Author: publisher

At the end of a harsh work week, most people like to unwind capriciously, only to find that their stress levels haven’t gone down. After all, people begin to look for better things once they have already experienced what’s good. Unfortunately, this tendency only leads to greater dissatisfaction in life. The best way to really relieve your self from stress is to give to others. Charitable acts are directed towards making people’s lives better.

Instead of looking into yourself, you look at others and how you are able to contribute to their well-being. At the end of the day, you find an inner peace that no amount of luxurious goods can replace. Below are some ideas to help you bust stress while giving to others. Join a youth support group. Communication is a vital tool to reaching out to teenagers who lose their way. Participating in molding future leaders of the community is a great way to channel your parenting instincts productively. Why it’s a good stress reliever? You can go back to days when you were younger and relive your youth, and ultimately understand what these troubled boys and girls are going through. Participate in walkathons or charity walks. Instead of paying a lot of money for gym membership or a personal fitness instructor, join charity walks or runs. All you need is a good pair of walking shoes, a good heart. Walkathons work like this: for every person who signs up, a sponsor gets to donate money on behalf of the walker. So you get to sweat out all your negative energies and help with donations. Help out at a local nursing home.

Many residents are often neglected by their families and often yearn for someone to talk to. You can be this person that residents look forward to seeing on a regular basis, just for a friendly chit-chat or brunch. The idea of someone expecting you and wanting to hear from you is enough to warm your heart and make you feel good about yourself.

Truth be told, not all business owners look at money as their ultimate goal. Many have the honest intention of giving mankind a chance to live better. So how exactly do marketing goals and charitable desires go together? Enter a term called strategic philanthropy, which basically suggests combining community enhancement and involvement with business and marketing plans. Simply put, it is involving one’s business in a charitable cause. This is to say that as you give charities and build community welfare, you are also allowing your business to gain recognition and exposure as well as become more productive, profitable and competitive in the market, thereby increasing revenues in no time.

A great way to get started on strategic philanthropy is to devise a system wherein a non-profit community welfare group such as a church, school or any organization will give out your coupons whenever people purchase your product. The group is given a percentage of the sales for their cause. What’s in it for you? You get instant marketing with no work at all from your end. You can also put up a fundraiser in your business location for a group or a charity you would like to support. People will be compelled to buy your products when they are in your store, and you will be recognized for your humane efforts. If you have a large facility or store, you can offer to have reception for groups who are putting together major events.

You are automatically contributing to their cause (which of course, must be something you also support), and in turn, the charitable group gets a percentage of sales, gift certificates, or discounts on their purchases.

A charity can be a lifesaver, but it all depends on the kindness of others. Currently, charities across America are facing the same problem – Funding. The recession has hit hard in a lot of industries, but people do not realize that charities are one of the hardest hit of all. Without the help of charities many people who cannot afford medical care and other services have been left in the lurch.

Part of the problem is the growing number of charities. Every year, an estimated one million non-profit organizations apply for 501©3 status. While all of them may have good intentions in mind, it does divide the metaphorical pie into ever so small pieces. When you consider that these days the pie isn’t really very big to start off with, you can begin to see the problem.

The other part of the problem is that people simply do not have money that they can give away. Although big donors like Warren Buffet, Bill Gates etc., do giveaway a lot of money to charity, it is simply not enough to cover all worthy causes. If each person in the United States could give $5 a month it would solve a lot of problems.

This is why you should get out and start campaigning for your favorite charity. Getting a few dollars out of your neighbors is not a big deal. Even in times of hardship people somehow find a way to give. So get out there and do your best, because you may be saving somebody’s life!

Golf is a very popular game and holding a golf tournament to raise money for a charity is a smart thing to do. However, planning is everything and it could mean the difference of raising a few thousand dollars to a few hundred.

1. Location – You need to scout around for a golf course that is conducive for a fundraiser tournament. Not all courses will accede to your request. Once you find a good location, book a date. But one thing you should do is ensure that no big events or holidays will impede the tournament.

2. Food – The tournament will take all day and you must provide the competitors with food. Lunch is a must and you should also give them something at the end of the tournament. Usually the golf courses will have their preferred contacts, if not you can always opt for lunch boxes.

3. Fee – This has to be carefully calculated. Depending on the target market, you can charge anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Whatever the fee, keep in mind that it has to cover the cost of both meals and any promotional material you give away (caps, t-shirts, etc).

4. Sponsors – This should not be too much of a problem. Give away each hole to a sponsor and tell them they can do as much branding as they want in that area (within the golf course’s regulations). On that basis you will have sponsors jumping to get in.

5. Promote – Talk to the local media and get a few newspaper articles, radio spots and TV spots organized. Although you won’t get prime spaces, you will get something and that something will be free.