In a world where many people work hard, compete, and strive to get ahead, acts of kindness are not always abundant. Helping others, especially when it is convenient, is some thing for which many people do not take time. The time it takes to help someone in a small way is not wasted when it improves someone else’s well-being. Acts of helping others also bring joy and satisfaction into the lives of those who practice deeds of kindness.
Truth You have many gifts. You can use them to be of service to another; be it your family, friends, classmates, the school, your neighborhood, the country, and ecology. Never tell yourself you aren’t enough. You have something to offer!
Values People give off themselves for causes that are important to them. Values are what people build their lives on, what identifies their character, and what helps them express significance in daily activities. They are the beliefs and attitudes that guide behavior. Seeing value in helping others is a worthy component in a person, and some people possess this as part of their value system while others do not see the need for it.
Significance Helping others means taking time out to do something for someone else. It may be something someone is unable to do for himself, because of time; finances; or physical disability. Helping others also may be as small as a friendly smile, which may seem insignificant, but can be meaningful and uplifting to the person receiving it. Some people believe that taking time out for others is a waste of effort. Helping others is recognizing that giving is never wasted, and the person who gives can receive much in return.
Benefits An advantage of helping others is giving something to another person who may not be able to help himself. A small act of kindness may be just what a hurting or a tired person needs at that moment. Volunteering provides necessary help for understaffed or underfunded organizations that wish to help people but do not have resources to hire employees. Those in need of help are everywhere: a spouse, next-door neighbor, a stranger at the store or someone in another country. There is no limit to what can be done to help others.
Effects of helping others
Provides assistance for someone in need
Beneficial for the person taking time to help
Those who spend time helping others deal with less symptoms of depression, have better physical health and experience more of an overall sense of satisfaction about life than those who do not consistently help others with their needs
Helping others
Makes a person feel needed, which provides a boost to self-esteem
Helping others
May give someone a new perspective on life by realizing how fortunate he is compared with others in unlucky situations