BIRD WILLIAMS: You’re listening to Bird Means Business Episode 52. 

Hi there and welcome to the show! I'm so glad that you are taking time out of your busy day, out of your holiday week if you're listening in real time, to tune in to the Bird Means Business podcast. We're gonna talk all about how and why you should make generosity part of your growth strategy. I'm really excited about this episode. You know, I believe that you should always, throughout the year, reflect on what you're grateful for. I shared an episode about my morning routine and talked about how I start with gratitude. It's so important to constantly be thinking about what you're grateful for. This time of the year, I love so much that we get to reflect on the entire year. And, and think about gratitude and give space and time to family as well. It's such a special time. So, I'm excited to talk about that in the episode today. 

Alright, let's jump into the episode, “Make Generosity Part of Your Growth Strategy”. I saw this quote, years ago. And y’all, it really resonated with me. I think you resonated with me for two reasons. The first reason is that this statement is countercultural, it's not what we are used to hearing or thinking, right? A Medical News Today article highlights that generosity is not an intuitive choice. And this is because any selfless act comes at a personal cost. When we do something for someone else, we're typically giving away some of our personal resources, like our time, or our energy, or our money. So y'all when we think of this in the business context, how often are we considering giving when we think about our growth strategies? Is generosity top of mind as we're building our businesses? Is it even a consideration at all? So I think the second reason it resonated with me is that generosity is one of my personal core values. And I believe it is because I saw generosity modeled again and again as I was growing up. Y'all, my parents are some of the most generous people I know. Even when we were struggling financially in our family, it’d be like in one breath my parents would be informing my sister and I that we would not be able to have cable this summer, wouldn't be able to have Nickelodeon. But then in the very next breath, they'd be giving kids in the neighborhood cash for every ‘A’ on their report card like they’d always done.  I remember once happening upon a pile of papers that my dad had been working on and I remember one of the envelopes sticking out to me because it said Special Olympics donation form. I remember just being shocked because I was thinking he's giving to the Special Olympics, which is an organization he never ever talked about or had any connection to that I knew of. And we were in a tough spot financially ourselves. And I can't tell you how many people lived with us during my childhood. Elderly family members, people in the neighborhood. It was a really interesting way to grow up. When I was in high school we took a lady from the neighborhood in. Her name was Elana Jo. And she had many physical deformities because she was actually abandoned in a hotel room immediately after she entered the world. Her mom had given birth to her and just left her there. So when they found Elana Jo, she was curled up into a ball, eating her own poop to survive. It's a really tragic story. She came into our home as an adult, and she lived with us for years until she died. I was in high school, she was in some of my prom photos, you know the photos you take when you're going to prom before you leave the house? Yeah, Elana Joe was in my prom photos and I love it.

But my parents never made a big deal about any of this. They never shared it publicly. When it came to their giving it was something that they just did, you know? They never talked about it. Heck, my sister and I didn't even know half the time all the things that we were giving. There are so many things that I found out as an adult, as I've gotten older. And just knowing this about my parents has made such a huge impression on me. 

It's one thing to be generous in our personal lives. But why should we be generous in our businesses? Three reasons. One, you're building a better brand. You're thinking about your business holistically. You're thinking about what is going to really matter the most to me, at the end of the day? What will bring me that true, deep, lasting joy? Because I can tell you how money and platform and fame or the quote-unquote success will not. You have to think about you to really dig deep into what matters most to you. 

And that leads me to my next point for why we should be generous. Y’all, generosity is linked to happiness. In that same Medical News Today article, the researchers say that they found a connection between happiness, and the performance of selfless acts. So giving to others, they say, activates an area of the brain, linked with contentment and the reward cycle. So you want to be happier? You give. Because y’all when we set out to give something to someone else, we're having to identify someone else's needs. It takes the focus off of our own needs and onto the needs of others. So the more you give the smaller your issues seem, and the more grateful you are. The more you give, the more grateful you are. There's a connection between generosity and gratitude. 

The third reason you should give is because giving is directly correlated with receiving. When you think of your brand, through the lens of service to your clients, finding ways to give them an excellent experience, a quality product or service, they are going to be repeat customers, referring your business to friends and family and whoever was going to listen, right? Because they were served so well. Because you gave them so much. When you're thinking of ways to increase revenue, instead of just thinking about the numbers, start at the core of your product or service and analyze how well are you serving your clients? How well are you solving their problem related to what you offer? Now, in case it isn't clear, being generous in your business does not mean you give everything away for free. Because hear me when I say, you will not have a business, if you do that. You need to charge and you need to charge well, and you need to charge your worth. But remember generosity isn't always about money. Generosity isn't charity. Living generously means having a heart of gratitude and leading from that place. 

All right, let's talk about three ways that you can make generosity part of your growth strategy. First, make it authentic. I want y’all to be sincere when you're giving. Don't just give because you were told to or just because you want to check the box. “Okay, I gave, great.” No, think about where you can give back or make an impact. Even better, think about what it felt like when you were losing, and someone stepped in and helped you win. How can you do the same thing and step into a moment like that for someone else? Here's again where we see the connection of gratitude and generosity. 

