I was a bit blown away by an online seminar I participated in last week. The theme was giving BIG. As in, giving away to charity as much as or more than you keep for yourself to live on. The concept intrigued me, and I thought… err… there is no way that masses of people would do this! A few altruistic angels, but… I just couldn’t get my head around it.

Take, for example, one of the seminar participants, Tom Hsieh. He and his wife have a one-year-old and live in L.A. with an average yearly income of $200,000. Now the kicker– the Hsieh family only lives on the median household income for America ($46,000), and gives the rest away to charity every year. That’s three quarters of the family income earmarked for charity and a commitment to philanthropy as a way of life.

After listening to Tom speak about how he arrived at his personal decision to live within modest means and make a huge impact on the world around him, I started to think it was possible. Possible that as a development professional, you could think of this as a fundraising tool by appealing to a donor’s desire for charity as a way of life– not just for planned giving with future assets, but for giving NOW.

There was another philanthropist in the discussion, Anne Ellinger. She is not only a big giver herself, she is an expert in the art of big giving. Ms. Ellinger and her husband founded a nonprofit called Bolder Giving and she actively encourages donors to examine how much they can give, and how big giving can play a role in their lives. According to Ms. Ellinger, the process starts with some self-examination. It takes courage to strike out on a path off the norm, to commit to giving so much when you don’t see yourself as a Rockefeller. The first step for giving big is to decide what your goals are for your giving, and examine what you value and what you can commit to in order to accomplish these philanthropic goals.

So, in the end, it sounded familiar– speaking with donors about what they want to accomplish as philanthropists rather than attacking them with a sales pitch about your nonprofit. This is a standard and successful approach for donor development, to be sure. What is new and fresh, however, is the perception that anyone can be a philanthropist. Whether someone makes $50,000 a year or millions, that is inconsequential in a way. The important thing is helping them find a personal strategy for giving at whatever bold level suits them and their goals.

I know that this discussion certainly opened my mind to how non-trust-funded folks could be encouraged to examine their own role as philanthropists, not just donors. If you are interested in learning more, take a look at the discussion thread here, and check out Bolder Giving for its great resources page. And as you approach the donors in your own files in the upcoming year, be BOLD! It may just open up a whole new world of support for your organization.