Give Back

Bill Brinkerhoff & Kathy Sample at Argus Farm Stop

“We are such spendthrifts with our lives,” actor and philanthropist Paul Newman once told a reporter. “The trick of living is to slip on and off the planet with the least fuss you can muster. I’m not running for sainthood. I just happen to think that in life we need to be a little like the farmer who puts back into the soil what he takes out.”

Who will really know why some succeed and some do not? Regardless of the circumstances, those who find themselves successful, whether by accident of birth or by their own hard work, fully distinguish themselves by giving back to the communities and societies from which they come.

To be a truly successful leader, you have to be like that farmer and put the seed back into the soil. Newman started camps for children with serious illnesses and began a food company that gave its profits to nonprofit organizations. He was a beacon for what successful leaders can do if they focus on giving back.

I have met many leaders who are willing to give of themselves in appreciation for their success and in gratitude to society. Giving back has become more important to them than their initial success in business or industry.

Zingerman’s started Food Gatherers to collect the surplus from restaurants for the hungry.
Multiple organizations and philanthropists, such as Gilbert, have rebuilt some of the worst parts of the worst cities in Michigan.
Young people have gone to Africa to help governments treat AIDS.
My friend Nick and Joyce Luxon have adopted needy children.
Pat Pasick created a nonprofit, Stories for Hope, to collect the stories of genocide survivors in Rwanda.
Howard Cash had helped the victims of September 11 identify lost family members through DNA matching.
The work of Kathy Sample and Bill Brinkerhoff to create Argus Farm Stop, which was featured in the New York Times.

I believe this current generation of young professionals will distinguish themselves as the giving generation. Many devote their time and energy to making the world a better place. All over America and throughout the world, people are making a difference by giving back. I see this regularly in the classes that I have taught on self-awareness and emotional intelligence at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

I see it in my Next Steps groups as people who are retiring turn their skills and passions toward making a difference. I see it in hundreds of leaders who have attended my LeadersConnect events. They come to learn about how to make themselves better, their organizations better, and the world a better place.

Your Reflections:

Ask yourself: What am I doing today to give back?
As you become more successful, what is your dream about how to give back to society?
How will you plant the seeds today to replenish what you have been given in life?
How will you teach your children the importance of giving back?
What example are you setting for your children and coworkers about the importance of giving back?