Charities beyond Giving Tuesday: What you can do next

There are plenty of days, besides the global Giving Tuesday, on which you could start donating your money to charities.

Doing small but significant acts of generosity will make a great difference in your life and the lives of other people. This year’s Giving Tuesday (or #GivingTuesday as it is often stylized on social media) is in the history books. The string of monetary holidays that began on Black Friday (continued with Small Business Saturday and on through Cyber Monday) came to an end as well. While the other named days that follow Thanksgiving are all about buying gifts and getting deals, Giving Tuesday is about helping others and supporting worthy causes.

But your altruism doesn’t have to be limited to just one day. In fact, there is still plenty of time and several ways to spread a little holiday cheer with your extra funds this season.

Donating to non-profits (and for no profit)

There are literally thousands of charities that do great work and help others in a number of ways. Unfortunately, nothing comes for free, even when your heart’s in the right place. That’s why these projects and non-profit corporations are constantly soliciting donations so that they can keep doing good for others.

If you’re looking for a new charity to give to or want to follow up on one you may have heard about, Charity Navigator is a great place to start. The site not only serves as a database, giving you an overview of charities around the world but, in some cases, will also take a closer look at how transparent organizations are and how they spend the money they take in. You can even enter keywords so that you can find a charity the supports causes you’re passionate about.

Giving as a gift

Speaking of being passionate about certain causes, there’s a good chance that someone in your life also has something they care deeply about. Imagine finding a charity that supports that cause and donating to them in your loved one’s name. That’s right — making a charitable contribution as a gift to a friend or family member can be a great way to show how well you know them and how much you care while also supporting a worthwhile cause.

Helping others and yourself

Beyond charity, there are other ways to help those in need that could even result in a bit of extra cash for you. For example, helping to fulfill a loan on a peer to peer platform can serve as a blessing to someone looking to get out of debt but also earns you a bit of interest. Additionally, there are plenty of feel-good alternative investments you can make that support everything from the development of green and eco-friendly technologies to helping young entrepreneurs bring new and useful products to market. While this might not qualify as being completely altruistic, it will still certainly make someone’s day and could make a major positive impact in the long run. Plus, if you do end up making some money, you’ll have more to help the next cause that comes along.

Conclusion

Giving Tuesday is a great initiative that encourages us to seek out charities and help others. However, its popularity certainly doesn’t mean we should stop doing good for the rest of the holiday season or into the new year. Whether you just want to support a strong charity, donate on behalf of a loved one, or invest in great causes that could also net you some cash, there are still plenty of ways to utilize your dollars and spread some extra holiday cheer this season.

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DISCLAIMER: This article expresses my own ideas and opinions. Any information I have shared are from sources that I believe to be reliable and accurate. I did not receive any financial compensation in writing this post, nor do I own any shares in any company I’ve mentioned. I encourage any reader to do their own diligent research first before making any investment decisions.