In the Spirit of the Gift
With the words that follow, I wish to explain what kind of financial practices I am incorporating in my work related to gift and how they might affect you.
Earlier in 2020 I took an online course called “Living in the Gift” by Charles Eisenstein. It came to my attention around the time we were building the narrative and model behind our company, Skillward. This was also about a year and a half into our project where until then we had been travelling to (mostly) volunteer our skills to various projects. We have learnt so much about how our skills translated to address different cultures and needs and we wanted to incorporate these experiences into a business model that created sustainable value for everyone involved.
The course promised to, among other things, address a question that I have too been asking myself for so long – how can I do what I love, express my gifts in the world, act on my impulse to be a person of generosity and service and still make a living out of it? Pretty cool to stumble upon this at that moment!
The philosophy around gift economy, as portrayed in the above-mentioned course, resonated with me on this journey. I had been trying to define my dharma, my purpose in this lifetime, and consequently my skills and gifts. And I always came a bit short. I realized that throughout our project I had started to listen to that feedback that I’d normally block out. Feedback about my ability to inspire, to be of help, to use languages and communicate in a creative way. Because the feedback was not coming alongside a massive check, an amazing employee report, a huge number of clients, it was hard for me to believe it. Ah, I’d say, that’s just me enjoying.
What if the gift I bring to the world is subtle, intuitive: the right silence at the right time, an approach to learning that makes you feel empowered rather than lacking, knowledge about a variety of topics that I am able to share and put in practice for others to use. Could this be my Gift – the ability to engage in interaction from a place of palpable awareness where the other feels seen, heard, like they matter, truly? Could it?
These words, these offerings, are a way for me to share my gift with you, with the world. I’m still working on them, they will most probably shift and morph as I am beginning to stand in my Gift. As I am recognizing my Gift. As I am starting to share it consciously.
That is why I believe gifts could be better valued by the receiver than by the giver. How can I put a price on a yoga session? I’d have to think about the country I am in, what I have invested in my training, who I am addressing it to…all these intelligent limitations. What if the benefits of a coaching session are tremendous but the person has no financial possibility to pay at the moment. Should they not benefit from my gift?
When I was first faced with the practice of ‘pay what you want’ I felt frustrated (just tell me a price), glad (oh, it’s free), confused (great, more work for me to decide what to pay)… It takes a while to ease into it. We are so used to having the decision about price and value be done for us. It makes it easy for us, just say yes or no. Paying a price is a ritual simplified by money. This form of economy is inviting us to reconnect with this ritual of giving and receiving.
For a long time I believed that my inability to value my skills came from a deep lack of self-assurance. ‘Have more confidence’, I was told, ‘Be more sure of yourself’, I was advised. I just never seemed to be able to truly incorporate this well-intentioned feedback. ‘What is wrong with me’, I thought! With the risk of sounding like I am escaping and avoiding this feedback, I ask myself: what if nothing is wrong with me? What if my gift is so unique (which it is, just like everyone else’s) that I should not be forced to demand an ego, societal, economic-based value on it? ‘Come back to earth Corina!’, a voice is calling. I am on Earth, an earth that is being harmed by our conditioning, education, ultimately our choices every day. But I digress…
Is embracing this ‘new and ancient’ practice a reactive way for me to avoid healing my relationship with money? Would I still try this out if I did not experience a current, so-called financial security? These and other questions roam my mind and they could all be true at a certain moment in time. And right now, my coming into Gift invites me to try this economic model in my work related to yoga, growth, transition.
And so here we are, swimming in this vast synergistic field driven by the intelligence of Gift. And so if we happen to have conversations, and if you happen to find value in my offerings, I am so grateful! Please know that yes, I use money to live, and when it comes to these offerings, I’d like you to just receive them first. Are they helping you? Is there something that sparked a deeply needed transition? Do you feel like giving in return? Maybe not to me directly, but to someone / something else? Do you want to give?
Whatever the answers, my Gift is being shared, elaborated, developed and wants to be given. We all want to give.
Note: I have started reading and studying Sacred Economics and Women and the Gift Economy and I expect them to have an influence on my ideas around this topic. And I will be glad to explore them in future articles.