It’s said that no good deed goes unpunished. Good deeds done for the wrong reasons can yield unexpected, unpleasant consequences.
Most all of us have had that moment of realization when something intended to go “oh, so right” has gone “oh, so wrong” and left us wondering how things had derailed so quickly!
A recent Swiss study indicated that performing acts of altruism causes some interesting neurochemical changes in the brain. In fact, doing good for others stimulates the same part of the brain that is connected to contentment.
It actually does feel good when we do things intended to make others feel good! Additionally, the scientists found that, if participants merely promised to do good, their brains got a jolt of joy as well.
Performing an act of charity – or having plans to do so – pays off instrumentally for the recipient and emotionally for the benefactor. This might reflect a genetic predisposition to engage in behaviors that contribute to the survival of the species.
Oxytocin, the love hormone, bursts onto the scene at childbirth, and this helps us quickly grow to cherish the helpless, bawling baby in our arms. Perhaps these neurochemical events are nature’s way of ensuring that sacrifices for the good of others provides some immediate payback for the giver.
Doing good in this world grows increasingly important as the world heats up and fuses shorten. Do what you can to make the world a better place and, if your random act of kindness triggers gratitude in another and contentment for you, that’s the measure of a job well done.
I’m Suzanne Degges-White, and that’s my perspective.
