A thought to provoke, perhaps maybe even challenge...

One of the things I would like to see accomplished on this site is that what I write be not only relevant to the thoughts in my head at the time of posting, but that they be relevant in some way to you as well, so that the time you spend here is time well spent. With that in mind, what better way to kick Day 2 of this blog off with a challenge.

You know it is funny in politics, you have one side always wanting to take (the Democrats) and another side who occasionally gives (the Republicans) who at the end of the day still have their hands in your pocket. Funny how the Republicans make a tax cut sound so good, when the harsh reality is it simply means they are letting you keep more of your money that you worked for.

So I ask you this, what if there was a way for you to get more???

Huh, was that a thought provoking question? Get more, heck yeah, where do I sign up? How quick can I start receiving? Can I have it directly deposited into my account?

See, I think I got your attention.

So here is the time tested, and proven method to get more.

GIVE MORE

That's right. Give more. It is well known that some of the biggest "givers" in this world are the biggest "getters."

Don't believe me, let me give you a few second opinions.

David Bach in his book "The Automatic Millionaire" makes a point to reference that whether from a religious belief or a sense of humanity, those who give, get more.

Fascinating to me, that in a book written solely for the purpose of becoming a millionaire, the last and final chapter involves giving away that which you are working to amass. Those who give, get.

The Bible is full of references to money, and how it is to be handled. Within that context, the command is to tithe, which equates to 10%. Let's take a look at what that looks like. If you made $30,000 in a year, that would equate to $3000 to be distributed to people less fortunate than yourself.

Wow, $3000 is a lot of money, money that I need. You are right, based on a $30k a year salary $3k would be a lot, but have you ever put yourself in the situation to live in faith that if you give a little, you will receive a little more.

Whether you believe as I believe (another post, another time) or not, the fact remains that across our culture, from the Bible thumping Christian, to the non-believing Atheist, and everyone in between there is a certain faction that believes in the power of giving.

Now allow me to sidebar here for just a minute, giving isn't always about money, a lot of times it can be about time. The giving of your own time for the benefit of others has as big an impact as a financial gift. Often times the giving of time has a bigger reward as time, unlike money, cannot be replenished.

So what does this look like in a real world sense? That is something I cannot answer for you, but instead will share with you my own personal experience in giving.

About 2 years ago, we as family decided to start tithing to our church. Now since I am self-employed, I took a "paycheck" on a weekly basis, and tithed off that amount, but was quickly convicted of the fact that in reality I was taking a lot more than I was giving because so much of my stuff financially was being run through the company and as such I had a realized gain, without it appearing in the form of a paycheck.

I struggled with that for a while, and finally came to the conclusion that for me to be honest with myself, I needed to start at the source. The source in my case was my company. I set up a system wherein 10% of total company sales is given away. Not 10% of profit, 10% of TOTAL SALES. That means if I make a sale for $10k, $1k of it is given away. I am fortunate to be in a trade that sometimes sees profit margins in excess of 50%, and I really didn't have any overhead at that point in time, so to give away that 10% really wasn't affecting me adversely.

And you know what, sales increased. That's right, SALES INCREASED.

And I can tell you this, there is no logical reason why, as I in reality was working less time at that company, as I was in the process of setting up another company.

And yet SALES INCREASED.

And the second company got launched, and we started giving from that company as well. And that company flourished.

And we launched a third company. And we stated from day one that we would give from that company. And although it is still (the company) in its infancy, I will be happy to report to you at a later date of the success that we see. But even though money right now is tight in this company, when we make it, we give it.

So what am I trying to say here?

A little faith can go a long way. For you see, I don't believe the blessing comes when you give the gift, for me the blessing came in realizing how petty my problems seem when placed in perspective. Let me explain...

Last year was a banner year for my primary company. Everything we touched turned to gold. This year however has calmed down, and while steady, isn't as strong as 2006. And you are probably thinking, what about this whole the more you give the more you get thing you have been preaching. And you know what, you are right to think that. Except when placed into perspective.

I am a realist, and I knew 2006 was abnormal in the sense that money was being made hand over fist. Now 2007 has things back to "normal" which in my case is still darn healthy. When I start to lament about how sales are down over 2006, I am quickly reminded that in the first 3 months of 2007, I made more money than the average income in my area. That's right, in three months time I made what the average income is for Nashville in a year. And I did it in 3 months time. Which means I have 9 more months to do it again, and again, and again.

You want perspective, you got perspective.

When my sister talks of her troubles with her mortgage payment, it places my situation into perspective. Which is perhaps the best thing to get out of giving. The perspective to realize that no matter how urgent or critical your problem in life it, there is always someone who has a situation that is more critical than you own.

And the ability to be able to step back from your own worries and concerns is a gift that is given to you, when you invest your time and money in others. Because even though my sister's worries are real and legitimate, if she were to push back from the table she would quickly realize that in the grand scheme of things, she really has it pretty good in comparison to others less fortunate than herself.

If you don't stop and appreciate what you have, you will never be happy. But in that process, if you don't stop and give back some of what you have been given, you will never truly appreciate that which you have.

And along the way you will miss one of the greatest gifts of life, that ability to impact in a positive way another persons life.

That is it in a nutshell, the ability to impact in a positive way another persons life.

So be it money, time or a combination of them both, take the time to invest your resources into something other than yourself.

I think, no, I know you will be surprised at the outcome.

For now, take care...