Do you have a passion that includes a favorite charity? I know I talk so much about business, so much about getting life right. I know I push people so many times, telling them to make investments in their lives and not ask for handouts. I definitely tell people not to give handouts but “hand ups.”
So I wanted to cover how so many people I know in the Dallas area and around the country use their entrepreneur skills to help raise thousands and, yes, even millions of dollars every year for causes they believe in.
I met a man who owned a large security company in the 1990s. He had such a large heart for those who were living in tough times. It was not because he wanted to give them a handout; he wanted to serve them in a way that gave them a hand up to a better life. He taught classes to help them get ready to pass the GED exam. He wanted to get a location where their kids could come by and play basketball and at the same time could get learning that their parents just weren’t able to offer.
Mike had a heart to do these things so he started a ministry. He sold his company and donated all the money to that ministry. He was offered a job as a pastor of a local church. Mike had one great talent: to get people to focus on and get their heart behind raising the funds needed for a project.
One of the first times I was at that church, I met Mike. It was an evening gathering for those new to the church to see what it was about. Mike had such a heart that he helped that church raise money to build the new addition and build it almost entirely without borrowing money. He was an entrepreneur by trade and his heart helped him use that skill to help his church raise the money to have more space to serve those in need without going into debt to do it.
He always seemed to find ways to support his ministry of reaching out to those who lived in the projects. He was able to get a building donated from the city to be used to carry on this work of helping people there. He found a dentist to help those who needed dental work, he started a program to help those who could not afford eyeglasses to get check-ups and find glasses they needed.
Over the years I have worked with many people like Mike — from the people I know in the Christian Motorcyclist Association to those in other similar organizations. I met a man who raised money each year by washing bikes at every bike rally he went to. He became the top fund raiser for the worldwide ministry by washing bikes and donating the money.
I have found people who know what major corporations give for donations each year. They know what time of year to ask companies like WalMart for the donations needed. The problem is most people are afraid to ask for donations to any cause. They say “I believe in this organization,” but are afraid to ask their closest friends for $5.
If you want to see things get done, from starting a business to starting a charity, you must be willing to get out and get dirty to find the funds needed. Think outside the box and see where here is money out there to help. It’s time to give those who need it that hand up.
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time to live your dream, to love what you do, and those you share live with. Learn to reach out and ask to help those in need, then you will become the RockStar in your world.
