Reflecting on Altruism 

To begin with living an altruistic life we can take some time to reflect on what altruism means to us. Some questions to begin your reflections could include the following. 

🔹 What is altruism? 

🔹 Why is it important to me? 

🔹 Why is it important for the world? 

🔹 How do I know when I am being altruistic? 

🔹 How do I know when I am not being altruistic? 

🔹 How does it feel when I am more focused on other’s well-being? 

🔹 How does it feel when I am only focused on my own happiness, needs and wants? 

As you are attending to your normal life activities, interactions and relationships, begin to observe your actions, thoughts, and underlying motivations. Notice how many of your thoughts and actions you would consider to be altruistic, or concerned with the wants and needs of others, and how many are more self-centered, focused on your own wants and needs. It is important to not only look at the big things, but also the small actions and thoughts throughout your day. You may want to keep a log so that you can see patterns over the next week as well. For now, just observe, notice, and log, but do not try to make any changes. We are simply taking an inventory, so that we can learn to observe ourselves more clearly and objectively.