Selflessness for Professional and Personal Success
We all learn to look out for number one and watch out for ourselves at some point in our lives. In fact, I believe that the sooner you understand this, the better the chances of your getting what you want earlier, as you’re more assertive over your own interests.
Hopefully, we also learn that self-interest can only take us so far. I know it took me a while to understand this, and so did a friend—the hard way.
For a design contest with a five-digit first prize, I intentionally kept my plans quiet from a long-time collaborator, selfishly wanting to win everything for myself. This probably came from a “collaboration fatigue” that pushed me to accomplish something by myself—even if my frequent partner had skills that complemented mine, and vice-versa.
Come submission day, as we finally saw each other’s work, this complementary reality became even more apparent. His worked lacked my touch, and mine lacked his, so the resulting work was to make a long story short, not our best. In fact we were surprised that we won second and third prize respectively, losing out to a trio also known for their collaborative work.
An interesting anecdote, as it shows how selfishness can work to our disadvantage. It’s clear that their combined efforts could’ve produced a first-place finish. And, as my friend writes, his relationship with his collaborator has grown a little cooler.
How does selflessness contribute to professional and personal success? Well, corporations, think tanks, and the very concept of specialization are based on one thing: that two heads are better than one. Simply put, selflessness involves working with other people, which involves a lot of deferment in terms of ideas and issues. Accepting this reality within an effective team however, has its benefits, as the multi-dimensional talents of the group contribute to the solution.
Selflessness also contributes to the development of personal relationships, whether they stand on their own or as part of a professional interaction. When you show others that you’re willing to give their ideas, assumptions, and beliefs some significant consideration, usually they will be much more willing to do the same to you.
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POSTED IN: Living as a Freelancer
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