An older lady with a shopping trolley approached and asked, “Will this money make it there?”
“Ma’am, we are already at work in the area. This will help us greatly.”
I have spent a small amount of my not-for-profit life working in shopping centres, collecting money. Not haranguing people as they walk past (I have ethical issues with that), but quietly being present. This is not a great method to engage people but it sits well with my conscience. Those who were interested connected with me. This was often very evident when the organisation I was working for was responding to an emergency situation, assisting people living in poverty as they sought to overcome this fresh challenge, be that an earthquake, a flood or a global pandemic. Those who were walking by me, as they shopped, noticed and came over to give money. They had obviously already been thinking about it, and just needed an opportunity to give.
A 2026 report from the Minderoo Foundation estimated that about 60–90% of individual donations to charities happen simply because someone was asked to give.
It wasn’t because people suddenly felt moved, or they had planned to give to a charity anyway, but because a person was bold enough to make the ask.
Whilst part of being a generous person comes from within ourselves, the data shows that another part is just being asked to act in a generous manner.
If you are thinking that you have not been as generous as you would have liked to have been in the past, perhaps that’s not all on you. Maybe no one asked you to give.
So, with that being said, would you like to make a donation to help end poverty?
The Generosity Guy 