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You Might Be Thinking About Generosity All Wrong
Instead of one big, grand gesture, practice being generous consistently.
“Being generous often consists of simply extending a hand. That’s hard to do if you are grasping tightly to your righteousness, your belief system, your superiority, your assumptions about others, your definition of normal.” — Patti Digh
Generosity is one of my personal core values.
When I say that out loud, I have heard statements like, “So, you give a lot, but you have a lot.” Or, “it is easy to be generous NOW,” which is referring to my place in life and career. What is completely missed in the assumptions that are being made is that being generous is in no way a new habit. It isn’t. There’s also an assumption that when I talk about generosity, I am talking about money — I’m not.
If you think it is easy to be generous once you are living life in abundance, try flipping that thought on its head — being generous helps one to live in abundance. It is through giving that we have more, at least that I what I am hoping to convey here.
Many years ago, I stopped at a gas station to fuel up my car. I asked for ten dollars worth of gas. When I went inside to pay, my card was declined. At the time, I didn’t have a credit card, and I didn’t have any…