6 Steps To Unconditional Giving
There are two types of giving
Unconditional and Conditional.
- Unconditional is Spirit-given and Conditional is man-made.
- Unconditional feels good immediately and Conditional has the promise of delayed gratification through others.
- Unconditional is from the heart, Conditional is from the mind.
- Unconditional is a connection with the soul, Conditional needs connection to others.
- Unconditional pleases both the giver and the receiver.
- Conditional needs conditions to be met to feel validated.
- Unconditional Giving increases our energy and Conditional depletes it.
Difference Between Unconditional and Conditional Giving
The difference between Unconditional Giving and Conditional Giving is the intention. Unconditional giving has the intention of ‘giving just because it feels good to do so’. There is no other agenda and no thanks required. On the other hand, Conditional Giving is as the name suggests. Giving to get a return, whether a return deed, money, or seemingly innocent praise, appreciation and acknowledgment. These expectations are underlying saboteurs because if those conditions aren’t met, there are negative consequences for the giver. You feel unloved, depleted and used.
Giving is a Learned Experience
This difference between the two types of giving was illustrated to me many years ago when I was a Promotion’s Manager for a charity organization. I had both paid staff and volunteers to manage and one of the Fundraisers that came under my portfolio was a Thrift Shop. It had only a couple of paid staff, the other dozen people were volunteers. Each time I made an appearance, I was amazed at the amount of bitchiness, theft, resentment, complaints and numerous dissatisfactions from the volunteers. In a nutshell, they were complaining that their needs hadn’t been met.
This came as shock to me because I was witnessing people that said they wanted to help but it turned out there was a price, even if it wasn’t money. The price was much more difficult to deal with than finances as it was an unknown quantity. Every one of them had different needs. If you’ve ever worked with volunteers before, you will understand that most tend to need a lot of praise and appreciation. Now I’m all for thanking people, but this is when I had a huge moment of clarity. Their giving type was conditional.
Conditional Giving Is A Crowded Path
I could see that the way I was brought up was the same as these people. I also needed that praise to make my giving worthwhile. They gave because they either thought they had to or because they expected others to fill their cup. This was two-fold. They didn’t realize they were doing this and that it was making them miserable. To them, it was the organization not meeting their needs that was making them unhappy. They couldn’t see that it was their own needs and expectations that was the culprit.
And I could see this reflected in my life. That’s when my turning point came. I decided ‘no more’. Personally, I would choose to give just because it felt good, or not at all. I felt immediate relief and knew it was a life decision. I really, really did not want to be like the people I was witnessing. They just weren’t happy campers. This was an opportunity for change. I had thought that if you were retired and could afford to give your time, you would be happy to do so. But I was wrong. If you gave conditionally at any time of your life, retiring was not going to make any difference.
The advantage of Unconditional Giving is the absolute freedom it provides. There is no expectation and nothing needs to be fulfilled. The act of giving is the reward. It is satisfying, fulfilling, and energizing fuel for your soul. And that’s the path I wanted.
Are You An Emotional Caretaker?
A Caregiver is different from an Emotional Caretaker. A Caregiver is somebody who looks after a person in need, be it the elderly or a disabled person. This giving can either be conditional or unconditional. It’s your choice.
Not all people who give conditionally are Emotional Caretakers
An Emotional Caretaker is a person who gives because they think that it will please others. They are one part of a relationship triangle. They feel guilty if they don’t help out, yet resentful when they feel they should. A Caretaker will give of themselves in an effort to make another feel good.
It seems selfless until you understand that you really have no control over how another person feels. The condition is, that they must feel good and be grateful so that the Caretaker can feel good too. An Emotional Caretaker has an agenda that can be well hidden, even from themselves. When expectations aren’t met, there’s a negative emotional result.
How do you know if you’re an Emotional Caretaker? Caretakers focus on another’s pain so they don’t have to notice their own pain. They focus on another’s needs so they don’t have to look at their own. Always finding others to ‘help’ so that they don’t have to notice what’s going on in their own home. However, the giving is conditional.
Molded from a Young Age
Emotional Caretakers need the receiver to be grateful so that they can fill their own cup otherwise, they feel rejected and resentful. You can often recognize an Emotional Caretaker by their verbiage. “I give and give and feel drained at the end of the day”. Or “I have to learn to set boundaries” and criticisms like “You’d think they would be grateful”.
