Quotes About Generosity

Like most people, I like to give what I like to get. Unlike most people, I still like to get what I got in college - books, magazine subscriptions, CDs, T-shirts.

My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary material goods and bizarre generosity with family, friends and even strangers.

I know that the last thing a book wants is to just sit around unread, serving as an element of interior decorating. So when I have people over, all they have to do is glance at my books, and I implore them to take a few home with them. If I am really ambitious, I pack books into boxes and donate them to prisons.

Love can be unselfish, in the sense of being benevolent and generous, without being selfless.

Kris Kristofferson and Steve Goodman were the two most unselfish people I ever met.

I think team sports probably teach you more about giving - about being unselfish and being flexible.

My personal philosophy is that people should be extremely selfish for the first half of their life and extremely unselfish for the second half because then they can do the most good.

There was always an unspoken generosity about my mom.

There shouldn't be budget problems. There is so much money that goes untapped. If every athlete gave 5% of what they earned, there wouldn't be any budget problems.

That's the beauty of coaching. You get to touch lives, you get to make a difference. You get to do things for people who will never pay you back and they say you never have had a perfect day until you've done something for someone who will never pay you back.

What about feeling sorry for those who pay the taxes? Those who are people that no one feels sorry for. They are asked to give and give until they have no more to give. And when they say 'enough,' they are called selfish.

I am a huge admirer of Franklin Roosevelt's, and I believe social security has done untold good in alleviating the once-widespread issue of poverty among the elderly. FDR believed in the greatness and generosity of Americans - but he was also a cold-blooded politician.

People think I'm just an old Luddite, but that's untrue. I buy every new gizmo as it comes out, play with it until I understand how it works, and then give it away.

Being charitable provides a boost to your psyche that is tough to replicate in any other way. But note that although any charity will happily take your money, you can give in other ways and still reap the same happiness reward. Volunteering and donating your old or unused belongings have the same result.

I think that we're so generous in some of our social problems that people are unwilling to get a job outside in the heat. Rather than get 15 dollars to go get roofing, they'd rather get 9 or 10 dollars in benefits.

Money can add very much to one's ability to lead a constructive life, not only pleasant for oneself, but, hopefully, beneficial to others. My grandfather, along with Carnegie, was a pioneer in philanthropy, which my father then practiced on a very large scale. The Christian ethic played an essential part in my upbringing.

My true inspiration is to give everything to my kids that I never had. I had a really rough upbringing, and I want to break that chain. I've broken the chain, and I want to give my kids happiness every single day. When they wake up and hop on me and say; 'Dad I love you,' that is what means the most to me.

And please, help the people around you. Ask them if they need any help. Because, sometimes, some people tend to hesitate while seeking any kind of help or support from anyone. Please ask them upfront, if they require any support and help them.

Encouragement to others is something everyone can give. Somebody needs what you have to give. It may not be your money; it may be your time. It may be your listening ear. It may be your arms to encourage. It may be your smile to uplift. Who knows?

Success is not easy and I think everyone should know that hard work and perseverance and being open to giving back are so much more powerful than stepping all over people to get to the top.

You are what you think. So just think big, believe big, act big, work big, give big, forgive big, laugh big, love big and live big.

If your life turns out to be good and you have a tremendous amount of luck in your life, it's a good thing to turn around and make it work for others.

The purpose of life is to discover your gift. The work of life is to develop it. The meaning of life is to give your gift away.

The hardest work you and I will ever do is to put off our selfishness. It is heavy lifting!