Needless to say there are and will always be people, both here on our boards and outside in other circumstances, that will do things for their own personal benefits rather than for the overall good and well being of the majority. None of this is some new trend. It's unfortunate if people are falsely recognized and encouraged when their intentions are anything but pure, however I saw it mentioned a few times that those who deserve praise never get it while those who don't do.
When you're off doing good deeds for the sake of doing good deeds you never stop once to consider the pay off for your actions, nor do you act as though you are deserving of such, you are simply happy to help whether you get "paid off, recognized etc" or not. If you're feeling some how unappreciated it was because you expected something in the beginning and that in itself is making the person no more different than those who do things for the sake of some kind of personal benefit. What should matter is that you are happy to help and find joy in helping others even if they reciprocate it or not.
I don't like the idea of people assuming others are posting "overly nice" posts or "helping" for the sake of attention or personal benefit either. There may be people reading this thread who will be discouraged from being genuinely nice etc because they're afraid people, like those who responded here, may mistake them as "fake" or "attention/ reputation" seeking.
((This is going to be less about specifically this forum and people here, but still applies in general.))
I understand where you're coming from.
I do believe that yes, those who help out of pure intention do not do it for any sort of praise or reward.
But there is a breaking point. You can only do so much for people before you realise how one-sided things can become. If you allow things to lean too far one way, suddenly everyone is
expecting everything from you. It can be so damaging, trying to keep up with these newfound expectations.
Sometimes, it's just hard to be selfless when you're helping the selfish. It can only go on for so long. And I know it's something we've all experienced and felt.
At some point you take a look at the situation and realise;
I've given this, this, this, and this, when are you going to at least return the favour?Life is all about
give and
take, but I don't think for a second that it's wrong for people who've done nothing but give to want to take every now and then.
As for people who may be reading this thread, I don't want anyone to be discouraged, and I'm sure that's not what anyone was going for (I hope). Helping each other is of course, a good thing. That's not what anyone is trying to prevent.
Anyone reading knows their intentions. They know if they have an ulterior motive.
Those people should maybe take something from this thread.
A community isn't a ladder. People shouldn't be so worried with trying to climb to the top. Respect is earned, it's not a given right to people they might see as "at the top."
A community is about the ties between people. We form bonds, and a lot of it comes from helping each other. That is in no way a bad thing, and I never want to make it out to be.
I just hope to see people settle down a bit, sometimes.
You try climbing too fast, you might fall off.