Emotional Caretakers are molded when they are young. It’s how they fit into the family unit. It’s not that anybody said to us “You must be an emotional caretaker”, but your mother or someone close did it, so you adopted the behavior from them. It had its own rewards.
Society thought you were caring and loving. And so long as this happened you were validated, even if it was temporary. But rarely do these childhood positions give us any power in our lives as adults. It’s seeking hollow praise, as it’s outside of you and you can’t fill a cup by tipping water on the outside.
Understanding and Empowerment
Not everyone wants to give unconditionally and that’s ok. There’s no judgment on how you choose to give. This is for those who seek understanding and empowerment. Not power over others, but within themselves.
Conditional Giving demands praise and adoration. It’s a condition of the Giving, even if it is unconscious. Needing to feel accepted by others lies deep within the psyche, so if we don’t love and accept ourselves, we’ll look for it from others. Here lies the paradox in that acceptance. If we have a need to please and others don’t accept our giving graciously, then we feel resentful. If we give because we feel we have to, we feel drained.
Unconditional Giving fills you and Conditional Giving drains you.
Imagine Unconditional Giving as an unlimited source, such as a flow of electricity. The electricity is the power source and we are the lamp through which it flows. When we are plugged into the power source, we shine brightly. Our light shines for us and others are able to see because of the glow. Our light is unlimited as our power is unlimited. When we detach or unplug from the power source, we are limited in how much light we can give. Our power drains quickly, and even if we have reserves, we are soon depleted with no more to give.
When we understand how giving flows, we’re no longer limited by having to create boundaries as they become natural. Our priorities shift from how much can I give, to how brightly can I shine?
So how would I change the situation I found myself in with the group of volunteers at the Thrift Shop? I would change me and make sure I was plugged in to an energy Source. I would set my intentions to ‘feel good no matter what’, and I wouldn’t step out of my front door until I was plugged in. It just wouldn’t be worth it. I would much rather feel energised at the end of the day than drained.
The only difference between Unconditional and Conditional Giving is the Intention.
6 Steps to Unconditional Giving
To gain the amazing benefits of Unconditional Giving then begin to incorporate these patterns into your life:
- Set intentions to feel good, often.
- Begin to notice your moods
- Take note of the expectations from others
- Notice the shift in your mood when something hasn’t gone as expected, especially if there wasn’t even an awareness of expectations in the first place.
- Acknowledge the way you enter that relationship triangle; by feeling sorry for someone or being manipulated in some way, feeling trapped.
- Keep a diary of these thoughts and emotions at the end of the day, it will help dissolve them.
We have taught others we are Emotional Caretakers and now they expect us to act in a particular way. So be ready for the transition to freedom. It can be a bumpy ride but hang on, it’s worth it!
Click here to get your FREE DIGITAL Copy of 6 Dimensions of Healing when you purchase your paper copy. It will empower you to become the unconditional giver that your soul needs to soar. Take the power back in ALL of your relationships.
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Who am I?
I’m Gayle Maree, creator of 6 Dimensions of Healing, author, mother, Past Life Therapist and Spiritual Counselor for over 23 years.
Someone once told me (a well-respected mentor) that people need “experts” to live a life they value… and I didn’t believe them.
I thought everybody could do it on their own because I did. I figured out what didn’t work in my life and then I changed it. Actually, I changed me. And it was a LOT of work!
Not because I was trying to impress those that told me I had a ‘bad attitude’ or I had something to prove to people who thought I was lousy at pretty well everything, but because there were aspects of me that even I didn’t like. I wanted improvements in me and my life.
Change Versus Comfort
It was obvious to me that if I didn’t make changes I could expect more of the same in my life as before. The same things that didn’t work, the same relationships that my parents had.
I wanted more. Mostly, I wanted my kids to be proud of me. Damn it, I wanted to be proud of myself.
So, I set about what would be a continuous, amazing journey.
I’ve been with my Spiritual Soulmate over 30 years now and we still work on the relationship, we work on improving us, because we know that whatever we want, to get it we need to be different to how we were.
And I listen so much more now because I value the wisdom of my non-physical guides who have been with me for as long as I can remember.
Now it’s your turn
This is the same path I used to make the changes that led to a valued and prosperous life. So much more than I ever imagined.
The path is laid out in our book 6 Dimensions of Healing
