No matter who you are, you only have so much time and so much financial worth. For this reason, it can be hard to decide exactly how we should focus ourselves on causes worth our time, while we’re also trying to live a full life and deal with all of our responsibilities.

Thankfully, there are a plethora of charities out there that take the hard work from you, but are also in need of reliable support in terms of volunteering and donations. Often, these charities provide absolute worth in what they do, over and over again, and so it can be hard to decide on which one to choose.

After all, we can’t help everyone. What matters is making sure that we take some time to focus on what is most important to us, and what we’d like to make a real difference in. It’s also important to remember that there are alternate means of supporting charities, such as raising money to run a half marathon, or simply spreading awareness as much as you can.

In this post, we’ll discuss how to select which charitable initiatives to support:

Do You Believe In The Work Being Done?

This is perhaps the most important consideration to make when spending your hard-earned money. When we donate, we hope that we can convert this worth into something tangible, towards a goal that matters. Now, just because you may not necessarily know about an issue doesn’t mean it’s not important. It’s also true that even if you don’t particularly care about an issue in your every day life, that this cause is any less important.

That said, for regular donating, believing in the cause and understanding it is fruitful. It helps you become someone who actively engages with a charity. But of course, what matters is the support you provide. For instance, this National Brain Appeal charity provides amazing support for issues that all of us could experience in the course of our lifetimes. It is truly indiscriminate aid towards those who could suffer from a mental or neurological problem. It’s hard not to believe in that.

Where Is Your Money Going?

Most competent charities will help you know where your money is going, perhaps not exactly or precisely how the individual dollars you spend will end up, but the broader goals of the organization, its spending divisions, and what priorities they have.

In some cases they will be able to offer individual examples, such as a well being drilled and built-in an impoverished village, or how many animals have been rescued as part of the initiative this year. Some appeals are direct and time-honored, such as providing homeless people shelter and food over the Christmas period. 

What Case Studies Are Available?

In order to properly understand the scope and history of a charity’s work, many of them will curate case studies you can read to see where their efforts, funded by donations, are going.

They may be able to show you images and stories pertaining to rescued endangered animals in a given area of the world, including the shelters, staff and medical equipment used to nurse them back to health. This can differ tremendously depending on the kind of charity you support, but you’ll no doubt be able to gain a broader picture of the charity’s goals, and how they might have scaled up operations.

What Forms Of Donation Are There?

Charities can offer all kinds of donations portals. The main one is fundraising, of course, as charities cannot operate or do any good without money. But of course, donor drives for blood or even stem cells can be an important way to give, and may even save a life.

But rather than the scope of what you donate, it’s also important to consider the means and format by which you do. In some cases, a regular direct debit to your bank account is a good way to give within your budget and to automate it. In some cases, you may be able to round up the cost of a fast-food order in order to give to an important charity should you feel generous.

Understanding how to donate can help you make this giving a worthwhile part of your monthly planning, or a nice one-off that helps you do your part. At the very least, you will become more comfortable with the idea of charity – even and perhaps especially during tough times.

With this advice, you’re sure to decide the best charitable initiatives to support, no matter how small or large they are.