Our Society Needs Selfless Leaders

What you can’t do for all, you can do for one.

I am overwhelmed by the issues in our society. The news for 2020 was dominated by viruses, elections, protests, wildfires and hurricanes. It’s early in 2021, but I still hear people I care about be disrespectful to people who have a different point of view from theirs. I get disheartened and feel like the issues of today are just way too big. What can I do?

I once saw a slogan that said: What you can’t do for all, you can do for one. We may not be able to solve the big problems of our society all by ourselves. But we can exercise Selflessness by helping solve the problems of one person. In a society where people seem to love to shout their opinions and try to prove they are right, we need more people who think and behave differently.

We define Selflessness as – Putting the needs of others before my own needs, desires, or convenience. Sometimes our most selfless acts are those focused on an individual need versus a societal cause. Don’t get me wrong, those causes are important. But there are times where we are more willing to argue about a cause than we are to take the time to actually serve another individual human being.

The causes we fight for in public – on social media or at dinner parties – give us an opportunity to share our views on important topics. But what are we actually giving up when we make those arguments? Is there any personal sacrifice involved? If we are honest, usually that answer is no.

When we actually take the time to serve someone else, we often have to ignore our needs, desires or convenience in order to help another person. In today’s world, time is our most valuable commodity. Giving up our time to another individual could be the most selfless thing we do this week.