Sunday, February 11, 2007
Did I sell my selfishness short?
The topic of today’s post will be philanthropy. Many would view my mission statement as selfish and probably reasonably so. I don’t really list selfish at the bottom of the list for desirable qualities.
Today Danny was skiing in Breckenridge and he hurt himself pretty bad. He got rushed from Breckenridge to Denver in an ambulance. By the time he got to Denver he was stable and they decided to hold him overnight for observation. I made a point to go down and bring him some things he needed and hangout with him during visiting hours. While I definitely enjoy hanging out with Danny going to see him definitely does not align with my personal mission statement. I strongly believe I made a decision that did not improve the EV of my happiness. I do other philanthropic things but I usually do them because I want to and because I enjoy them. This situation is unique because I believe the best way to maximize my happiness was to stay home.
The main reason I bring this up is because it is somewhat eye opening. While the happiness of my friends and family makes me happier there seems to be another factor at play. I seem to be willing to surrender a small amount of my net happiness (my sacrifice – residual joy from a friend) in order to increase the happiness of a close friend significantly. It is hard for me to explain what this means to me now, but I will track this effect on my decision making and see if there is more to it.
Today Danny was skiing in Breckenridge and he hurt himself pretty bad. He got rushed from Breckenridge to Denver in an ambulance. By the time he got to Denver he was stable and they decided to hold him overnight for observation. I made a point to go down and bring him some things he needed and hangout with him during visiting hours. While I definitely enjoy hanging out with Danny going to see him definitely does not align with my personal mission statement. I strongly believe I made a decision that did not improve the EV of my happiness. I do other philanthropic things but I usually do them because I want to and because I enjoy them. This situation is unique because I believe the best way to maximize my happiness was to stay home.
The main reason I bring this up is because it is somewhat eye opening. While the happiness of my friends and family makes me happier there seems to be another factor at play. I seem to be willing to surrender a small amount of my net happiness (my sacrifice – residual joy from a friend) in order to increase the happiness of a close friend significantly. It is hard for me to explain what this means to me now, but I will track this effect on my decision making and see if there is more to it.
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Your visit to Danny in a Denver hospital is congrugent with your mission statement and does not sell your selfishness short.
Your mission statement identifies good friendships as a source of high EV. This is an example of recognizing a 'short-term' high EV needs to be overruled to get a high EV in your top missions. That's why you identify your persomal mission statement!
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Your mission statement identifies good friendships as a source of high EV. This is an example of recognizing a 'short-term' high EV needs to be overruled to get a high EV in your top missions. That's why you identify your persomal mission statement!
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