Why Being Selfish Is Important

The word "selfish" almost always has a negative connotation (like caring only about yourself while disregarding others) but it's time to rebrand the word to highlight how healthy and productive selfishness can be.

We’ve come to view selfishness as a negative trait in people. It’s been ingrained into a lot of our social habits to put everyone else over ourselves.
Like most, I always tried putting others before myself. I tried to cater to everyone’s comforts and needs. I had gotten to a point where I was so invested in my friends’ and family’s problems that they became a barrier to acknowledging and tending to my own.

When someone needs your help, in any capacity, can you give without it taking a drastic emotional or mental toll on you? If you answer ‘no’, then choose yourself for the time being.

“Nothing resembles selfishness more closely than self-respect.” ― George Sand

We’ve come to view any decision we take for ourselves as a selfish act in a negative light. You say no to someone or something you don’t want, you spend time and money on yourself, you keep a distance from someone who brings you pain or you make someone wait before tending to their question or request: all are examples of socially frowned upon decisions.

And if you think about when somebody says, You're being selfish. All that means is that you're doing something that you wanna do but they don't want you to do. It is crap but we get caught up in negative connotations.

“To be happy, we must not be too concerned with others.”
― Albert Camus

If someone is hurt by your “selfish” act, it is not your responsibility to explain to them the act of self-care. Know your limits and take care of yourself. If you don’t, the life of “give, give, give” will lead to burnout and resentment. In healthy relationships and situations, limits will be respected. If your limits aren’t honoured, the issue isn’t the limits, it’s who or what you are involved with…and I recommend a change ASAP.

You all might have heard this before when you're on an aeroplane, before takeoff the flight attendant always says, "In case of emergency, an oxygen mask will automatically appear in front of you. If you're travelling with a child or someone who requires assistance, secure your mask on first, and then assist the other person."
Life is just like this. Before you try to go and help somebody else, you've got to first help yourself and secure yourself. Some people may call it selfish but if you're panting and hyperventilating in life and you're trying to go and help somebody else, I don't care how good your intentions, chances are you're both not going to make it. There's a reason they say secure your mask first before helping even children.

When the word “selfish” comes to mind, it often sparks negative connotations at first. We think self-centred, self-serving, self-involved. And we’re supposed to avoid thinking only “me and my interests,” right? So instead try to live for the good of all humankind, since giving is taught as preferential to taking?

But the only thing that you have to do is to work on yourself and to fill yourself up and keep your cup full. Only then you can help the other person because as you know, you can't pour from an empty cup. In other words, it means you can't give what you don't have.

Sometimes being “selfish” isn’t a bad thing. There are times when being selfish is the right thing to do for your health and well-being. These are also times when taking care of yourself is necessary.

Many people who focus entirely on give, give, give end up overwhelmed, fatigued, and stressed. And chronic stress has been linked to several health risks, including conditions like diabetes, cancer, and mental illnesses.

You can reduce your stress by being a little selfish now and then and practising some good old self-care.