Helping others

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>I go to a competitive HS, and every time I help someone else, whether it be on his or her SATs, essays, homework, etc., I feel as if I am debasing myself. I feel as if that by helping the other person, I'm lowering my own rank by increasing his or her class rank. </p>

<p>This probably just made me sound like a horrible person, but such thoughts do go through my mind. Usually, however, I end up helping the person: I guess life is too ephemeral to worry about class rank and such ... better to feel happy when you see the other person's face light up when you explain something and they get it rather than feel like you have to be the best, you have to shut them down, etc. </p>

<p>Plus, as Rand would say, there is no true altruism. I'm just helping them to propagate my own self-interest. OK, helping them probably isn't helping my class rank, but helping them does help strengthen our rapport ... and helping usually entails leaning really close to them to look at their homework or textbook ... :D. </p>

<p>Does anyone feel the same way as I do?</p>

2

<p>Yes, lol. But I rarely deny people help (I only do so if I’m explaining a concept, and they’re not even paying attention; I’m not going to do a person’s work for them). Plus I feel bad when I understand something and a classmate nearby doesn’t; I feel like it’s kind of my job to help them out since I noticed. Plus, people do the same for me on a regular basis. Honestly, only 3-5 kids in my grade actively compete for the highest rank, and everyone else is just kind of like, “yeahokaywhatever as long as I don’t fail.”</p>

3

<p>I get what you mean, but I usually push that feeling back. not worth living life like that</p>

4

<p>If it helps to skew it into a self-centered act, you could think of helping others as reinforcing your own knowledge. By teaching others, you understand more.</p>

5

<p>I get that too, but i soon realized that explaining a topic to someone else often bolsters your own knowledge of that topic. So now I don’t really stress about it.</p>