The New Social Movement Of Our Times

The word Philanthropy in recent times has been getting some much needed front page headline exposure, through former Dale Carnegie graduate Warren E Buffet and billionaire friend Bill Gates. They have been able to get forty of the richest people in the US, including themselves to pledge at least half their fortunes to charities of their choice as part of a philanthropic campaign called 'The Giving Pledge Campaign' ( www.givingpledge.org ). The pair are also hoping to expand the concept to some of the wealthiest people around the world to follow the example of those affiliated to The Giving Pledge Campaign.

If we start to look at the numbers we find that the combined fortunes of Gates and Buffet alone comes to an estimated $100 billion fortune, therefore charities are likely to see some unprecedented amounts of money being distributed to them. With that said it is interesting to note the results of one of the largest studies of wealth distribution completed in 2006 that 1% of adults in the world own 40% of the planets wealth. Therefore the success of this campaign could have a real lasting impact on bridging the divide between the ultra rich and poor around the world.

But with that in mind, the reason behind me writing today about the subject of philanthropy stems from researching the original meaning of the word which dates back to Ancient Greek times, 2500 years ago. Philanthropy itself is a combination of two words: philos, meaning 'loving' in the sense of benefitting and caring for and nourishing and anthropos meaning 'human being' in the sense of 'humankind', 'humanity' or 'human-ness'.

This original meaning of the word really resonates with one of the Dale Carnegie principles in effective communication and human relations: Become genuinely interested in other people.

Stop thinking about yourself and what you need, take a minute to think about the people closest to you, be it your family, friends, your work colleagues or that man on the street that you walk past everyday; see how you can help them. By doing this you will be surprised what a positive impact you can have in that person's life. So lets create our own campaign of caring today and look to help others.

Mark de Stadler
Sales Consultant

www.London.dalecarnegie.com

Leadership and Ego

In his book ‘Good to Great’, Jim Collins refers to the two key qualities of Level 5 Leaders of being a paradox. The two qualities he defines are ‘personal humility’ and ‘professional will’.

Throughout our careers we make progress by delivering performance and outcomes that are usually better than our peers or when an opportunity arises that we are considered best to meet or deliver.

It is no surprise then that as we progress through our careers that our ego gets continually fed with the ‘good news’. With some people the more positive feedback they get the more the ego grows and so on in an upward spiral. Such is the power of ego that for some nothing would seem capable of giving a knock back and which for others the same happening could be a humbling experience.

The news is full of examples of those who by dint of their ability, and not inconsiderable hard work, become leaders. In this sense leadership is not a hierarchical thing but unconsciously exercised by being an example that others wish to follow. When these ‘leaders’ fall from grace, as so many do, it is tough for them and everyone else, to handle. This is where the ego has won.

So those that rise to the top of their businesses or societies with significant positions of authority over others have to avoid this ego breakdown. This is where humility comes in. The greater our humility and our humanity, the better there is a chance of us being a Level 5 Leader.

Perhaps a conversation with your Dale Carnegie Consultant will lead you to a place where ego does not matter. In this place our Executive Leadership Programme will accelerate your career to being a Level 5 Leader.

Thanks Jim, for the inspiration.

David Pickering

Sales Consultant and Trainer

http://www.london.dalecarnegie.com/