What Paying It Forward Really Means

It's close to a month since the day I joined Wealthy Affiliate. I can't remember exactly when but it was during my early days at WA that I first learnt about the Pay it Forward system at WA.

Most if not all of us would have heard the phrase "pay it forward" before joining WA, but it's only after having been around long enough that I am beginning to understand its significance and what it really means.

Having gone through a challenging and busy 4 weeks here I was beginning to feel disillusioned and that prompted me to search for information about paying it forward and today I found this blog post by Carson written one and a half years ago.

https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/carson/blog/paying...

For me, it was important to hear it from Carson himself that Pay it Forward was something that both Kyle and himself had adopted from square one at Wealthy Affiliate. I believe it had been a way of life that had help contribute towards the success of many people at WA.

I can now see how my personal active participation in the tasks that Kyle wants us to do throughout the course of the training, even the website feedback system actually inculcates in me the practice of Paying it Forward.

Most people who joined WA did so for the same purpose although our individual situations and motivations may differ i.e. to learn how to make money online. For some the money situation may be tight, for others more money spells more material comforts, luxurious lifestyles and or more time to spend with loved ones or doing the things they love.

Whatever our situations and reasons may be, we all have a common goal and we are all part of the WA community, and many even call family.

When I first came to WA, I took a brave step into unfamiliar grounds, more like a leap of faith believing that WA would be a good place to be. After trying it out for a week, I decided to upgrade to Premium and try for another month. It had its moments of ups and downs and I'm glad that I had someone in WA to share my honest feelings with.

At this point, I just wanted to pause for a moment and reflect about what paying it forward really means and ways by which we can all pay it forward at WA.

How to Pay it Forward at WA

Firstly, I believe we all want WA to be a great place of learning and sharing of knowledge, where we can feel comfortable and happy doing so, not having to worry about whether our questions or comments are stupid or unimportant.

Anyone, yes anyone at WA, even a day old newbie who thinks he/she is the most ordinary person can do something to make a positive difference to brighten another person's day at WA.

Don't know how to? I just Googled and found these 4 tips from WikiHow :)

1. Be attentive wherever you are for opportunities to help someone.

Do you know someone who is struggling but too afraid to ask or doesn't even know the right questions to ask or who to ask? Offer your help. Check in on them once in a while, like how Kyle sometimes does, just to find out how they are doing. Reassure them and make them feel comfortable that you would be willing to help when help is needed. I had been encouraged by people who had done this for me.

2. Do something nice for someone you don't know (or don't know very well).

That is the true meaning of paying it forward, as opposed to paying back when someone has done a good deed for you. Ok, I have been guilty of returning favours, although that's not a bad thing. :)

But instead of paying them back, pay it forward by doing a good deed for someone else as well. It should be something significant, and not for a person from whom you expect anything in return.

3. Spread the word.

If the person thanks you and wants to "repay" you (that is, pay it "back"), let them know that what you'd really like is for them to pay it "forward"—you'd like them to do something nice for three people they don't know, and ask those three people to do something nice for three more people. Through a little effort by each individual, we will be able to spread the goodness in WA and the world.

4. REMEMBER to Pay it Forward.

When someone has done something for you at WA, make a note in your mind to practice three acts of kindness towards other people, as described in Step 3.

Regardless of our level of knowledge and achievements, do you think that we can all practise paying it forward at WA?

Thank you for reading this! :)