A meaningful life… What does that phrase mean to you? We find meaning in our families, our jobs, our adventures, but for many of us, to truly be fulfilled we feel the need to give back to others. While our intentions are noble, our actions tell a different story. Between our demanding schedules and overstretched budgets, it is difficult to do the things that aren’t necessary to our everyday needs. Jennifer Iacovelli has addressed these issues in her book Simple Giving.
Working for nearly a decade in the nonprofit field, Jennifer had experienced a variety of problems in the world of charitable giving. Eager to give more and inspire others to give as well, she began searching for a deeper meaning of philanthropy. What she found was a world of amazing givers and endless opportunities. She realized that philanthropy holds a different meaning for every person, but it is only when we define the word for ourselves that we can incorporate it in our daily lives and find true fulfillment in our giving.
Simple Giving is a guide to defining what philanthropy means within your own life. Jennifer explores the reasons we, as humans, feel the desire to help others and why giving to others makes us genuinely happier people. She explores the chain reactions of our giving, no matter how small it may be, and shows us that our actions extend far beyond the moment. How we treat others shapes the view of ourselves and humanity as a whole. Each time we help another, we are reinforcing the good we see in ourselves and leading others through example. Everyday, ordinary people are changing the world with their giving. You CAN be one of those people.
Jennifer offers step by step instructions and resources to get started. Emphasizing the need to incorporate philanthropy, your version, into everyday life, Jennifer lays out six different models of giving that address the many reasons we reach out to others. We all have different passions, opinions, and life experiences so it only makes sense that we have different motivations to give; therefore, different ways of doing so. Each model is a unique but equally powerful way to make giving a functional part of your life instead of dreaded obligation. Jennifer’s insightful views on philanthropy open the reader to a whole new world of opportunities to help others and make it easy to find an efficient way to keep giving.
However, Jennifer takes it a step further offering different resources to explore. She lists existing programs that fit into each giving model. Providing a brief background and the impact of the movement or organization, these resources allow you to see everyday giving in action. There are organizations that benefit everything from Autism to Climate Change. It breaks down the overwhelming idea of PHILANTHROPY and makes it an obtainable goal that fits into your life and aligns with your own passions.
She also offers real advice about pursuing your own cause. Jennifer provides questions that will get to the root of your desire to give and help you decide if you can turn it into a large scale operation. Simple Giving addresses that constant voice telling us that we should give more, and finally begs the question – How do we give more? Jennifer enlightens us with answers that each one of us of us can use to incorporate giving into our daily lives.
Giving can be simple. Find out how. Simple Giving is available October 27th.
Follow Jennifer’s blog for more stories of philanthropy – AnotherJennifer.com
You can also follow her on Twitter @anotherjenb
Find out news about the release of Simple Giving @TarcherBooks
Share your own inspirations about Simple Giving with #SimpleGiving
Sound like a vary interesting book i’ll have to look more into it.
This sounds like a great book. I love reading things that challenge me to think bigger and better. I’ll be adding this to my reading list for sure.
This sounds like a really interesting book and Jennifer sounds like such an altruistic person. With Christmas on the way, I like to try and give to charity more over the festive season.
Something struck me as I read this. Philanthropy is really an attitude more than an act, isn’t it? We have a strong mentality of giving back in my family. Whether that be donations of new items or lightly used items we no longer need. Volunteering whenever we can. Just trying to make the world a bit better with the resources we have.
That’s a very valid point – it means one thing for one person while meaning a totally different thing for another. The book would be good to help people realize that there are different ways to help instead of just standing by.