I totally understand the need to manage a business carefully and to know what your financial status is at all times.

But building a generous business is investing for your future. The nice thing is that you can totally decide how you want to exercise this. For example:

  • Giving your employees the opportunity to contribute time/money/products to causes they’re passionate about
  • Letting your customers have more leeway than is normal in your industry
  • Doing high-visibility sponsorships to expand your brand image
  • Working with key partners in win-win scenarios to benefit your community

But what does it mean to approach things with a spirit of generosity?

First, you put some value to how things benefit people: your community, your employees, even the larger world.

Second, you value how people become inspired. To give of themselves, to enlist others in a larger cause.

And third, you relax the need to justify everything with an immediate ROI. Because these things are harder to measure and return a benefit to you.

But they do return benefits to your business. Employees, customers and partners become more loyal. These efforts can provide a surprising amount of differentiation in a competitive market.

But mostly because people like a company which has a heart.