30 Day Challenge

    When I was washing dishes this morning, I turned to TED for entertainment and solace. TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Per usual, I clicked on the Global Issues tab on the left hand column and then randomly selected a talk. Today, I met Sasha Dichter from Acumen Fund, a microfinance fund. Microfinance provides financial services for the impoverished in developing countries. These financial services include the provision of small loans to the poor in order to fund small businesses. More importantly, Mr. Dichter took a challenge. He decided to give to any charity or individual who asked for money over the period of 30 days. For him, it changed the way he raised capital for his firm. His methodology became people-centric. It was no longer about the return or the dividend. It was about the people who were in need. With any sort of leap, you must take risk. The risk is that the homeless man or woman on the street uses your money for drugs or alcohol, but what happens if the converse is also correct? What if that spare change fed the person for the day or gave them that little bit more that was needed to give them hope.  The risk is that the charity has inflated pay for employees and lucrative bonuses, but what happens if it is meager and lean?  I tend to gamble on the side of humanity, compassion, and trust. As Mr Dichter says, giving on the street does not preclude you from donating to a homeless shelter or a charity that you know is lean. True philanthropy is about risk taking. Today, I begin my own 30 Day Challenge. From now until December 16, I will give to anyone who asks, whether on the street, at my door, on the phone or in the mail. However, I am extending the challenge. I will then budget that amount for donation each month, and what I do not give on the street, I will give to charity. I challenge you to do the same. It is not a competition. You compete only against yourself and the very inhibitions that prevent you from being more generous.

See Sasha Dichter's TED Talk:
http://www.ted.com/talks/sasha_dichter.html