The Poverty Snowball: What Is Your Life Worth?

You’ll have to forgive me (well, actually, you don’t have to), but I’m going to get a little existential on you.  In the vast global economy, are you a consumer or a producer?  And before you say “both,” I’m not talking about the things you buy, or the things you make (or the money you make).  I’m talking about the take-home pay this planet gets out of your life.  After taxes.

You see, you’re here for a while, and then you’re gone.  Regardless of your belief system, the person you are right at this moment is going to quit breathing eventually, and all we’ll be left with is the memory of who you were and what you’ve done.  And there’s something so incredibly cool about that, because memories are powerful. They change the lives of the people who are still breathing, and the people who have yet to draw their first breath. And when your deeds and your character are remembered, will they add value to the world or  take value away?

(And in case you’re wondering, there is no neutral.  The idea that a single person doesn’t matter diminishes us all.)

Like It Or Not, You Matter.  A Lot.  So What Are You Going To Do With That?

In the movie Gladiator, the character of General Maximus says that “What we do today echoes in eternity.”  No doubt.  Whatever you do, every day, makes a ripple effect in the lives of the people around you.  When you do something nice for someone, chances are it will encourage them to do the same to someone else, and the ripple continues.

Conversely, when you’re an ass to someone, the same ripple effect applies.

And when you do nothing?  You are the example that serves to direct others who are looking to the outside world to drive their actions.  What will the memory of your actions encourage others to do, long after you draw your last breath?

Though the General’s line was scripted by a Hollywood screenwriter, it continues to affect how I view my actions on a day to day basis.  It inspires me to take action to make the world a better place.

You Have Power And Influence And Value, Whether You See It In Yourself Or Not

If you are reading this, chances are you’re better off than at least a billion or so people in this world.  You have electricity.  Water.  The ability to communicate with the people around you.  And that makes you a Titan to those who don’t.  Even if you feel powerless to handle your own life stresses (which quite honestly, are unlikely to be worse than the poorest people on this Earth), you have the power to do something truly, utterly amazing.

You can save lives.  Let me repeat that:  You can save people’s freakin’ lives.

Yes, you. You. Not “those other people.”  I’m talking to you.

You have something that other people don’t.  You have time, even if it doesn’t feel like it (you made the time to read this, didn’t you?).  You have money, because you spend at least some of it on things you don’t need.  You have influence, because you interact with other people online each day.

Power.  Influence.  Value.  Are you using it to enrich your life only, or do you realize exactly how much you can enrich others?  I’m not trying to guilt trip you – but what I am doing is trying to smack you upside the head and realize how you can help change the world – even if you have the most limited of means.

You see, your spare change – or even your modest donations – may not make much difference in your first/second-world nations, but they can literally save lives and change the future of millions over the coming decades in third world countries.   But only if you take command of the massive personal power you have to direct even a fraction of your power, influence and value there.

Introducing The Poverty Snowball

You may have heard of the “debt snowball” – the idea that you pay off your lowest balance credit card first, which gives you a tangible psychological boost based on the fact that you are seeing debt disappear immediately.  This boost reinforces the idea that every dollar matters, and you become more motivated to channel additional money into debt elimination – wiping out debt faster.

We can have a “poverty snowball” as well.  If we contribute to meaningful causes that help elevate conditions for others, we can take people out of the poverty cycle forever. If we use our influence to convince others to do the same, we take even more people out of the cycle.  And as more and more people realize the power they have to actually make a difference – even with small actions – people are taken out of that cycle at a faster and faster rate, creating a long term avalanche of global economic improvement.

Remember that scene in Schindler’s List, where they show the descendants of the thousand or so Jewish people he saved placing stones on Schindler’s grave as they walk past?  He saved roughly 1,200 people, and at the time of the films release around 6,000 descendants were alive because of him.  How many people will that end up being in 100 years?

Now think about it – if you help a few people during your brief stay on the planet, and you influence a few others to do the same, how many people will that affect over the next 100 years?  Now that’s something worthy of remembrance.

Passing On The Poverty Snowball With A Big Ol’ Push

One of the people who has influenced me the most to give has been my amazing wife, Alison. She uses her influence to spread the word about charities and events that can affect the lives of people she’ll never meet, and that’s insanely inspiring.  She’s made a difference through her direct donations but has also influenced others to give, too, which acts as a force multiplier to her gifts.

She’s used the power of her words to open my eyes up to an amazing anti-poverty charity called Heifer International, which helps take people out of the poverty cycle every day.  Now I’d like to give her the opportunity to give the poverty snowball another push by telling you about it in her own words:

Everyone likes refunds.  There’s almost nothing better than buying a gift that you know is going to give something back, right?

Well that’s what Heifer International has been doing for almost 60 years.  No, they don’t refund you part of your hard-earned cash with a smile and a pat on the back; instead, they have a pay-it-forward approach that’s proven to make a difference in the world.

Here’s what happens:  Heifer International takes your monetary donation and uses it to create a ripple effect in the world in the hopes of bringing about an end to poverty and hunger.  A donation to Heifer International purchases a food gift – a flock of geese, hive of bees, a cow, any number of options – to help a poverty-stricken family overcome financial hardship.  A family that would otherwise have no income can profit in many ways from a Heifer gift.

For example, a family that owns goats can have fresh milk every day and sell the extra at the local market, putting food on the table and money in the family’s pocket for other basic necessities.  The waste produced by the goats can be used as fertilizer in their garden, or, again, sold at the local market.  Goats are easy to feed – there’s a reason why every sentence that refers to non-picky eaters begins with “he eats like a” ends with “goat” – and put no burden on a low-income family to support.  Children who would otherwise spend the day picking through trash for scraps or sell-able items are instead able to go to school with full stomachs and the hope for a brighter future.

Heifer International is committed to changing the devastating course of poverty in the world one family at a time.  Before the gifts are even given, Heifer is changing the world through educating the recipients on animal husbandry, well-being, sustainable development of the land, and – most notably – on the importance of passing on what they have learned.  In addition, recipients promise to pass along offspring from their animals to their neighbors, benefiting entire communities one family at a time.

Giving a gift through Heifer International – even one gift, whether that be one chicken or a flock of goats -  makes an exponential difference in the lives of people throughout the world.

How’s that for a refund?

Damn, I love that woman.

Now It’s Your Turn To Give The Poverty Snowball A Push

Now that you know about Heifer International, I encourage you to strongly consider a donation – even if it’s a small one – to get that poverty snowball started.  If you’re feeling hesitant, so be it – consider it from a selfish standpoint.  If you gave just $5 a month to an anti-poverty charity that could change lives – and save them – wouldn’t you feel better about your life and the value of it?  Wouldn’t the sense of contribution create a meaningful impact on your own self-image?

Don’t settle for just being a consumer of the wealth, power and influence you command in your own life.  Leverage it in simple, effective ways that elevate those who have less opportunity than you do and start an upward spiral which, while it might not reach its peak in your lifetime, will still be the better because of what you do.

Use your influence to spread the word.  Use your resources to spread your power.  Speak.  Give.

What you do today echoes in eternity.

That’s it.  I can hear you from here.

P.S. – Please Stumble and Digg this post so the snowball picks up speed faster