So we make it authentic. And then, where you can, make it anonymous. When it becomes about you getting the credit for your giving, you're gonna really need to check your motives. Y’all, anonymous giving is one of my favorite things ever because it really is so much more magical when the giving is just between you and God. I had a friend once who was really struggling financially, and I had gotten this surprise bonus of money that I wasn't expecting. I secretly found out where he banked. And I went to the bank to put cash in his account and I was doing it this way because I didn't want him to see my name on the check. You know how you can see the check whenever you go check out. I didn't want him to see this. I'm gonna put cash in his account. But y’all. The bank gave me the full run around. Apparently, you can't just deposit cash into someone's account anymore? I don't know. They made me get a money order and all this stuff but I made it happen. And the thought of him checking his account and just seeing extra random cash from nowhere gave me all the feels. Y’all I had a huge smile plastered on my face permanently for the rest of the day. Because it wasn't going to be about me and what I did. I just wanted to bless him. So, you're going to make your generosity, authentic and you're going to make it anonymous, where you can. 

And then finally, make it automatic. If you've been listening to the podcast for a while, you know, I make a system out of everything. Because look, you can have the best of intentions, but you're not actually making an impact until you do the thing. And some of us need a reminder or two. So, you make generosity automatic by making it a habit. And we oftentimes need help making new habits, so consider setting a weekly reminder, something simple on your calendar that says generosity day. And this can serve as your reminder to compliment a stranger, or encourage a friend, or hand write a letter to an elderly family member or pay for the coffee for the car behind you in the Starbucks line. I can just go on and on. It gets fun. And when you do this enough times, when it becomes a habit, you're going to begin to really live a life of generosity and you eventually won't even need those calendar reminders. Generosity is going to just ooze out of you. 

All right, one last thing I want to say on the encouragement piece. Again, generosity isn't just about giving money away. You can give some kind words too. Saying something kind is free. And y’all encouragement goes a long way. A simple “I see how hard you're working and I'm so proud of you and all the hard work you're putting in is going to be worth it.” Woo, hearing something like that in a really hard moment where you feel low or you're wondering if all the effort that you're putting into something is working or matters. That can be a game-changer, right? It can make all the difference. Last week during one of my Prove It Plan sessions, Prove It Plan is my signature framework on developing a solid business plan. I was in a session with an executive group of a new brand that I'm super excited to be involved with and helping them build their business plan. I mean, so pumped, so honored. Anyway, in this session a very senior person that I really respect gave me such a sincere compliment on my Prove It Plan framework and how impressed she was by it. And y'all, I mean, this was a moment where I already felt so vulnerable. I was super nervous about the meeting because it was the first time that I was going through my framework with a team, as opposed to just one on one. This was a team. I believe there were four or five people on the call. So, I was already really nervous. And at the end of the call, she's just raving about how impressed she was, and it meant the world to me hearing that in that moment. I was on cloud nine for days. And it only took six seconds of her time. So just pause and take a moment to think about how you can encourage someone today. It might be simple. It doesn't have to be a whole drawn out thing. But it can mean so much to someone else. 

Now I have a challenge for you. Since generosity is linked to gratitude, this is what I want you to do. Write down three, believe me, I understand. I'm with you there, it's been really real. I still want you to find three things that you're just so grateful for. And then I want you to write down three corresponding acts of generosity you're going to take based off of those things that you're grateful for.

Okay? So let me give you a few examples. Maybe it's a person in your life. You could write them a letter or send them a small gift. Maybe it's a program that you invested in for yourself or for your business. What if you sowed that same program into someone else's life? Or what if you wrote a strong testimonial and emailed it to the team, the program, the company that put it on? Let's say it's a client that you identify. You could send them an email saying how grateful you are to be working with them and how you love to be there along their journey. Maybe it's a team member. You could find out their favorite store and send them a gift card with a note of how much they bless your life and how much it means to you that they're helping you reach your dreams. See these don’t have to be huge crazy things. Just small acts of gratitude can go a long way. 

I want you to complete this gratitude challenge before the end of the week. And I promise you will be so glad you did. Remember, making generosity part of your growth strategy. It makes you a happier person able to build a better, more intentional and holistic brand. It'll make all the hard work that you're pouring into your brand that much more worth it. 

Now before I sign off, I want to say thank you for being here. When I say that, and I've said it a million times on the show. Thank you so much for tuning in, for listening. It means a lot to me from the bottom of my heart. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for tuning in. Because to be just completely honest, producing this podcast every week is hard work. But it's a labor of love. And when I see how much of an impact it's made in your businesses, it is so so worth it. So thank you for being on this journey with me, for tuning in each week, for sending me DM’s about your favorite episodes and how much the show has helped you build your business. All of it means so much. Thank you for those of you who've subscribed on Apple Podcasts or left a review. Means a ton. And thank you for all of you who've shared Bird Means Business with other entrepreneurs. Like I said, it means so much to me. And as far as my act of generosity in return, stay tuned. In a few weeks, I'll be offering a very special discount on something I think you'll really really love. Like I said, stay tuned because it's gonna be good. 

All right. Enjoy this precious time of rest, with your loved ones, and I'll talk to you next week.