Do good deeds for selfish reasons

I agree, that when someone does a good deed and doesn't try to get any credit, or donates to charity anonymously, that's very noble.

But I think we should be way more supportive of people who do good deeds and then actively seek the credit and/or adulation.

If you are getting a blood transfusion, you cannot tell the difference between the selfish blood and the altruistic blood. Drowning people can't tell if their rescuer became a lifeguard just to impress women.

People sometimes react to good deeds with like, "oh he's just doing it because he wants to be the hero." Okay!

If someone is about to run into a burning building to save my life, I don't want them to stop and say "no no no, I'd be doing it for the wrong reasons."

Save my life for your personal ego, please! Whatever motivates you to do good, let it motivate you.

I also think, in a way, it's more narcissistic to care about people having pure motives. If you give to a child poverty charity, then that's about them, right? About the children getting the help they need?

If you think your motivations are important here, then you're making it about you.

(Please note, I am talking about getting credit by society at large, not by the recipient of your good deed. Do not bring a casserole to a bereaved neighbour and then brag to them about how generous you are. They will rightly hate you. But go home and brag to your spouse, for sure. That's what spouses are for.)

Also, yeah, some people will find it obnoxious (although I'm trying to help by writing this). But again, what's better:

• Tangibly improves other people's lives, but obnoxious about it
• Does not improve other people's lives

Next time someone is being really annoying about doing a good deed, try to swallow your irritation and focus on their actions, not their words. (But you've heard that before, right? Actions speak louder than words? This is the other half of it.)

Maybe we will come to a point where everybody is doing so many good deeds all the time that we can start to picky about the contents of their hearts, but until then: by any means necessary.

Do something good for the wrong reasons and be really smug about it. It still counts <3

This piece was originally published in The Whippet #186 – subscribe to get the next one in your inbox!