Word-Of-the-Week #803: Fortunate
December 26, 2019 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #803: Fortunate
Fortunate – having more advantages than other people.
Do you believe you should help others that are less fortunate then you? When was the last time you did that?
This week “Kindergartner pays off lunch money owed by classmates. Five-year-old Katelynn Hardee of Vista held a cocoa and cookies fundraiser,” by Deborah Sullivan Brennan is a great follow up to the last three WOW’s!
“After a Vista kindergartener learned of hardships faced by some of her classmates, she sold hot cocoa and cookies to pay off the lunch money they owed.
Katelynn Hardee, 5, held a hot cocoa stand in front of her home Sunday, aiming to help end hunger with proceeds from the treats.
She wanted to make sure that other students “can have a snack and lunch,” she said. “If they don’t, their tummies grumble.”
Her goodies, along with some handmade artwork, brought in $78, which helped square up lunch accounts for 123 other students with small balances, said Jamie Phillips, director of child nutrition services for Vista Unified School District.
“It’s amazing to see a 5-year-old do a fundraiser,” Phillips said.
Katelynn, a student at Breeze Hill Elementary School, loves art, cooking, and asking questions, her mother Karina Hardee said. So when she heard another mother discuss her difficulty covering the bill for the after-school program, Katelynn asked her mom about it.
“I tried to explain that we need to be kind and give back to others who are not as fortunate,” Karina Hardee said.
Katelynn had done a lemonade stand over the summer, so she decided to sell hot cocoa this time, and donate the money to help kids who couldn’t pay for lunches. She and her mom mixed up chocolate and milk, and baked sugar cookies shaped like snowmen, snowflakes, presents and Christmas trees.
“I decorated them with icing and gumball toppings,” Katelynn said.
Friends, neighbors and passers-by stopped for snacks, and Katelynn made $48. She raised another $30 with artwork she is making for a family friend. Phillips used that donation to clear the balances on 123 lunch accounts.
That act of charity “is not typical of a 5-year-old, but for Katelynn I could see that,” her teacher Rachel Ellis said. “She’s very mature for her age.”
Over 1,000 students in the district have negative balances ranging from less than a dollar to $10 or more, Phillips said. In Vista, nearly 65 percent of students qualify for free and reduced lunches based on their family income. Some other students might be eligible, but did not submit the application in time, he said. In other cases, families have income that is too high to qualify for the meal program, but not quite enough to make ends meet.
“The cost of living here is so much higher” than other communities, he said. “You could not qualify for free and reduced meals, and could still not be at a livable income.”
Schools still provide meals even when students owe money, but the nutrition department sends notices reminding their families to pay. If they don’t pay by the end of the year, he said, the balance doesn’t carry over. Instead, the school district reimburses the nutrition department from the general fund. But that diverts funds from other programs, and the district is currently facing budget deficits.
Phillips said anyone can donate to help pay down the lunch balances and some seniors contribute the money left over in their own lunch accounts when they graduate. Katelynn’s fundraiser has already inspired more giving; another donor just paid to clear all the lunch balances at Major General Raymond Murray High School, Phillips said.
“It’s really inspiring,” Ellis said. “When I told my class, they said, ‘We can do that? I want to do a lemonade stand.’”
Katelynn thinks her donation probably made her classmates happy, and said she wants to do more lemonade and cocoa stands in the future.”
This week’s focus is on being fortunate. Do you appreciate all that you have? Are you more generous during the holiday season? If a 5-year-old can make a difference don’t you think you can do something to help those that are less fortunate than you?
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Word-Of-the-Week #802: Influence
December 19, 2019 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #802: Influence
Influence – having an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something.
When was the last time you influenced someone? Are you generous in giving praise or encouragement instead of criticism? Do you believe that you are capable of making a difference?
This is the 2nd half of “How to Make a Difference to the World” by Mark Foo.
To recap: “Many people believe that they don’t have what it takes to make a difference to the world. They believe only people like Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, and the likes, are capable of making a difference.
The truth is, every one of us is put in this world to contribute and make a difference to the world in our own unique way. It need not be anything out of the world. It just needs to be something you do with the intention of ‘doing good’.
- Empower Other People
“Abilities wither under criticism; they blossom under encouragement.” – Dale Carnegie
You can change the world by helping one person at a time. One of the ways to help someone is to empower the person. But how do you empower a person? Well, one of the ways is to be generous in giving praise and encouragement instead of criticism.
By praising and encouraging the person, you’d have helped him/her to accomplish what he/she is meant to be, and that would lead to more value being added to the world.
- Seek to Make a Long-Lasting Effect
“The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but to reveal to him his own.” – Benjamin Disraeli
This is Mr Disraeli’s version of ‘give a man a fish; you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.’
The good that we seek to do will make more of a difference when there’s a long-lasting effect rather than a temporary effect. For example, if we make contributions to build a school, it will benefit many people for years to come.
And when more people receive education, they will in turn provide more value to the world.
- Stop Whining and Do Something
“If you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo
All the whining and complaining in the world is not going to make a difference to the world. It will only drain you of your precious energy from doing things that do make a difference.
Instead of whining and complaining, seek to use the time more productively by engaging in activities that matter. When it comes to making a difference, nothing matters more than taking actions.
