Little Happier: It’s Right to Do the Right Thing, Even When It Makes No Difference

Summary

Happier with Gretchen Rubin: Episode Summary

Episode Title: Little Happier: It’s Right to Do the Right Thing, Even When It Makes No Difference
Release Date: February 10, 2025
Host: Gretchen Rubin
Cohost: Elizabeth Craft
Distribution: Lemonada Media

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Introduction to the Episode

In this thought-provoking episode of Happier with Gretchen Rubin, host Gretchen Rubin delves into the often overlooked but profoundly meaningful concept of performing good deeds without the expectation of tangible results. Joined by her sister, Elizabeth Craft—affectionately dubbed her "happiness bully"—Gretchen explores the intrinsic value of right actions, irrespective of their external impact.

Main Theme: Doing Good Without Expecting Results

Gretchen opens the discussion by addressing a counterintuitive yet essential notion: the importance of engaging in good works solely because they are the right things to do, not because they yield visible or immediate benefits. She emphasizes that the true worth of an action lies in its inherent righteousness rather than its consequential outcomes. This philosophy serves as the cornerstone for the examples and insights shared throughout the episode.

Exploring Perspectives from Literature

Gretchen enriches the conversation by presenting perspectives from three distinguished writers, each reinforcing the episode's central theme through their unique experiences and reflections.

1. Leonard Woolf: The Futility and Rightness of Political Work

• Quote: "Though all that I tried to do politically was completely futile and ineffective and unimportant for me personally, it was right and important that I should do it." (00:59)

Leonard Woolf, an English political theorist and husband of famed author Virginia Woolf, reflects on his extensive political career spanning 57 years. In his memoir, The Journey, Woolf candidly admits that much of his political work seemed "practically nothing," amounting to "150,000 and 200,000 hours of perfectly useless work." Despite this perceived futility, Woolf underscores the moral imperative of his actions, asserting that engaging in political endeavors was intrinsically right and significant, independent of their effectiveness.

2. Christopher Isherwood: The Symbolism of Social Service

• Quote: "The worker nearly always forgets this, Gerald added, because he becomes distracted by anxieties about the material success of his project." (00:59)

In My Guru and His Disciple, Christopher Isherwood shares insights from his time spent in a Hindu monastery under Swami Pravananda in Los Angeles. Referencing writer Gerald Hurd, Isherwood critiques the Quaker obsession with social service projects. Hurd contends that such endeavors are primarily symbolic, with their material impacts being unpredictable or even counterproductive. The true beneficiary, he argues, is the social worker himself, who finds spiritual fulfillment in the act of service regardless of its external outcomes.

3. Thomas Merton: Focusing on the Value of Work Itself

• Quote: "As you get used to this idea, you start more and more to concentrate not on the results but on the value, the rightness, and the truth of the work itself." (00:59)

Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk and esteemed author, conveys a similar sentiment in his correspondence with friend Jim Forrest. Merton advises embracing the possibility that one's work may yield no apparent results or even unintended negative consequences. By internalizing this mindset, individuals can shift their focus from the outcomes to the intrinsic value and moral correctness of their actions. This approach fosters a deeper sense of purpose and alignment with one's ethical convictions.

Conclusion and Insights

Synthesizing the perspectives of Woolf, Isherwood, and Merton, Gretchen Rubin arrives at a profound conclusion: "It's right to do the right thing, even when it doesn't seem to make any difference." (00:59) This mantra encapsulates the episode's essence, advocating for a commitment to ethical actions driven by personal integrity rather than external validation or measurable success.

Gretchen encourages listeners to adopt this mindset, highlighting that while the true impact of their actions on the world may remain uncertain, the alignment with one's values and the personal satisfaction derived from doing the right thing are invaluable. This outlook not only fosters resilience in the face of potential futility but also cultivates a deeper, more authentic sense of happiness and fulfillment.

Final Thoughts

In Little Happier: It’s Right to Do the Right Thing, Even When It Makes No Difference, Gretchen Rubin masterfully intertwines literary insights with practical advice, offering listeners a compelling argument for altruism rooted in moral integrity. By prioritizing the righteousness of actions over their outcomes, individuals can navigate their personal and professional lives with greater purpose and contentment.

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This episode was brought to you by Lemonada Media. For more information, visit lemonadamedia.com.

Transcript

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[Gretchen Rubin]

I'm Gretchen Rubin and this is a little happier in my research, I'm always interested to see a similar idea expressed in different ways by different people. Here's an example from three different writers. They are all commenting on a notion that I think many people might find counterintuitive the idea that we should do good works, we with no regard for the results for others, but only because of the rightness of the action and because it's the right thing for us to do for ourselves. The first example comes from Leonard Woolf. Leonard Woolf was an English political theorist, author, publisher and civil servant, and husband of author Virginia Woolf. Ever since I read this passage from Leonard Wolff's memoir the Journey, not the Arrival Matters, it has haunted me. Here's a lightly edited version of the passage he wrote looking back at the age of 88 over the 57 years of my political work in England, knowing what I aimed at and the results, meditating on the history of Britain and the world since 1914, I see clearly that I achieved practically nothing. I must have, in a long life, ground through between 150,000 and 200,000 hours of perfectly useless work. Though all that I tried to do politically was completely futile and ineffective and unimportant for me personally, it was right and important that I should do it. The next example comes from another memoir from Christopher Isherwood's fascinating memoir, My Guru and His Disciple. The writer Christopher Isherwood is probably best known for his book the Berlin Stories, which was the basis for the musical and movie Cabaret. When I read the memoir, I was surprised to learn that he lived for years in the monastery of the Hindu monk Swami Pravananda in Los Angeles and considered becoming a monk himself. In this memoir, Isherwood wrote a passage in which he discusses an observation by the writer Gerald Hurd. Gerald had also deplored the Quaker preoccupation with social service projects. The Quaker social worker, he said, is unwilling to face the truth that his activity is chiefly symbolic. Its material consequences for the people he is trying to help can't possibly be foreseen and may sometimes be disastrous. The only person who stands to benefit spiritually from the project is the social worker himself. As long as he can remember that he isn't really helping his fellow men but offering an act of worship to the God within them. The worker nearly always forgets this, Gerald added, because he becomes distracted by anxieties about the material success of his project. The third example comes from Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk and author. From a letter to his friend Jim Forrest, here's a lightly edited version of what he do not depend on the hope of results. You may have to face the facts that your work will be apparently worthless and even achieve no result at all, if not perhaps results opposite to what you expect. As you get used to this idea, you start more and more to concentrate not on the results but on the value, the rightness, and the truth of of the work itself. For me, these observations point to the same conclusion. It's right to do the right thing, even when it doesn't seem to make any difference. While we can never really know what the effect of our actions will be on the world, we know that the right action is the right choice for ourselves. What do you think? It's a perhaps counterintuitive point. I'm Gretchen Rubin, and I hope this makes your week a little happier from the Onward project.