The selfish altruism
I have devoted a nice slice of my holiday to do some volunteer work. Before long, I found myself questioning my move. Why the fuck am I doing this for free when people elsewhere are getting paid $20/hour to work? And that leads to my sincerity being questioned. Exactly how sincere am I with this? After some thought, still pretty sincere but not entirely.
I have learnt that we are all driven by incentives after having read Freakonomics. True enough, it applies to our every act and decision. So, in brutal honesty, I did not decide to volunteer because I just thought it would be nice to perform some sort of act out of absolute virtue but more so, it provides me with incentives. It keeps me active, it expands my social circle and knowledge, it breaks my routine, it polishes my curriculum vitae, it adds something new to my life. Furthermore, it makes me feel (incredibly) good to think I'm making little positive changes to the world (ie. the community, environment, or whatever cause I decide to volunteer for) and that I've sort of brightened someone else's day by doing them some sort of minute but helpful/kind enough favour. It's almost like a mini spiritual satisfaction. Or at least that's what I'd like to think.
Take away the incentives, I do not think I, or anyone else really, would bother with volunteer work. It's a horrible thing to admit. Therefore, I shall counter that with a quick justification. Even in the absence of true sincerity, some altruism is still better than none. End of discussion.
I have learnt that we are all driven by incentives after having read Freakonomics. True enough, it applies to our every act and decision. So, in brutal honesty, I did not decide to volunteer because I just thought it would be nice to perform some sort of act out of absolute virtue but more so, it provides me with incentives. It keeps me active, it expands my social circle and knowledge, it breaks my routine, it polishes my curriculum vitae, it adds something new to my life. Furthermore, it makes me feel (incredibly) good to think I'm making little positive changes to the world (ie. the community, environment, or whatever cause I decide to volunteer for) and that I've sort of brightened someone else's day by doing them some sort of minute but helpful/kind enough favour. It's almost like a mini spiritual satisfaction. Or at least that's what I'd like to think.
Take away the incentives, I do not think I, or anyone else really, would bother with volunteer work. It's a horrible thing to admit. Therefore, I shall counter that with a quick justification. Even in the absence of true sincerity, some altruism is still better than none. End of discussion.
