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Scrooge and J.R. Ewing are wrong, selfish people make less money. New research shows that selfish people make less money than generous individuals.
Overall, selfish people earn less than altruistic individuals, as the results of five studies reveal. Moreover, research indicates generous people usually have higher salaries than selfish individuals.
Consequently, people who are interested in others’ wellbeing will make more money and have more children than “skinflints.” In particular, data on over 60,000 people demonstrates that being prosocial will help you make more money.
Selfish People Make Less Money: A Poetic Twist In Irony
Selfish people make less money almost by definition: they are selfish and antisocial. For example, selfish people may very likely have a harder time making business contacts.
In addition, selfish people have a harder time selling and networking. As a result, entrepreneurs should look for “prosocial” people when they recruit employees, partners, and franchisees.
Researchers at the University of South Carolina and Stockholm University examined five studies to get these results. They based the studies on surveys taken in the United States and Europe, Quartz reports.
Selfish People Make Less Money But Being Generous May Not Pay Off
However, simply being generous and highly social will not automatically make you rich. Instead, researchers find “moderately prosocial” people make the highest salaries.
Because of this, people who are generous but also look out for themselves are the most successful. Conversely, one study shows that the most prosocial people will make the most money.
On the other hand, four studies reveal that “moderately prosocial” people make more money than generous individuals. Therefore, maybe being a little selfish can pay off. Or does it really in the end?
Regardless, many of these conflicting studies can make you wonder about things. Perhaps someone should perform a study on how many studies are in agreement with one another on a given subject? It might prove mildly entertaining at the very least.
Selfish People Make Less Money Despite Society’s Expectations
Amazingly, most people do not believe that selfish people make less money. Nevertheless, another study reveals that the majority of people think selfish people make more money.
People believe selfish people are successful because movies, books, and TV shows usually show rich people as selfish. Examples of selfish yet rich fictional characters include Scrooge, Scrooge McDuck, Spiderman’s nemesis J. Jonah Jameson, Dallas’s J.R. Ewing, and The Simpsons’ Mr. Burns.
Oddly enough, a significant amount of research seemingly concludes that those fictional skinflints would be broke in reality since they are selfish. Furthermore, Homer’s generous Christian neighbor Ned Flanders in The Simpsons most likely should be the richest man in a real-life Springfield. Notwithstanding, nothing in life is nearly as simple as these studies often present things to be.
Selfish People Make Less Money Because Giving Is The Key To Success
On a far more significant note, there is research that shows that the key to success is being willing to give without expecting results. In fact, even Wharton School psychologist Adam Grant believes that “givers” are the most successful people.
All in all, Grant’s research shows unselfish givers were the most successful people in different industries. Grant describes being generous without sacrificing yourself as the path to success, Quartz reports.
Being a giver “is not about donating money or volunteering necessarily, but looking to help others by making an introduction, giving advice, providing mentoring or sharing knowledge, without any strings attached,” Grant says.
Altogether, it is Christ’s teachings that light the path to success as we reflect upon them during this Christmas season. If you want to learn how to make money the right way, learn how to give faithfully and charitably.
