When the global financial market is in turmoil the first thing most people think of doing is holding onto things and cutting expenditure. And they automatically assume (because the newspapers tell them) that everyone is acting that way.
Everyone ISN`T responding in that manner. There are many people and many ventures that flourish, whether the economy is down or not. And if you are wondering why it is so, the solution is available there where it is often likely to be overlooked. It will be a good idea to search for the answer together.
When a current is going downward, whatever the reason be, the way to survive is by rowing against the current. If we let ourselves to be swept away by the current, we may sink deep down and survival might become difficult.
The fact is that when we know our strength and can hold sway over ourselves, we can rise above the mundane and not worry about what is going on all around. Let us visualise it properly.
'Go-getters' or 'Go-givers'
Let's say we want more - more profits, a pay raise, more holidays, more freedom, and more opportunities.
When we yearn for a thing, our response is to try to get it. By that yardstick everybody is a 'Go-getter'. And a 'go-getter' is understood as a dynamic, enterprising person with leadership qualities. Such an attitude is a prime requirement for succeeding in life as we understand it. Nevertheless, there is an innate conundrum. When these approaches are put into practice, there are certain unanticipated, though unavoidable upshots.
Because after 'getting' and 'having' it what tends to follow is 'losing' it. We either lose it physically or we lose interest in what it was we got.
Then our interest swings to something else. This continuous swaying of interest is the biggest issue; the widening interests becoming a never-ending circle of desires so that we are never satisfied with what we have. It becomes a sort of junk food dependency!
So what if we turned our 'desire to get' into a desire to provide?
You've probably noticed that giving always creates a great feeling. And it comes from gratitude rather than from fear or greed. We can continue to give more and receive more on our now, ever-fulfilling journey.
Our abundant and providing attitude creates abundant and providing clients and team mates while our cost awareness and 'getting approach' would draw towards us only similar clients and team mates. And those are the type of people we would not like to be friends with!
Inspiring capitalism
Most ventures are today aware of the inspiring role of capitalism. They are ever ready to contribute more through many avenues. The idea has strongly impacted the business world as they realise how giving is central to business interests. A typical example is Bill Gates, who expounded the philosophy of 'Creative Capitalism' in July 2008 in a TIME magazine article.
He explained that helping others might be the fine deciding point that could persuade people to prefer one product to another.
The essence of what he says is that when a business has ties with the idea of giving in one way or other, it is bound to be more tempting to others. It stands out above thousand businesses the attributes of which are similar.
Creative Capitalism is the idea of taking things a step higher than the destination at which one would have originally chosen to make the compromise. When we can leverage our visions and initiatives in a way that helps and promotes the needs of the global society, we are conserving things, efforts and abilities in trying to win pro tem. Then we begin fashioning genuine success for us as well as for supporting our global financial system.
The appeal of effective giving
CSR or Corporate Social Responsibility is the word used for delineating the process of business establishments giving back to the community. It is becoming an obligation on the part of enterprises to do so. But when they donate as a duty or just for creating a good impression, it would soon become easy to make out. However, it works as an interim ploy for survival.
Business ventures and people who 'donate' become popular. The zeal and sincerity that prods them to act is recognized by the people with whom they interact. This response is on top of what is spun by way of the company's public relation efforts.
What is likely to be the upshot if some of the capital meant for marketing is apportioned for contributions?
Giving creates something bigger than who we are. Giving creates inspiration. Inspiration can only be created when it resonates with the people whom we want to inspire. And we get inspired when we are involved in the experience. It is not just about hearing the nice stories of others. It's actually participating in those stories. After all, we all want to feel good in life by making a contribution-to our family and friends, to our company and to our community.
Transaction-based giving makes it inevitable
The facility for contributing became so much simpler because of a programme (or one can say a 'development') called Buy1GIVE1 (Buy One Give One). Buy1GIVE1 is the heart of transaction-based giving. Transaction-based giving revolutionises things. Let us use our creativity and analyse how.
How would you like the scenario whereby every time you have a coke at a nearby eatery, a needy child in Africa gets clean water at least for a single day?
Or a different scenario where with every subscription to a journal that you would like to read, a sapling gets planted somewhere where it was badly needed? Or whenever you ate out, someone routinely got fed out of its profit?