- Lead the Way
“A good example has twice the value of good advice.” – Author Unknown
Other than doing things to make a difference, we should also seek to influence others to start doing things that make a difference. And the best way to convince other people is to lead by example.
Start doing whatever is within your ability today. Start showing more concern and love to the people around you. Start to make monthly donations to your favorite charity. Start putting more effort in your work to increase the value output.
Every effort counts, no matter how small and insignificant it may seem. Just do something, and do something good.
This week’s focus is on influence. Do you lead by setting a good example? Are you engaging in activities with the intention of ‘doing good’? How would it make you feel to contribute to something that had a long-lasting effect?
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Word-Of-the-Week #801: Difference
December 12, 2019 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #801: Difference
Difference – having a positive effect.
Do you believe that one person can make a difference in the world? When was the last time you reached out to help someone in a time of need? Do you know that in order to receive, you must give first?
This week “How to Make a Difference to the World” by Mark Foo seemed like the perfect follow up to last week’s Munificent.
“Many people believe that they don’t have what it takes to make a difference to the world. They believe only people like Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, and the likes, are capable of making a difference.
The truth is, every one of us is put in this world to contribute and make a difference to the world in our own unique way. It need not be anything out of the world. It just needs to be something you do with the intention of ‘doing good’.
The following is a guide as to how small people like us can make a difference to the world.
- It Need Not Be an Enormous Task
“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.” – Mother Teresa
You already have what it takes to make the world a better place. Making a difference to the world may seem like an enormous task, but it is in fact the collective effort of everyone to make small contributions with a lot of heart.
The size of the contribution is not what matters most. The key here is to have the heart to do it.
- Start Now
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” – 
Anne Frank
There is no one best time to start to make a difference to the world. You don’t need to wait till you have the time to share some love; you don’t have to wait till you make more money to share a slice of bread. Little efforts count, and you can start making small contributions today.
- Your Contribution is Never Too Small
“Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something.” – Author Unknown
If you think that everything has been taken care of by somebody and your contribution is not going to make much of a difference, then you’re wrong. Can you imagine if everyone else starts to think the same way?
In fact, it is our responsibility to seek ways to contribute, large and small. You don’t have to be concerned you’re only capable of making small contributions. What counts is the effort.
- The Greatest Gifts of All
“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” – Buddha
Happiness and love are the two greatest gifts you can give to the world. Too often, we’re too indulged in our own gratifications that we forget there are people in this world whom we can make a little happier and feel more loved.
As the saying goes, “To receive, you must first give.” The more you give, the more you’ll receive. Let us remind ourselves that in order to receive more happiness and love, let’s spread more of them first.”
This week’s focus is on making a difference. Are you waiting for the “right time” to make a contribution? Are you concerned that it needs to be bigger or more than you can give today? Who could you make a little happier or feel more loved?
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Word-Of-the-Week #800: Munificent
December 5, 2019 by Susan Clarke · Comments Off on Word-Of-the-Week #800: Munificent
Munificent – characterized by or displaying great generosity.
Do you believe that being generous is about giving material things or money? Do you expect that your generosity should be reciprocated? Would you be more munificent if you knew it would make you happier?
Many of you know that I am on the board of Fostering Opportunities Scholarships and raise money for former foster youth to help them achieve their educational goals. So this is the word that came to me this week and features “Being Generous Really Does Make You Happier“ by Amanda MacMillan.
“It doesn’t take a neuroscientist to know that doing nice things for people feels good. But now, researchers say they’ve discovered that even thinking about doing something generous has real mood-boosting benefits in the brain.
In a new study published in Nature Communications, researchers from the University of Zurich in Switzerland told 50 people they’d be receiving about $100 over a few weeks. Half of the people were asked to commit to spending that money on themselves, and half were asked to spend it on someone they knew.
The researchers wanted to see whether simply pledging to being generous was enough to make people 
happier. So before doling out any money, they brought everyone into the lab and asked them to think about a friend they’d like to give a gift to and how much they would hypothetically spend. They then performed functional MRI scans to measure activity in three regions of the brain associated with social behavior, generosity, happiness and decision-making.
Their choices—and their brain activity—seemed to depend on how they had pledged to spend the money earlier. Those who had agreed to spend money on other people tended to make more generous decisions throughout the experiment, compared to those who had agreed to spend on themselves. They also had more interaction between the parts of the brain associated with altruism and happiness, and they reported higher levels of happiness after the experiment was over.
Another piece of good news was that it didn’t seem to matter how generous people were. Planning to give away just a little bit of money had the same effects on happiness as giving away a lot. “At least in our study, the amount spent did not matter,” said lead author Philippe Tobler, associate professor of neuroeconomics and social neuroscience, in an email. “It is worth keeping in mind that even little things have a beneficial effect—like bringing coffee to one’s office mates in the morning.”
It’s not yet clear how long these warm and fuzzy feelings last after being generous. But other research suggests that making generosity a regular habit may influence long-term wellbeing and happiness, the study authors say.
Next time you think that the best way to make yourself feel better is to buy yourself a treat, consider that the opposite is likely true. “It is worth giving it a shot, even if you think it would not work,” Tobler says. “In order to reap health benefits, repeated practice is probably needed so that giving becomes second nature.”
This week’s focus is on being munificent. Do you make charitable contributions? Do you donate time to a charity or for a cause? How often do you give the gift of your time to friends or family? How does it make you feel when you witness the benefits of your generosity?
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