The Art of Happiness - Creative Altruism
It is important that we see the impact of our generosity and benevolence. We need to include ourselves in the act of generosity as well. It is vital to have fun while doing the acts of benevolence. We need to have creative altruism in our lives — the need to be creative while doing an act of generosity. However, the recipient of our acts must also enjoy it.
In case the recipient appreciates your efforts of generosity, it would imply that both you and the recipient are fond of kindness. The creative act of altruism can be of various types. The following can be a few ideas for creative generosity
Leaving a box of gifts at the reception of an old-age home or an orphanage, without telling your identity. This will take the kids by a surprise but will also be an act of kindness towards them.
Gifting something valuable to one’s employee. An employee can be asked to check the working of a brand new car by test driving it. Once the work is done, say “The one, who drives the car, owns it”. This will be a kind of a prank but will also be an act of generosity. However, there are certain guidelines to be followed for executing this strategy.
One must be cautious of what all resources one is spending. One must not burn his or her pockets for the acts of generosity.
The act of kindness must be enjoyable for the doer as well as the recipient of the act. Either of the sides must not feel perturbed by the efforts being put in.
Make a record of what impact the act created on the recipient. If we don’t monitor what our efforts of kindness are leading to, it can then become a problem, as it will be difficult for us to register the impact. One must be physically present to witness the impact. For instance, if you are gifting a car to your employee, then see yourself how happy the employee is with your gift.
Last but not the least; make a note of how the act of generosity impacted you. If it turns out that the act did not make you happy, then it is imperative to change the acts. The acts of kindness must make both the parties, viz. you and the recipient, happy.
One must, however, not suffer burnout while being generous. You must include yourself in the acts of generosity and must enjoy the experience yourself too.
