The first step is to determine what you want to achieve by your giving. In this stage you focus on the causes you care about and how you might concentrate your giving, based on what you want to achieve and what the needs are.
In defining the objectives of your giving, use your responses to the following questions as a guide:
- Why do you want to give? What are your motivations for giving?
- What causes do you care about?
- What types of charities have you supported in the past?
- How do you want to make a difference to a cause you care about?
- What gifts have you found most personally rewarding?
Once you have identified specific causes or issues you wish to support, do some initial research – 'preliminary due diligence', if you like – to identify what the needs are and how you could best support them, given your personal resources. Ask yourself the following questions:
- How much do you know about the issues?
- What needs are most pressing?
- What needs are least well served? Where are the gaps?
- How can you have an impact?
- What information do you need to be confident in your evaluation of the charity and its impact?
- What expertise can you access to help you to give effectively?
- What is the role of private funding in this area? What risks can private funding take that government and other public institutions cannot?
Although you will have your favourite causes, you may also want to set aside something for unplanned giving. This may be in response to a disaster appeal, a specific opportunity you did not expect, or a request from a friend you respect and admire. Some people set aside a specific amount each year for unplanned giving.
