Are We Morally Obligated to Do Remarkable Things?

NOTABLE POINTS OF DISCUSSION:

“remarkable” can mean many different things to different people. for someone it could be taking care of themselves, for someone else it could be taking care of another person, for another it might be saving the world
selfishness and selflessness are inseparable, there are no truly selfless acts. however this is not a bad thing and should not be seen as such. selfishness and selflessness exist within each other, though it is definitely possible to be a selfish person if one dives too far into that realm
we are not morally obligated to get people out of their habitual negativity. despite our best wishes to help them, it is something one must do for themselves, else they will likely drag us down into their hole
everyone has different timelines, comparison is damaging to our psyche. we will have periods where we are unable to do remarkable things and that is okay and normal
everyone has a role to play in this world, no matter how small and mundane it may seem. it is up to the individual to determine what they are able to do with what they were given in life in a way that benefits our society. trying to be more than one can possibly be is not necessary nor the best route. part of playing your role is taking it with humility and understanding how important it is for the world, regardless of what it is

we thought of specific things we could do in our own lives that we consider to be remarkable for us. some of the things members wanted to accomplish include:

starting a healthy nuclear family
facing insecurities head on rather than avoiding them with distractions
helping parents grow / shift their mindsets
living a net positive life, meaning doing more good than harm overall
giving back more or at least as much as one has taken
becoming a safe space for people to talk to
finding solutions to very small, mundane life problems that make life flow better in day to day activities, for example keeping medicine on the nightstand so that one will remember to take them every day
intentionally dating with the plan to create a family and build a life with someone

QUESTIONS WITHOUT CLEAR ANSWERS:

what can you, as an individual, realistically do tomorrow that would be a remarkable act in reference to your current situation? how can you build on top of it in the future?
how will our actions affect future generations?
should we plan our choices keeping in mind the people who will live hundreds of years in the future?
should every decision we make reflect our remarkable goals/intentions/values? are there some things that simply don’t matter enough to make an impact?

RELEVANT MEDIA:

“Dr. John Peterson - How to Destroy Your Negative Beliefs,” Modern Wisdom Podcast Episode

“Caring About Future People is Common Sense with William MacAskill” on The Daily Show

THE GENERAL CONSENSUS:
The question “are we morally obligated to do remarkable things,” uses specific vocabulary that makes it easy to say no to. Specifically the word “remarkable” is what seemed to turn some members' answer to an immediate no, but one thinker at the discussion had done a deep dive into the definition of each word and shared what she found with us (loosely as follows):

morally: with reference to the principles of right and wrong behavior (in a way that is considered right according to the code of behavior of a particular society).

obligated: bind or compel (someone), especially legally or morally.

remarkable: worthy of attention; striking.

By dissecting the meaning of each individual word, our thinker was able to consider what it literally meant and reconstruct it in a way that made more sense to her. What she gathered was that although the original words used in the question are quite strong and pointed, it really means are we supposed to feel responsible for creating more goodness in the world? and from this view, we feel it is an easy yes.

Something that is a remarkable act is subjective to the actor and their current situation. Remarkable could mean saving the world, but it could also mean taking a shower or going to work in the morning or reading a book. There is no way to group things that should be labeled remarkable and which things should not fall under that category. Everyone lives inside their own timeline, and trying to compare the actions of another against one’s own is more often than not a damaging blow. Some periods of our life we may be able to climb mountains and cure illnesses, and at other times all we can do is brush our teeth at night. Knowing that our abilities to do certain things will constantly fluctuate throughout life is good, but it is better to truly understand what that means and be okay with the lower periods when they come and be able to wait for them to pass.

But why should we feel responsible for doing more good? Why should it fall upon us when there have been so many before us who have done terrible things and made our lives harder? There is a slight selfishness to anything we do. We generally act out of self-interest, even the selfless services are tainted with selfishness to some degree. It is impossible to separate the two fully, there is no completely selfless action. And they don’t need to be seperated, they can work together and compliment each other in a way that is good for both giver and receiver. This is not to say that selfishness is a good quality or that selfish people don’t exist and cause harm. There are ways to push either side too far, it must be a balance. Regardless of what people have done in the past, acting out of their own overly selfish desires, we are alive today and must live with whatever has happened to us. People that have caused great harm to others also inflicted that harm unto themselves. They had the responsibility to do good things and they chose not to, and in turn they hurt themselves just as much as anyone else they may have hurt. We can learn from their lives and find ways to create a better world. For us, being responsible for doing more good means improving our own wellbeing while promoting it for those around us as well. It benefits both parties, and when we begin to do things that make us feel better, we will want to extend that to others and help them feel better.

However, it is not our responsibility to pull others out of their hole. Many of us have tried to help someone overcome their demons and somehow manage to make things worse or get bogged down by the negativity. Although it is painful to sit back and watch someone struggle, they must pull themselves out of it by their own will. We can aid in subtle ways, but at the end of the day it is up to the person suffering to walk the path leading out rather than continue going in circles. Inversely, we must also realize that no one else is going to save us, even if they want to. We must do the work ourselves when we are stuck in habitual negativity.

Everyone has a role to play in their life. Teacher, mother, gardener, listener, widower. An individual is composed of many different roles for many different situations and periods of life. A mother is not always a mother. But each role is equally important as any other, regardless of how mundane or silly it may feel. Fulfilling one’s role is part of the responsibility to do more good. By acknowledging what you are realistically able to accomplish with your current situation, you can find the ways of doing good things within your role that are mutually beneficial for you and others. It is easy to want to do more than you can, to feel like you have to do more than you are capable of in order to be “enough,” but there is no need to overstep your limits to do good things. Most of being a remarkable person is simply paying attention to the smallest details and finding ways to improve them.

Overall, the group decided that yes, we are morally obligated to do remarkable things. May all beings benefit from virtuous actions.