Generosity pays

Giving can be a touchy question for many people. Often when I am reviewing monthly expenses with my clients here as a financial counselor and I get to the "Donations" item on their monthly expense worksheet, they scoff and say something like, "I'm the one who needs a donation." I frequently will press the matter a little further and encourage them to consider giving. And when I say giving, I mean money. Time is great, clothes are great to donate, but I'm talking about money here.

Giving can help you take a step toward freedom, freedom from the tyranny of money. Giving sets in motion a principle of the universe: when you give you receive. Suze Orman discovered this principle in working with clients as a financial planner. In her book, "The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom," Ms. Orman tells how she learned to give and how that resulted in prospering more. She decided to try it out on her clients and she found that as clients followed her advice to regularly give to charity, they prospered more. She says, "The better people felt about themselves, and the more they kept their hands open to receive by relinquishing money, the more their financial situation improved. It was thrilling."

If you are feeling like things are too tight or that there is not enough, release your grip. Give some money away. See if it will not come back to you and more. Furthermore, a newletter today from Learnvest.com points out: "The benefits of giving to others have been documented on a neural level in MRIs—even those forced to give money away showed activation in brain areas typically associated with receiving rewards." It makes you feel good. And feeling good can generate a lot of positive energy in your life. Besides it helps people, and gets your focus off your problems. Give it a try and report back how it works. I'll be waiting to hear.