Author: Kieran Johnson - The Generosity Guy

Hi there! My names is Kieran and I am your Generosity Guy-de, to assist you to find your purpose. In a charity saturated world, I am the one that will walk beside you to help you navigate through the overwhelming noise and create the kind of change that you want to see. I started out my working life in banking. I found myself in Melbourne selling financial products to financial planners. After countless meetings in which I was told how many millions of dollars they each had in funds under management, I realised I didn’t care about that. Creating more wealth for the wealthy did not motivate me. So, I decided to find what did. Through a journey of community radio and some time with World Vision promoting 40 Hour Famine and partnering with philanthropists whilst working with Opportunity International Australia, I realised that what motivates me is to inspire individuals and businesses in Australia to discover their purpose in generosity. And that through their generosity they can ending poverty, one family and one community at a time, through the power of a small loan. Providing small loans and other financial services allows families in India and Indonesia to build their own small businesses and earn reliable incomes, giving them the tools they need to break free from the poverty cycle. I am married to Ash and father to Molly, Jethro, Harvey & Willow. Life is good.

Quiet Farty

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It still makes me laugh now when I think about it. My youngest must have been about 3 years old when the discussion about farting became very funny for her. We didn’t want to avoid the awkward subject, and sometimes things got out of hand when one of the kids was described as ‘Farty McFart-Face’ (maybe by me). There was one instance as were sitting around after bath time when the kids were getting ready for bed and I thought I could smell something. My 3 year old looked at me with a cheeky smile and said, “Quiet farty”.

I couldn’t stop laughing. It was, and I think still is, the funniest thing I have ever heard. Sure, it probably helps if you have the maturity of a 3-year-old too.

Those sorts of moments don’t happen unless you give space, unless you dwell in the quiet of the moment. But they are the moments you will remember. That’s the good stuff.

It might feel like there are so many bad things happening. The stuff that we hear about day to day, the loudest things, are unpleasant, tragic, devastating, sad and overwhelming. What is happening in our world? Where are the good things? Where are the good people?

James Clear says that “good things are always happening quietly”. That’s how it has always been. The good things and the good people aren’t as in your face, but they are there and they are stronger than any of the bad things that happen in our world. But they do require that you give yourself space to notice them, that you dwell in the quiet. Take a step back from the noise and the loudness of the bad to see the good happening all around you.

2025 Theme – Choose

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One thing that I have found very easy to do is to feel sorry for myself. It’s almost a natural reflex. When something happens, (and it could be anything), I can find a way for it to seem like a rough experience for me.

Working for an organisation that empowers people to work their way out of poverty, I have firsthand experience in seeing just how challenging life can be for those living in developing countries. This gives me a unique perspective on how good my life is, how easy, how untroubled, how safe. So, how can I possibly feel sorry for myself?

Well, I can still find a way to do just that. The weather is too hot, or too cold. My air-conditioned office is too hot, or too cold. My coffee is too hot, or too cold. I’m so tired today. My kids are too loud. The tv is too loud, or too soft. There is too much to do. There is not enough to do. I’m bored. I’m over stimulated. There’s nothing to watch on my numerous streaming services. I don’t have enough time in the day.

I find myself living in a cognitive dissonance, of knowing that I have a great deal, more than most, to be grateful for, but sulking about how life is hard.

James Clear is one of my favourite authors and this quote is helping me to adjust my thinking for this coming year:

“Different meanings can be assigned to the same events. Look for evidence of how the world is encouraging you, and you will find it. Look for evidence of how the world is burdening you, and you will find it. Choose an explanation that empowers you.”

You find what you look for in life. You get to choose what you look for, and therefore you get to choose what you find.

For me, in 2025 I will choose to look for the encouraging things, for the good things, for the generosity. I will let you know if I find it.

Top 5 Books of 2024

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Whilst not an overly voluminous year of reading, I read some amazing books. Some old, some newer, some disappointing, but most of them were worth it.

How to be Perfect – Michael Schur

From the guy that brought you The Good Place, this is an outstanding read if the show got your interest piqued in ethics at all. It is gives an overview of where different philosophical thought has come from, with some background on the show and Michael’s career. I found in very interesting, and only a tiny bit preachy. (If you have seen the show then you may know the topics that he likes to get preachy about).

Whilst I am not able to fully articulate the names and birthplaces of the three main ethical arguments he covers, I have a fair idea and that works well enough for me. (That says more about me memory for the finer details than it does about the quality of the book).

Michael is an excellent and humorous writer.

Tuesday’s with Morrie: An old man, a young man and life’s greatest lesson – Mitch Albom

The best book I have read this year. I have a habit of coming late the party on many great books, but better late than never. Originally published in 1997, the book outlines the last few interactions that Mitch had with Morrie Schwartz who was dying. It is a real look at death, the injustice and undignified nature of it, and how we can find hope in its tragedy.

Definitely one I will read again.

The Bomber Mafia – Malcom Gladwell

In true Gladwell style, this is an excellent story about World War 2, the changing nature of warfare, ego, and the impossible question of how to end a war well – quickly and brutally to save lives or humanely? I should also add the nature of unintended consequences.

