I once gave away all my savings so a friend could move into a new home. It just covered the letting fee, bond and first week's rent and all I asked of her is to pay me back whenever she could, and to pay it forward.
The Pay it Forward principle is something I've always liked. I remember seeing the movie with Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt, and that cute little boy. It must have been at least 10 years ago but it sure made an impression.
To best explain how it works, paying it forward is a third-party beneficiary concept that involves doing something good for someone in response to a good deed done on your behalf, or a gift you have received.
When you pay it forward however, instead of repaying the person who did something nice for you, you do something nice for another person.
The official Pay it Forward Movement and Foundation was founded in the United States and its aim is to help start a ripple effect of kindly acts around the world. The concept itself though is ancient.
On Monday, I saw the following post on my friend's Facebook page and it didn't take me long to reply that I'm in. This is what it said: "To start this year off in a loving way I'm participating in this Pay-it-Forward initiative: the first 5 people who comment on this status with 'I'm in' will receive a surprise from me at some point in this calendar year - anything from a book, a ticket, something home-grown or made, a postcard, absolutely any surprise!
"There will be no warning and it will happen when the mood comes over me and I find something that I believe would suit you and make you happy. These 5 people must make the same offer in their Facebook status. Copy this text on your profile so we can form a web of connection and kindness."
Let's do more nice and loving things for each other in 2014, without any reason other than to make each other smile and to show that we think of each other. Here's to a more enjoyable, friendlier and love-filled year.
If you want a place to start, there is a Pay it Forward Facebook page for Tauranga, Mount Maunganui and Papamoa. The group has more than 800 members, and I'm sure they would appreciate a few more.
For me, it has come to the point that I'm seriously considering changing my business model to make room for the gift-economy principle.
The idea came to me after reading a blog post on socialmediatoday.com about a website developer who decided to stop charging an hourly rate or a set fee, and asked his clients to pay him what they thought it was worth. He says it works for him, he hasn't lost out financially, and he believes it has taken a lot of the stress of running a business away.
An Auckland cafe is doing it, too. The Espresso Coffee School on Swanson St is letting customers pay whatever they like for their choice of drink. A blackboard hanging over what would have been the cash register gives customers the Wikipedia explanation for the concept.
"We are changing to gift economy model ... (it's) where valuables are not sold, but given without explicit agreement for immediate or future rewards."
I've been looking into the ideas of Charles Eisenstein lately. He is a self-described "degrowth activist", who has published a range of books and articles on the principle of giving. I'm yet to get a copy of his publication Sacred Economics. In this book, Eisenstein traces the history of money from ancient gift economies to modern capitalism, revealing how the money system has contributed to alienation, competition, and scarcity, destroyed community, and necessitated endless growth.
I'm sure it will be an interesting read that might help me make the right decision. If anyone has a copy of the book, I wouldn't mind borrowing it for awhile.
Selling by giving sounds a little scary, as we all need an income to survive, but many professional people worldwide are doing it and successfully so. The idea may sound revolutionary, or at least risky, but according to many people who have made the change, it works. Call it the "pay-what-you-can model" or "the strategy of generosity", but as far as I can see, the idea is catching on. At this stage, I am considering joining the movement at least in some capacity, and I would like to hear from others what they think. Feel free to discuss it with me on facebook.com/SweetOrangeMedia.
Martine Rolls is a Tauranga writer and digital strategist
