Altruism Quiz Results

When life gets busy, it can be hard to find time to help others; nonetheless, it’s important to cultivate and follow through on your charitable impulses. When you do, you are likely to find that giving is its own reward. Research suggests that acts of generosity boost our happiness, and they can cause a chain reaction, motivating not only ourselves but other people to follow suit.

Here are some tips and exercises for cultivating the habit of helping:

• Fill a day with kindness. According to research, acts of kindness have a bigger impact on our happiness when we perform them all at once, rather than sporadically. Pack one day a week with five acts of kindness, such as feeding a stranger's parking meter, donating blood, helping a friend with a chore, or providing a meal to a person in need.
• Get connected.We’re more likely to behave altruistically when we feel close and connected to others. To bolster those feelings, try the Feeling Connected practice, where you reflect and write about a moment when you feel very connected to someone. Also consider adding reminders of connectedness to your home or work space.
• Feel good about giving. Not all giving is creating equal. When we give in ways that not only help others but also make us feel good, we’re more likely to make giving a habit. Research has found that the most happiness-inducing acts of giving don’t feel like an obligation, and they allow us to connect with others and see the impact of our help. So consider choosing activities where you get to spend time with recipients—like helping a friend move or volunteering at a soup kitchen—or donate to charities that clearly explain where your money is going.
• Visualize and reflect on giving. According to Stephen Post, we can expand our everyday habits of generosity with a few simple exercises, including journaling about the ways we give to others and receive gifts from them, and visualizing how we could help people we encounter on a daily basis.