Charity and Real Estate

While working my other job (the one that I am hoping to make go away once I get Real Estate back on track like it should be), there was an envelope place out for one of my coworkers to buy flowers for his wife and new baby.  I planned on putting a few bucks in, like everyone else.  When I got looking at the envelope it had the names of people who had put money in, as well as my name printed large enough to be seen across the room with a question mark beside it.  I have been on my days off, and sick the two days prior to those, so I haven't been at work for 4 nights.

What irritated me the most is that the whole thing is a donation, and supposedly anonymous at that.  Am I wrong to take offense at this?  If it were to be done so that everyone knew, why not just send out an email saying that everyone needs to contribute $10 or something?  If something is done just to do a nice thing, then really who has to know?  The flowers could be purchased, and a card could be put out (much like the envelope to gather the money to buy them), and everyone that put in and felt like signing the card could do just that. 

I think that it goes to motivation, is the motivation to do something nice? or is it to show the world how nice we are?  In my opinion, the act of kindness is cheapened when the world has to know who performed that act.  If the world finds out through to effort on the part of the doer then it doesn't. 

I think that has a lot do with Real Estate, if our motivation is our client and their interests before our own, great!  If our interest or the commission is our main motivation, I doubt that this realtor will be long for the business.  As for the card, I wrote on a separate post it note: "is this a "required" donation?  If not shouldn't it then be anonymous?  I was just wondering, and signed my name. 

I guess what I am getting at is Charity is a lot like Real Estate, it really comes down to one's motivation.

Have a great week!