[.ca] Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World (ISBN 0739368060)

Advanced Lessons in Being Charitable:
As a retired president of the United States, you can take it easy and enjoy life while drawing big paychecks for speaking . . . or you can start a new career contributing in new ways as Jimmy Carter did. Fortunately, Bill Clinton has aimed his high-powered intellect and passion for the underprivileged towards volunteering and best practice ways of helping those who need it most. I am very engaged in volunteer activities to develop better ways to help the underprivileged. That work makes it hard for me to keep track of what others are doing. I found that Giving gave me several interesting new ideas for ways I can volunteer and share financial resources. I also intend to recommend this book to my students who are working on poverty and disease problems in underdeveloped countries. Some of the ideas presented here would be helpful to them as well, such as providing opportunities for those in advanced countries to loan small amounts of money to entrepreneurs in underdeveloped countries. The chapters are organized around these concepts: 1. Individuals are doing more than ever to help others. 2. You can give money. 3. You can give your time. 4. You can donate items that are needed elsewhere. 5. You can help transfer skills so that others can help themselves. 6. You can help bring peace where there has been none. 7. You can provide gifts that have continuing benefits. 8. You can create ideal methods that others can use to help many more. 9. You can develop and share good ideas. 10. You can assemble economic scale to reduce the cost of helping in either for profit or nonprofit environments. 11. How you can determine how much and what to give. I also enjoyed reading about an update on Bill Clinton's charitable activities around the world. I thought of this book as being a lot like a catalog for giving. Many of the sections may not appeal to you. That's all right. You can gain from this book by just reading about what does interest you. I especially the resource section which gives you a way to check out the giving ideas you like in more detail. I can see this book as a turn-off for some. Let me describe why: 1. There's a lot in here about what billionaires and hedge fund managers do. Their examples aren't relevant for most people. 2. The style is pretty dry. You won't feel so much passion as having received a data dump in several sections. 3. If you don't have a lot of time, you'll be unsure how the time demands of many of the more interesting choices . . . so you'll find the book inadequate to pick a single area with little effort now. 4. There's a lot of international focus in the book. If your heart draws you closer to home, you may find the book to be a bit thin for your interests. If you already like to give and want to give more and in better ways, I don't know of a better book for you to start with. May God bless you as you give.

Making a difference in the world:
Clinton's books message is great - open our hearts and give where we have the greatest chance of success - and contained a lot of statistics. The book tells us about individuals who manage to get past the corruption and really help, mostly by doing all the work themselves. It's nice to hear about these ordinary people doing extraordinary things. It really opens up the possibilities for all of us wanting to give in ways that can change the world. This was a very well written book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. And for a good book of philosophy try Understanding: Train of Thought.

Informative:
This book describes how various people have given of their money, time, things, skills, and skill at reconciliation. Clinton describes gifts that keep on giving and models of gifts. He discusses how markets can be organized for the public good, the role of government and how much we should give. This book contains a lot of information about programs worldwide. It includes a list of online resources and has an index. I expected the book to be more philosophical but found it contained a lot of statistics. I would recommend this book for anyone who has time to waste reading about Clinton's activities and interests since his presidency.

Individuals making a difference.:
I found that Giving is first about initiative. Through multiple examples of people who personally make a difference, you will likely find the inspiration to start something or join others in advancing a cause that is important for you. Although Clinton believes that Governments have an important role to play, the examples he shares are evidence that the work of individuals acting on their need to improve our world is more impactful. The organization of the book highlights the multiple forms giving can take. If you are looking for one current and inspiring example to motivate you to start giving, youll likely find it in the book. The book is a fast read. It is entertaining and does not become heavy with stats or deep analysis.