I admit that I am kind of getting saturated with content on historical wars, but this is definitely worth your time, as all good historical commentaries should be.

Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World – Michael Lewis

Building on the Big Short (which I haven’t read), this book revisits the impact that the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-08 had on other financial crisis experienced by banks/countries outside of America. From the Greek government debt crisis to the Icelandic financial crisis, Lewis educated me on some of the financial challenges the world faced when I was looking elsewhere.

A fascinating look into our recent financial history narrated in a way that only Michael Lewis can do. 2025 will require more Michael Lewis reading methinks.

In Too Deep – Lee Child and Andrew Child

Probably my quickest read this year as well. I found this book at the Varanasi airport on my first leg of my journey back home, and by the first night in my own bed I had finished it.

The newest in the Jack Reacher series, and whilst not the best one, a pretty darn good read.

Scary book of the year:

Commander and Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump – Rick Reilly

It would be a really amusing read if not for how the US election went last November. Rick is a sportswriter who has garnered a number of stories of those that have played golf with Donald Trump over many decades, and the stories are all the same.

If you believe that how you do anything is how you do everything, it’s quite scary for what the future may hold.

What Drives Healthy Generosity

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Generosity comes into existence through action. People give because they are responding to a situation that they cannot stand anymore. They simply must do something to right a particular wrong, or to create a better version of the current reality.

This imperative comes from a place deep within, and many people who give are not able to articulate exactly why they do. They just feel compelled to do so.

But it comes from values.

Someone places value on human life, and when they see something happening in the world, be it poverty, war, famine or other injustices, that rubs up against their value. Usually they see something that reflects an image of themself. It might be children, or women, or parents.

They then give as a response to their values being challenged.

This is an extremely healthy way to give. It comes from a place of purity. And it is usually the starting point of a giving journey, which begins with that almost visceral response and then eventually leads to a place where an individual has a well thought out philosophy of philanthropy with a portfolio of organisations they support for a number of reasons. But at the heart is the imperative that first prompted their generosity. That never leaves.

Talking vs. Doing

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I was never a strong trash talker. When playing any sort of sport, I was not able to get in to the head of my opponent by using words. Not if I wanted to play well anyway. I discovered early on that I could either play the game well, or try to put the opposition off, but not both.

I realised that I enjoyed playing the game to best of my ability, so that meant I was pretty quiet on the court/field.

There were a few people who seemed to be able to do it, to play well and get into the head of the other team, but they were the minority.

Then I came across this quote from Ryan Holiday:

“Talking and doing fight for the same resources”

And it made me feel better, although it’s probably not about sport but more important parts of life.

Anyone can talk about a thing. It takes some skill to notice a problem or issue and bring it up, but that isn’t solving anything if that’s where it stops.

It is easy to talk and tough to do.

So that leaves me with the question, am I mostly talking or am I doing? Am I talking a generous game or am I living the generous life?

What can you do?

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So many things are outside of our control. The world is a big place and things happen quickly. What can one person do to stem the tide of poverty, or racism, or sexism, or any other -ism you can think of?

Why bother, right?

If Frozen 2 has taught us anything, (aside from the fact that sequels can be better than the original and water has memory) it’s that sometimes all we can do is ‘the next right thing’. Sure, it’s an animated kids movie, but this is a healthy philosophy that I would love my kids to encapsulate as they grow up in this world. Heck, I would be proud to be able to say that this is how I live my life.

When faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges and overwhelming odds, (be they wind, fire, water or earth spirits…look, just watch the movie), you can still do something. The next thing. The next right thing. Over time, the amount of ‘right things’ you do adds up and begins to make a huge difference.

The challenge in these moments is to figure out what the next right thing is. Let me help you with this – I can guarantee that it has something to do with generosity.

Nobody has any idea…

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If event A happens right before event B, does that mean that A caused B? It’s hard to say that it doesn’t.

That’s why so many professional athletes have ‘lucky’ items of clothing that they wear – they played a great game once and decided that it was partly because they were wearing a specific pair of underwear. Now it makes up part of their pre-game ritual, even though it stinks and has holes in it.

This philosophy has birthed thousands of ‘experts’ who can share the ‘secrets of their success’, and if it has worked for them, you can do it too and it will work for you, guaranteed*. But somehow their secrets seem to fall short for most people.

At best, the greatest advice anyone can give you is, “Here’s what I have done that has worked for me…so far.”

But luck, timing, and other things outside of our control make up about 90% of all success.

Where you were born, your access to education, meeting the right person at the right time, being the in the right place and the right time, none of these things have anything to do with your ability.

Sometimes success comes in spite of what we did and who we are, and looking back we are not sure how it happened because we did everything ‘wrong’.

I’ve often heard it said, ‘no one has any idea what they are doing, they are just making it up as the go along.’

If that is true, it’s an uncomfortable reality because surely someone knows what is going on and how to do this life thing, someone must be in charge of it all? Maybe not.