Or let's say you're being coached in your business. How interesting would it be to know that a child was educated for one month as a direct result (and by the way, all it cost the coaching company to do that was 60 cents per day).
Or if a conference sponsors has arranged a speaker, part of whose income goes to help kids who has speech impediments due to deformities, wouldn't that be a matter to feel satisfied? Just by attending the conference and paying for it, you are becoming part of a noble cause.
Imagine the perfect scenario where transaction-based giving can be applied in one's own special manner to correspond with the available products and services to include every member of the group and customers. It is possible.
The actual winning economy
Business ventures, on a global basis, have already internalized the efficacy of this transaction-based giving. A case in point is TESCO, one of the foremost supermarket chains of UK. The company's programme ensures that a Kenyan child gets a school uniform when someone buys a pair of school trousers from them.
Volvic is a Mineral Water Company that launched its scheme of transaction-based giving program last year. They help the cause of making wells in Africa. They call the scheme Buy1 GIVE 10 as it helps in generating a flow of 10 litres of water in the well, by every single litre of water they sell.
Middle level and comparatively small enterprises are now in the forefront in widening this global giving phenomenon through Creative Capitalism. Buy1GIVE1 (www.b1g1.com), a Singapore-based Social Enterprise came up with an effective strategy which has turned this transaction-based giving into a movement that anyone who wants can participate in.
Buy1GIVE1 is the heart of a most powerfully persuasive transaction-based giving globally, correlating business ventures of all sizes to any noble cause anywhere. It is weaving a universal society of business givers and for SME`s, Buy1GIVE1 links up businesses, their clients AND charity requirements in a most passionate and mutually satisfactory manner. The whole thing is completely automated.
Any person can become a citizen of this phenomenon of global giving merely by getting a Buy1GIVE1 `VISA` directly off the Buy1GIVE1 site at www.b1g1.com. Those who have their own enterprise can become a B1G1 Business through applying online and selecting the charity and the primary service or product for launching the giving. Buy1GIVE1 forwards the entire contribution amount to their international Worthy Cause Partners (more than 528 projects are available for members to choose from) thereby making their contributions highly productive.
Have you considered?
* Half the world-nearly three billion people-live on less than two dollars a day.
* Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their name.
* According to UNICEF, 30,000 children die each day due to poverty. That is about 210,000 children each week, or 20 children every minute.
* Just 12% of the people worldwide utilize 85% of the water available for human consumption. And this 12% does not belong to any of the underdeveloped countries.
* About a billion people have no access to minimum health care facilities.
* 63,000 square miles of rainforests are destroyed each year.
* Instruction to Instruction (www.kipmcgrath.com.au)
* Medical practice providing medical benefits (www.primanora.com)
* Phone card to human interaction (www.ultimatecomms.com)
* Relaxation to healing (www.meditate.com.au)
* Shedding pounds to providing food for children (www.bodychain.com)
* Luminous blinds to luminous classrooms (www.blindscouture.com.au)
* Socks for feet to socks for social effect (www.socksforhappypeople.com)
* Coaching to train social entrepreneurs (www.b1g1forcoaches.com)
* And for full details, just log on to www.b1g1.com.
Finding what we are looking for-Nature gives us the clue
So let's come back to where we started-economic turmoil and getting what we want. What we all really want is actually very simple. You can sum it up with 'C' words - connection, collaboration and community.
When we can pool resources and not segregate and when we can divine a proper way to augment what everyone has got and not cut down from what each has got, we understand that there is a veritable cornucopia of sources to be had in the world. And when we bond, not just with our physical persona, but with our intrinsic selves, we discern something completely fascinating -that we're all ONE. Then we comprehend how uncomplicated it is to form a universal community from something as ordinary as giving.
And the truth is there in all its glory in nature.
In the wild, all types of insects cross-fertilize plants to create fruits and flowers of endless varieties benefitting men and animals alike. The perfect give and take pattern was there even before civilizations started.
Failures are said to be stepping stones to success. In the same way we can turn setbacks into advantages. In reality we should be thankful for the current situation that is helping us to move ahead.
And when you choose to start giving today, you will feel so much better despite the economic challenges. And when you feel better you will discover a renewal of hope and you will remember all tides change and the down will soon be up. Giving today is the one thing that you can do to change everything.
Author Resource:
Find out more about how Buy1GIVE1 (BOGO ) can transform your business using Cause Marketing .
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