The Conversion of the Taker

I'm still deciding just how far out on a limb to put "The Pastor" in my fictional saga before I saw that limb off in plot development terms.  In the meantime, here are more questions about giving, taking and congregational stewardship.

In Give and Take, Adam Grant thinks about how to turn "takers" into "givers."  He writes,

"...change people's behaviors first, and their attitudes often follow.  To turn takers into givers, it's often necessary to convince them to start giving.  Over time, if the conditions are right, they'll come to see themselves as givers." (page 247)

I think about my own giving story.  We came to our first parish, and we were giving at about the same rate as members of the congregation.  We gave about 1.75% of our income to the church.  I saw myself as a person of some integrity.  So I reasoned that if I were going to invite others to give more, I had better do so myself.  

Most of all, however, I knew that someone in the congregation--namely, the congregational treasurer--would know both how much I earned and how much I gave.  In truth, I was afraid that the treasurer would do the math and spill the beans.

We engaged in growth giving, increasing our giving one percent of our income per year.  It didn't take all that long to become tithers.  More to the point, I find that Grant's description is spot on.  It was the behavior that changed not only my attitude but also my self-understanding.  Because I was giving, I could see myself as a giver.  I'm not sure I would have qualified for that designation prior to giving to the church for a number of years.

So, how does that translate into concrete stewardship strategies and tactics in the church?  How do we create giving opportunities that will turn takers into givers?  We aren't going to publish the financial giving records of members (as we once did in another era).  So we deprive ourselves of one of the ways that takers are most likely to engage in giving.  

"Research shows that givers usually contribute regardless of whether it's public or private," Adam Grant writes, "but takers are more likely to contribute when it's public" (page 244).   The system of publishing annual giving in church reports was destructive and emotionally violent.  But it did likely induce takers and matchers to give more.  Short of that draconian approach, what can we do to bring about some behavioral conversion on the part of the takers?

Grant makes some suggestions.  One is a church version of the "Reciprocity Ring."  I described that in an earlier post when I suggested that we engage in a random draw for anonymous helping acts in the congregation.  The secret is to get takers into the habit of giving with no reward connected and no public recognition offered.

Grant points to research that shows how volunteering one's time can convert a taker's self-concept over the long run.  This is the "toss your hat over the fence" strategy.  Once people have invested time in a giving behavior, they must see themselves as givers or manage a significant cognitive dissonance.  If people give themselves away enough, they will resolve the dissonance in favor of self-identifying as givers.  So encourage selfless volunteering in every way possible in and out of the congregation.

Can we find "painless" ways to begin giving?  I have joined Kiva.com and become a lender to micr-businesses in the developing world.  I love the concept.  But the thing that tipped me into membership was the fact that I could lend twenty-five dollars just by inviting a friend to join.  The friend would get twenty-five dollars to lend as well.  It is a brilliant strategy.  I joined.  I invited someone else.  Now we both really feel obliged to repay the "gift" we got.  So I invite others, and I am investing my own funds.

Can congregations engage in Kiva-like initiatives for mission projects?  In fact, we do that all the time. Foundations and endowments offer matching fund to support various projects.  We all like to get more bang for our bucks.  Our larger church offers sponsored initiatives that do much the same thing in digging wells and buying livestock.  Right now you can buy fairly-traded "Sisters Blend" coffee and participate in the Lutheran World Relief quilt project as a by-product.

We know how to do this.

I am going to discuss this with my stewardship folks.  I think it will make all sorts of sense to them.  I'd be interested in your thoughts.