You Can Be Generous When You're Broke

Maybe it's the beauty of the holiday season or maybe it's the Salvation Army bell ringers, but this time of year always makes me think about ways to help other people.

When it comes to helping others, sometimes people's first reaction is to simply cut a check to their favorite organization.

But what happens if you're broke?

1) You can be generous with your time. Many non-profit organizations are in dire need of volunteers. Work a shift at a soup kitchen or volunteer at coat drive. Help a friend with a home improvement project, babysit, or drive a senior citizen to an appointment.

2) You can donate blood. You may just end up saving someone's life - what's better than that?

3) You can donate items to charity that you no longer use. We all have extra stuff in our closets that would be appreciated by others.

4) Share your freebies. If you know how to shop, you can get plenty of food and personal care items for free or nearly free. You can also learn how to get all kinds of free samples at sites like Freebies 4 Mom. These freebies can then be donated to a non-profit organization or given to a friend or neighbor in need.

5) You can sign-up for services like MyPoints, where you earn points for reading your e-mail that can be cashed in for gift cards or donations to charities.

6) You can scale back in other areas of your life. Giving up a soda habit, buying less gifts, or holding off on dinner out, can free up some extra cash you could put to better use elsewhere.

7) You can share your talent. We all have things we know how to do. Maybe you could knit some mittens, take photos for a fundraiser, or play music at a nursing home.

You don't need to have a lot of money to help someone. You just need to think a little outside of the wallet.