardless, even after the money was spent I was still frustrated, and my problems still existed. What I should've been doing is employing Nipun's philosophy and giving back to others: time and attention are worth more than money. Don't believe me? Go volunteer at a Boys and Girls Club for a day. Instead of spending money I should've been out inspiring, motivating, leading, or at the very least helping.

I bring all this up because like Charlie Brown I'm a bit tired of all the commercialism that surrounds this time of year. I'm tired of people being stressed because they can't find their children the year's hot toy; I'm tired of people being rude to others because they themselves are tired (I used to be a barista at a coffee shop in a mall - I loathed Christmas customers); and I'm tired of people thinking that this is the only time of year to be nice. It's not. 

So while you're out and about this Holiday season, just remember to give back too. You'll be surprised how these acts of generosity, of giving, affect your soul. And trust me, no amount of money spent or saved can buy that.