Fuel your generosity with a charitable giving plan

Charitable giving holds different meanings for everyone. You may tuck a few dollars in a donation box around the holidays or leave thousands of dollars to a nonprofit as your lasting legacy. When you choose to invest in your community, it's the motivation and commitment — not the amount or frequency — that matters most.

To maximize how far your contributions can stretch, you'll want to approach your giving plan with intention. Here are some considerations for developing a charitable giving strategy that sticks with you along your financial journey.

We'll cover these topics:

• What are the benefits of charitable giving?
• What's the role of charities and nonprofits in our communities?
• How can I fit charitable contributions in my budget (and schedule)?
• How do I start donating to charity?
• How does Citizens practice charitable giving?

Donating to charities and nonprofits has some clear advantages from the start. Many of these organizations are working for the common, greater good, whether they're trying to eliminate hunger, provide critical medical services or bring art to underserved communities. They may get tax benefits or exemptions for their charitable status, so they can do even more with your contribution.

On the personal level, donating can strengthen your values and reinforce your beliefs. For example, if you're interested in protecting the environment, you might give money to a nonprofit that works to protect endangered animals or decrease carbon emissions. This act demonstrates your commitment and may inspire others to join in the cause.

Charitable giving also comes with certain financial benefits. If you itemize your tax deductions on your income tax return, you may be able to subtract the amount you donate from your taxable income, reducing the taxes you owe.

Charitable organizations and nonprofits can unite people around the changes they want to see in society. They're largely driven by human interests rather than corporate motives. In many cases, they're the sole outlet for people needing help with essential services, such as shelter, food and medical care.

Some nonprofits work to protect individuals' rights, fighting against discrimination in the workplace, at polling places and elsewhere. Others help to defend natural resources and ensure access to safe water, air and outdoor spaces.

Nonprofits also help to increase access to liberal and fine arts. For instance, some museums and theaters may take charitable donations that fund programs at no or little cost to the community. Charities also often sponsor education programming, such as early preschool for children in underserved areas, STEM activities for students without other access or tutoring for struggling high schoolers.

To make charitable giving a sustainable part of your financial plan, you'll need to think through what, how often and how much you'll give. Here are a few tips to get started:

• Donate time or money. While plenty of charities are happy to receive your money, many will also welcome your donated time. Whether you give one or both depends on your financial situation and schedule. Check with your favorite charities and organizations to find out their exact needs and how you can help best.
• Choose an amount to give. Whether you land on donating time or money, be realistic in how much you can sustain. You may donate a percentage of your take-home pay, a specific dollar amount or a set amount of time each week or month. To do that, you'll need to have a good sense of your disposable income and your budget parameters. For instance, if you use the 50/30/20 budgeting method — where you devote 50% of your income to needs, 30% to wants and 20% to savings — you can plot your charitable gifts accordingly. The category you place it in will depend on how you're prioritizing it.
• Determine how you'll donate. When you use a credit card to donate, charities may have to pay processing fees, which can take away from your donation. Cash donations, checks and bank transfers usually don't have extra charges. If you plan on giving regularly, you may even want to consider setting up automatic debit donations. Many charities are open to scheduled giving, so you can prioritize your donations without having to think about it.
• Think about the future. Sometimes charitable giving is a one-time thing or a short-term goal. But it can also be part of your long-term strategy. Giving back can become a part of your legacy by including it in your retirement and estate plans. You may choose to donate assets or property or leave some of your estate to a charity in your will.

Once you've identified what you can give and made sure there's room in your budget, you'll want to take some additional steps before giving to ensure you're donating as effectively as you can.

• Research the organization. Unfortunately, charity-based scams are common, so confirm the group or program is legitimate. Several websites, such as Charity Navigator, evaluate organizations and report on how they use their donations.
• Plan the optimal time to give. You may decide to donate monthly, quarterly or once a year. For instance, you could plan to donate yearly with your tax refund or every time you get cash back from a credit card. You could also wait for any matching opportunities. Some employers will match your giving if you use automatic paycheck deductions for charitable giving, and on Giving Tuesday, many organizations will double or triple the amount of your contribution. In your charitable budgeting, you may want to leave room for one-off donations, such as local fundraisers or collections after an event or disaster.
• Consider how to split your support. You may want to focus on a single organization or divvy your budgeted amount across your favorite causes. In some cases, your money may be able to go further in helping a community reach a specific goal if you make one big contribution, but it can be challenging to pick just one cause to support. One option is giving the largest portion to the organization that means the most to you, then splitting the rest among others.

When you're committed to giving, it's important to work with companies that prioritize charitable giving efforts as much as you do.

Giving back is a core part of what we do at Citizens. As a bank, we are focused on supporting organizations that drive positive climate impact, help build the workforce of the future and foster strong communities across our footprint.  We’re also proud to support our colleagues’ passions and provide them with opportunities and resources to give back through paid volunteer leave, robust volunteer offerings and colleague giving platform and matching gift program. 

Each of us has the power to make a difference. Adopting a mindful approach to your giving will help you make a lasting impact and achieve your goals, financially and for the greater social good. There's no one-size-fits-all for charitable giving. You can make it your own.