Generous Tipping Experiment

October 2007 

My name is Patrick and I live in Atlanta with my wife and four kids. A while back, I felt the urge to tip my hair stylist $100 bucks for a $10 haircut. Her reaction and my sharing of this story with others led me to this generous tipping experiment.My objectives are simple:

1. To give at least $250 per month over the next 12 months (October 07 - 0 in tips to those around me - waiters, hair stylist, baggage carriers, shuttle drivers etc. Many of these individuals are the working poor in our culture.

2. To get my family involved in the process so that they may experience in a very tangible way the experience of giving to others spontaneously.

3. To be brutally honest in capturing the stories of these transactions**The reactions of others to these generous tips – how did it impact them?**My families own internal feelings – how did it impact us?

4. To determine what these reactions say about life in our materialistic, Western culture.

5. To write about these experiences on a web site in order to share them with others, begin a dialogue about the exercise and to see what we can learn together in community.

I welcome your views and feedback on our stories.