10 Ways To Do Less Yet Give More To Others
By: Haille Trimboli
Tags: Helping Others, Giving, Mindfulness, Consciousness, Awareness

Photo by Branimir Balogović on Unsplash

Do you ever find it difficult to give to others? Maybe you aren’t bringing in the big bucks yet or your schedule doesn’t allow for you to continually volunteer your time. As I navigated these questions, and still do, I often find myself wondering what is the best way for me to give?

When I was 17, I traveled to Malawi, Africa and it changed my life. I was a typical teenager who invested the majority of my time into fashion, the latest gossip, and celebrity news. One of my family members traveled to Africa each year, so I called him up and asked if I could go with him on the next trip. And I did. While I was there I taught groups of kids, played with them, and spent time learning about their way of life. To this day, I have never experienced singing and dancing like I did in those African villages. Passion, love, kindness, joy, it was all there. Along with these things was a need for education which I was happy to be apart of.

I came back to the United States and returned to my college classes and routine life. Being in Africa to serve everyday couldn’t happen because I was studying at the University. I hold these memories close to my heart, but I had to find more practical and regular ways to give.

I don’t believe that giving has to be a once a month visit to a local organization or a yearly trip to Africa. If this is your means of giving to others I absolutely believe in and support your amazing work! But I’m going to be writing about how we can give in the everyday. I’ll talk about the benefits of giving, and ways to give the invisible things we possess to strangers and/or those you love. Before we hop into giving in the everyday, let’s look at some of the benefits of giving to others.

Benefits Of Giving

Like I mentioned above, going to Malawi, Africa changed the direction of my life. It allowed me to realize what was important in this world. When I taught and played with the children there, I became so grateful of the education and recreational activities I had as a child. I began to worry less about material things and concerned myself more with the inner qualities I wanted to possess. Beyond my personal experiences, there is research showing the benefits that happen when we give.

An article from the University of Berkeley examines the connection of altruism to health and happiness. The conclusion of this article was that a “strong correlation exists between the well-being, happiness, health, and longevity of people who are emotionally kind and compassionate in their charitable helping activities — as long as they are not overwhelmed, and here worldview may come into play”

I want to highlight the part where it says “as long as they are not overwhelmed”. This leads me nicely to the next section. Let’s look at how giving can be easy and incorporated into your daily life.

Giving In The Everyday

When it comes to giving, it’s important to start small. Good habits are developed overtime and it’s valuable to build momentum before taking on anything larger. Just like we develop our physical muscles over time, we can develop our giving muscles until it’s something that becomes an integral part of our lives. Drop any ideas you have about giving being rigid, structured, and systematic.

In order to keep up any habit, there has to be some sort of internal motivation. Think about how your giving could match activities that you already find enjoyable. This brings me to my main point, pay attention to the people you encounter during the day. Each person we come in contact with is an opportunity for us to give. When we start opening our eyes to this thought, we will start to see so many ways to give pop up. Below I have a list of some easy ways we can give to strangers or loved ones each day. Tailor them to things you’re already doing. If one doesn’t make sense, pass over it, and move to one that would work for you.

10 Simple Ways To Give

Like I mentioned above, use the examples that work for you. If our internal motivation is activated we are much more likely to give.

Compliment someone in the grocery store or thank your cashier by their name (thank goodness for name tags) Ask your loved ones how their day went and truly listen. Share with a friend a positive quote that you think would resonate with them. Talk to your postal carrier. If you have a mailbox, this is a person who is coming to your house everyday! Ask what their name is. Help your coworker with a project. Nothing huge, but one small act you could do to lessen their load. Bring your neighbor something. Baked goods, a small succulent, chips and dip, sticky notes. Carry granola bars, bags of nuts, or small packaged snacks in your car to give to anyone you see who’s homeless. Comment on someone’s social media. Scroll through and find someone you haven’t talked to in awhile and comment on their latest picture. If you have a coach of any sorts, write them a thank you card and deliver it to them unexpectedly.

Conclusion

On my birthday this year I was running on a country road when a lady slowed her car down next to me. Meanwhile, I’m in the zone, completely absorbed in my podcast. She rolled down her window and shouted, “Way to climb up that hill!” After my initial shock because I was in the zone, I raised my hands up in the air and cheered back, “Wooooohoo!” It was so awesome. She gave me a gift, I chose to recognize it, and I think we were both better for it. My go to gift since then has been eyeing runners on those country roads and giving them a boost of encouragement.

How about you? How are you giving to others or how are you going to start? Comment and share with me below!

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