Generosity & Forgiveness - 6/7/2009

After all these year of coaching, I have come to the absolute conclusion that there are two personality characteristics that are essential to happiness, fulfillment and success – and they are not to be trivialized, minimized or flippantly ignored as being unimportant. 

I am speaking about a nobility of thought and behavior that is available to everyone but is actually possessed by so few.  Yes, generosity and forgiveness are the real biggies when it comes to creating charismatic personality that attracts success like a magnet.

Generosity means sharing what you have with no expectation of compensation; the act of giving without coercion; the willingness to give and share unstintingly. True generosity involves sharing things that are meaningful or have value without expecting any thanks or consideration in return.

It is the opposite of frugality, cheapness, hoarding or lack of any kind.  It is an openness, an abundance, a magnanimous gesture, evidenced by a willingness to give freely.  We can offer our valuable time and go out of our way to assist someone.  We can be generous with money, our talent or our possessions, but it is an act of pure altruism.

Being generous is a character trait that enhances one’s reputation and opens up the pathways to positive creation.

Forgiveness, on the other hand, is the single ingredient that is at the center of removing the invisible blocks to happiness and success.  Forgiveness is about being in possession of a compassionate feeling that supports a willingness to forgive someone who has hurt you (including forgiving yourself).

Forgiveness is not saying or even feeling that “things are okay now,” nor is it denial that a hurtful situation exists or that your feelings are hurt.  Forgiveness does not mean that you now accept another person’s behavior.

Forgiveness is about you giving up “the story” that silently plays in the background of your mind and brings about the bitterness that has been linked to all kinds of stress-related illnesses.

By forgiving others we free ourselves spiritually and emotionally, and we release the other person once and for all.  Remember, we are a chained-slave to anyone who we do not forgive, regardless of the “crime.”

Interestingly enough, most who “will not” forgive someone who has hurt them, don’t do it because they erroneously believe that if they forgive the other person it is making them right. That is clearly not the case.

Forgiveness frees you!  It is about you getting on with your life and pardoning yourself from a self-imposed prison that is holding you captive.

Generosity and forgiveness are choices. They are merely decisions that an evolved person is able to make, while all the others are left in pain, holding on to their stories for dear life; it slowly poisons their soles.

Generosity and forgiveness are major keys that unlock the doors to enlightenment and high performance and I believe you are capable of owning both of these wonderful and powerful personality characteristics.

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