Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Maybe the Me Generation was right all along

While watching Julie and Julia (an excellent movie if you're thinking about renting it--Nora Ephron=genius.) the other day, someone posed a question to me: Are all successful people selfish?

My immediate answer: Yes.

I think selfishness has gotten a bad wrap. Even Merriam-Webster is out to get it! Perhaps I should submit an addendum to the definition, because I believe that selfishness is an integral part of mental health.

In order to be selfless, one has to be selfish. I can't save you from drowning if I don't know how to swim. My cooking skills suffer when I'm dying of starvation. In order for me to help you, I must first help myself.

I know that there are plenty of acts of selfishness that hurt people and destroy lives. I just think that some acts of selfishness are necessary and good as long as they don't harm others.

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