Wired to share

Call me a cheapskate but I’ve always been keen to borrow wherever possible when I can avoid spending money on something – whether it’s a DVD or a wheelbarrow. I am blessed with a father and a brother who love buying new DVDs, and to have a generous neighbour whose shed puts Bunnings to shame. It has always seemed a bit silly to me that every guy wants to have a very similar set of tools and appliances sitting inside our suburban sheds unused.

I have become very optimistic and even excited about the way that the interweb has connected us, changed the way we think, and gives us opportunities to communicate and share easily. A friend posted on Facebook last weekend asking if anyone had bunk beds that they didn’t need. Within a few hours a thread of conversation appeared with promises of beds and even mattresses thrown in! We also benefited as we got to share a bed that no-one in even my extended family has a use for right now and was taking up space in my laundry.

I thought later how this could have worked twenty years ago. A request for spare furniture could have been passed around to family and a few friends as you see them over a month. If you’re fortunate someone might know someone who has something to spare. Through social networking it is possible to quite passively share a simple request that is whispered among hundreds of people.

I have been interested to get a small insight through some good friends about the way that the IT community itself has an incredible culture of sharing. Many who spend hours and years on a piece of code or software are very happy to then share it for nothing with anyone in the world. Instead of wanting control over their intellectual capital they are happy for the influence and to know that they have contributed to something greater. I have also noticed how the networks that most of us use socially are used seamlessly in their world of work to share ideas, post opinions, ask questions and receive answers in real time.

I ‘borrowed’ the title of this blog from a talk given by Rachel Botsman for TEDxSydney. Take 15 minutes to watch this video if you can, the link is below. Botsman uses many stories and examples to show how we are becoming what she calls ‘collaborative consumers’. Made possible by the internet, we are starting to use things according to their need and not simply be driven to own everything we might need at some time. A great stat she shares is that the average home power drill will be used for less than 13 minutes in its lifetime! She questions why we think we needed a drill when all we really needed was a hole. Botsman also speaks about the fascinating ‘trust mechanics’ that are being created between strangers across the world (exciting and hopeful stuff about the heart!).

What is something that you have received by this kind of sharing?

http://www.ted.com/talks/rachel_botsman_the_case_for_collaborative_consumption.html

Affluenza Epidemic

I first heard the clever term, ‘affluenza’ from a fantastic short film created by World Vision’s youth branch called Stir (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFZz6ICzpjI&feature=related ). Yesterday I read an article in the Herald about a guy who has written a book about affluenza (http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/people/privileged-and-a-pain-how-to-cure-affluenza-20101230-19are.html ). While the book focusses on the super-rich and how the wealth seems to become a curse to their family and future generations I think that there is a warning there for all of us in western society.

I was shocked a few weeks ago to hear another term for the first time, actually a phrase, it was, ‘diseases of affluence’. I heard it in a serious context but at first I thought it was a joke. Then I read the list of these diseases – obesity, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of alcoholism, heart disease, asthma, allergies, cancer and mental illnesses. As you can imagine these sicknesses don't tend to occur as often in the developing world where people live on less than $2 a day.

Turns out being rich can ruin your family and make you sick. It’s enough to make you want to take a vow of poverty! Being as affluent as we are should come with a warning. As a society it doesn’t help if we buy into enjoying our excess and then have to pay more to keep our health system afloat.

The answer is as simple as what I am always telling my young children and as complex as the feelings I have when I open my wallet. We need to share. We have been blessed with more than we need. This means we are blessed to be in a position to share it with others.

St. Paul in the Bible put it this way when he encouraged the church in Corinth to help out the Macedonians who were struggling, “At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality.”

Sounds like a fair exchange. Share my plenty and all the risks that go with it for better health, family, society and even a better world.

Do you have any ideas for 2011 about how you can share your excess?

Rich I tell you!

You are rich. Maybe you aren’t rich beyond your wildest dreams but rich nonetheless. Your privileged position in the world comes with warnings and responsibilities.

You may not have thought of yourself as rich but I hope to convince you differently. Until recently I hadn’t ever thought of myself as rich. I come from a working class family in a working class suburb. I could always think of other people who are much better off than me.

My brother-in-law, Peter Rees (who has a great blog at http://theloudproject.blogspot.com/) posted a link to a site called http://www.globalrichlist.com/. By entering my yearly salary I learnt that I am in top 1% – I am among the 50,000,000 richest people in the world. Even someone on the minimum wage in Australia is comfortably in the top ten percent.

Think about it. You have access to the internet and what’s more you can read, so you must have had quite an education. If you plan to have three square meals today then that sets you apart from half of the world who live on just a few dollars a day.

My new definition is that being rich means having more than I need. The truth is that beyond the actual needs of myself and my family I have money to spare. I regularly spend money going out to eat or for entertainment – I even have the means to go on holidays while still making payments on a house. I can even invest in the hobbies and talents of my children.

I haven’t said all this so that you want to hit me up for a loan, but hopefully I’ve convinced you that you are indeed rich. Like I said before being rich comes with warnings and responsibilities. Let me put these in the form of questions for you to think about:

Could you live without all that spare money and stuff?

Would you be willing to sacrifice your riches to help the poor?

Are you prepared to exchange some of your comfort to make others more comfortable?

If you are really ready for a hit between the eyes, read from the Bible in Luke 6:24-26, which has got me thinking recently.

If you have it to spare then you have it to share.
Discuss.

Wise Giving

Merry Christmas! We hope that you are enjoying a wonderful time with family and friends – and that you’ve had the chance to exchange some great presents!

I’m sure that the Wise Men never regretted their decision to travel to find Jesus and present him with gifts, just as I am confident that over-spending at Christmas isn’t likely to become your greatest financial regret. It is always a blessing to give.

The Wise Men were blessed to be able to give their precious gifts. Their line of work had been successful enough that they were able to take a holiday to take a valuable gift to someone they hadn’t met before. In the same way, we are so blessed to be able to afford to be generous at Christmas. The Wise Men shared what they had, they shared their excess, just as we can – even if like the little drummer boy we can only give a song.

A gift brings honour to the recipient. When we give, much more is received than just an object. The person who receives the gift is honoured to know that they are valued and loved. The men were wise to honour Jesus.

Generosity is the Wise Men’s legacy. They were wise to give and it became all that they have been remembered for. Indeed no-one is likely to be remembered for what they received but rather for what they gave to others. If it wasn’t for the creativity of my wife, it would be likely that this English teacher would be remembered as the uncle who always gives books.

Wouldn’t it be great to be remembered by your family, friends and even strangers as being a generous person?