If you were looking for reciprocation you weren’t being altruistic. The whole point of altruism is that you’re improving the lives of others despite not recieving anything in kind. It’s not meant to be “worth it”.
delete this nephew. Lol
I dunno, when did you stop beating your wife?
It is definitely worth it
Fucking what?
Nothing. It will always be worth it
I realized that people didn’t really give a shit about me and just used me for my skills. I was always there for them when they needed me, but when I asked them for anything they were always busy or had some excuse. I started using the same excuses on them and they all disappeared almost immediately.
I still help people of course: some close friends, some colleagues, my students, but I no longer show myself to be competent in certain things so I can avoid parasites.
Absolutely nothing.
Disappointment in people. Getting spat on the face for not helping more.
I am very very sad to come to the conclusion that sometimes there is a reason why people are “down and out” and that’s because people around them have left.
As other comments have said, “Altruism is the concern for the well-being of others, independently of personal benefit or reciprocity.” To be true to the definition, one wouldn’t seek worth from altruistic actions. If one did however, that’s called being a calculating person.
Anyway, altruism rarely is seen positively in the real world because there’s no worth to be found beyond the deed itself.
It’s quite the opposite. I’m realising more and more as I age, how important it is to be able to cooperate and be nice to others both on individual and societal levels.
Granted, some environments won’t allow for altruism without harming you (for instance, toxic workplaces where unselfishness will be taken advantage of). If I was in an environment like that I wouldn’t change my core values – I’d switch environments.
i ceased to be a human being
If you think being altruistic has to be worth something to do it, then you’re not an altruistic type of person. Being altruistic means doing what one believes is right and helping others regardless of any reward or value gained or lost.
False premise. I default to doing anything within my power for any stranger I can. I only prejudice against those that give me reason. To me, that is part of being an honest person. I can’t fix everyone else, but I can fix me. I will probably die homeless on the street on a cold rainy night eventually. But you know what, when the stranger was out in front of my house last week with a broken chain on his bicycle. I fixed it on the spot. Likewise if I see you having trouble beside the bike trail with a flat or issue, I’ll stop and help. When my neighbor’s water main broke, I was the first person at the street with a wrench to shut off the water even when it couldn’t affect me. If I see a homeless person that is hungry I try my best to get them something to eat or a few dollars to help. When I made really good money a long time ago, I gave a random homeless person a hundred bucks around once a month. I haven’t made a significant dent in the world. It makes me feel a little better to do everything I can when opportunity presents itself. Anything less is foolishness IMO. You are only ever one bad day away from being in the exact same position as the most destitute and unfortunate person you encounter no matter how good your life appears. The magnitude of events varies but there is such a scenario for everyone alive even if they are too dumb to see how such a thing is possible.
Define “worth it”.
