You know what they say about man being a social animal. Some of us may prefer to spend our free time alone and not interact with our fellow human beings as much, yet even the most ardent introvert can sometimes feel the loneliness and crave socializing with some nice individuals. The simple fact is that we cannot live and function on our own and be completely cut off from the society at large. No matter how much we may crave solitude and prefer staying in our own shell, we still have to not just interact with people in various ways but also contribute and play our part in the society in different ways. Call it some sort of default setting or something else, but the fact of the matter is that no one can survive by staying isolated from the society in which he/she lives. Just like a particular country cannot function by keeping away from other countries and not carrying out trade/commerce/cultural activities with them, we humans also have to carry out certain activities to meet our various needs. And these needs require us to interact with our fellow human beings, conduct business with or alongside them, learn from and impart knowledge to each other, and many other things.
Collective contribution works in much the same way. Social welfare endeavors are often only successful when a number of people from a community come together and put in their efforts to see a venture through to completion. Furthermore, each and every individual on the face of the earth has unique personality traits and characteristics as well as a special set of skills and abilities. When a number of such diverse people come together to contribute to something collectively, the end result is a highly successful venture (of whatever kind it may be). Not just with regard to volunteering or social welfare efforts, this is how things work in all fields of life. You need the collective contribution of people to run a successful business or to effectively organize and carry out a political/social movement. In the same way, any team in any sport needs the collective contribution of its players to beat opposing teams and win trophies.
With regard to any society, working collectively for the apparent “greater good” is what preserves and sustains life. This is also the hallmark of an alive and vibrant society where individuals are enthusiastic about their shared responsibilities, shared interests, collective purpose, and even a common future.
This might seem somewhat complicated and over the top. But, it is actually quite simple. Shared destiny is what the individuals in a country and society work towards. They do that because they also have some shared interests and collective purpose which can be helped by working together for that shared destiny.
Making our collective contributions for the greater good is an idea that has a long and pretty colorful history. Even though some social commentators may argue that the power and consideration of the collective have somewhat diminished. Intellectual giants from our history have long advocated the need to work together and make our collective contribution to the betterment of society. Both Plato and Aristotle were pretty big supporters of working firmly for the greater good of society. In particular, Aristotle looked at this collective contribution from the lens of a commonly shared happiness, whose major parts included wisdom, virtue, and pleasure.
This is also a great way to help the less fortunate segments of society and provide them half a chance to be able to lead decent and respectful lives. The idea that our collective contribution matters and is important gives us the confidence to get out and play our part for the collective good (greater good) of the society we live in. Besides, being able to work for something like this, be it some sort of volunteer work or social welfare project, gives you a tremendous sense of satisfaction. You also start to feel important when you see that your contribution is actually making a difference and leaving an impact on so many lives. Knowing that you were able to put some smiles on a few faces lifts your mood up considerably and you start to think of more meaningful ways to make an even bigger impact with your collective contribution next time.
Every one of us has a unique set of knowledge, skills, and experiences – and every single one of us can play a significant role and make an important contribution in the overall good of the society. Sometimes, these diverse abilities and experiences just have to be channelized in the proper way to enable the individuals to play their role and make their collective contribution for the greater good of the society.
Lastly, remember that there is always someone somewhere who could do with your help. When you will think about this, we are pretty sure that it will give you the motivation to carry on making your collective contribution for the good of the society.
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