Practical Pointers for Powerful Philanthropy
1. Be thoughtful and PROACTIVE.
Do you consider yourself a proactive philanthropist? Most of us practice reactive philanthropy. We make our charitable gifts in response to a request from a friend or associate and in support of THEIR passion. Or we buy a ticket to a fundraising event and consider ourselves a philanthropist. While this is not all bad, we challenge you to take the first step in becoming a more powerful philanthropist.
You can do this by taking a thoughtful approach to your charitable giving. Take a look at your past charitable giving- over the past year or past two years. You may have itemized your charitable gifts as deductions on your tax return or you might have to go through bank statements and credit card bills. This exercise might take an hour or so but it’s worth the investment of time. Once you have your list of gifts, consider the following:
Are you surprised by how much you gave?
Is it more or less than you would have thought?
Is there any pattern to the issues you supported?
Begin to think about how much you would like to give and what you would like to impact in your world…
Next month, we will tackle the uncomfortable issue of how much is the "right amount" to give!
2. Check your POCKETBOOK.
3. Determine your PASSION.
4. PLOW the field.
5. Be PARTICULAR.
6. Execute your PLAN.
7. Feel PROUD for making a difference.
Resources
- aafrc.org — American Association of Fundraising Counsel
- afpnet.org — Association of Fundraising Professionals
- agmconnect.org — Information about foundations
- cof.org — Council on Foundations information on foundations
- give.org — National Charities Information Bureau information on national charities, and other useful material
- guidestar.org — National database of 620,000 charities' IRS returns
- helping.org — AOL Foundation-sponsored; electronic giving to Guidestar charities
- independentsector.org — A forum for charities, foundations, and corporate giving programs
- myphilanthropycoach.com — Philanthropy Coach
- ncfp.org — National Center for Family Philanthropy
- nccs.urban.org — National Center for Charitable Statistics
- newtithing.org — Helps donors calculate how much they can afford to give
- nonprofits.org — Information about charities
- philanthropy.com — Chronicle of Philanthropy: national biweekly trade newspaper
- philanthropy.iupui.edu — The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University
- philanthropy.org — University-based resource center
- pgdc.net — Planned Giving Design Center Information on planned giving
- svpseattle.org — Learning-Giving circles and other innovative approaches
- synergos.org — Global Philanthropists Circle
A recommended reading list
- Giving by Bill Clinton
- High Impact Philanthropy by Kay Sprinkel Grace and Alan L. Wendroff
- Inspired Philanthropy: Your Step by Step Guide to Creating a Giving Plan by Tracy Gary
- More Give to Live — How Giving Can Change Your Life by Douglas M. Lawson, Ph.D
- The Greater Good by Claire Gaudiani