Does this mean there is nothing we can learn outside of our own experience? Of course not, but it is important to have the perspective that nothing is guaranteed, and what we think is the ‘silver bullet’ may not be.

It is possible that right now, the thing that you are most sure about in life is based on an incorrect assumption. Whilst that seems unlikely, what is more likely is that the thing you are most sure about in life is based on a partial truth.

So, what do we do with this, seemingly, pessimistic perspective?

I always bring it back to the knowledge that some things are always good for us. Sleep. Eating well. Family/relationships. Generosity. Spiritual endeavours. If we do those things we know that if everything else if life falls over because of something outside of your control, you will still have everything you need.

*not a guarantee

Golf is Dumb

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I know that millions of men and many women will be very upset with me right now, but I don’t see the drawcard.

It is elitist. You need a whole set of things just to get started. You need many hours to play one full round. To become good at it requires many rounds of many hours.

It’s a first world game. You need a huge area of land, with superhuman upkeep to ensure the surface you are playing on is green and tidy.

It is selfish. At best, you can share it with 3 other people.  No one can sit and watch you.

No one is that good at it. It’s like gambling. The house always wins. The course always wins. Sure, you might have a good day and come out on top, but the more you play the more you lose.

The problem I have is there are people that I really like who play golf and seem to enjoy it. How do I tell them that what they are doing is dumb?

Is it possible that the thing I think is dumb is just not for me? Perhaps other people could actually enjoy it. Perhaps it could bring some benefit to them even though I can’t see how.

Generosity would suggest that it is not only possible but highly likely.

My ego would disagree.

Not Afraid

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When we are laughing we are not afraid – Stephen Colbert

I fear a lot of things. Family members getting sick, failure, rejection, bad coffee.

We know that fear can cripple us, and keep us from moving forward. The fight, flight, freeze response comes to mind.

Mark Twain said, “I’ve had a lot of troubles in my life, most of which never happened”.

Stoic Philosopher, Seneca said, “Perhaps the worst will happen, perhaps not, until then, look forward to better things“.

What are we afraid of?

What comes to mind, the worst thing that could happen, is death. One day I will die, and so will you. It is unavoidable, yet, I know I do all that I can to avoid it. Keep healthy, eat well, see the doctor, find ways to relax. But even after all that it is not going to work.

What I fear will come to pass. It will happen someday. Hopefully not someday soon, but it comes for us all.

My grandmother used to tell me, “Kieran, whatever you do, don’t get old” to which I would respond, “Okay grandma, I’ll give it a try but I’m not sure how successful I will be”. Then she would chuckle.

That’s what I remember about her, her sense of humour. And I think it made those times, as she was getting older, easier to handle. Because as you laugh at things, it takes the heaviness and perceived seriousness out of life.

It can be easy to create a serious persona, and get caught up thinking that everything in our life is so important, and so many decisions are life or death. But, if we allow laughter in, even decisions that are legitimately life or death, don’t feel as if they are life or death, more like life and death.

How do I know if it’s generosity? (Or manipulation…)

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Sometimes what may look great on the surface, or upon initial consideration, turns out to be a little less than we expected. I have met people who appear to be amazing, accomplished, friendly and incredibly successful at first glance, but as I spent time with them, I began to realise that they were not quite what they promoted. In fact, they have played fast and easy with the truth.

Generosity can be just like that. Someone may give you attention, gifts and surprises which are delightful. Over time though, something doesn’t appear right, and you may feel pressured into thinking, or acting or responding in a certain way because “you owe them”.

So, how do you know when someone is genuinely being generous?

In other words, how do I know if someone cares about me or just cares about themselves?

Here a few things to look out for:

If it comes with strings

If you are given a gift of any sort, but it requires something of you in return, that is not generosity. It is a transaction. Which might be okay if everyone in the transaction is fine with it, but don’t confuse it with someone be generous to you. If you are unsure, try saying no to the request that is made (either a verbal request or an unsaid expectation) and see what the response is. If they get upset because you are not giving them what they are owed, then that’s your answer.

If it keeps you in a place of vulnerability

Some gifts seem very generous, and may even be given in good faith, but the consequences of the gift keep the receiver in a place of vulnerability. The Nestle scandal in the 1970’s comes to mind – there was outrage when it came to light that they had provided free formula to new mother’s in hospital in developing countries, which seems incredibly generous. But after the mother’s left hospital they needed to purchase it. Of course, by this time the mother’s breast milk production had been interrupted due to the formula use and they had no other option but to find the money to pay for the formula. A ‘gift’ that seems generous but kept people in a place of vulnerability instead of empowering them.

If it hurts you

Sometimes receiving a gift can cause you damage. For example, if someone gave you one billion dollars.

“How could that hurt me?” you ask.

Large amounts of money can create a huge burden, damaging relationships and families, and build significant costs and taxes to manage.

“I’ll take my chances” you say, well it didn’t work out so well for these guys. A gift for someone who is not ready for it can create huge problems.

Most of the time when you receive a gift, it is lovely but there are times when it turns out not to be generosity at all. Generally, anytime a gift is given that creates a power imbalance, it’s most likely not a generous act.