.png){kind=small}
It definitely doesn’t have to be one or the other. In fact, existing exclusively as one or the other can lead to failure.
If you orient yourself too fully to business, which seems like the smartest thing to do, there will be lines that you will be crossing, of questionable morals and ethics. And while you could keep going in such a way, it will be causing numerous problems for you to tend to or attempt to ignore. The chances of it imploding or you breaking under the pressure would continue to increase. Until it happens. (And if you’ve got any conscience, you wouldn’t enjoy that sort of existence.)
Alternatively, orienting yourself too fully to charity, which seems like the noblest thing to do, whether in the strict or wider sense of the word, can have you adopting beliefs against the very actions that would take you further or at least keep you afloat. And if providing for others is your intention, you must put and maintain yourself in positions that allow you to. The same or better. Instead of ceasing to exist.
You can find a balance and incorporate both attitudes into what you’re doing. Without any guilt or shame. The how would depend on what is it you do, which strategies and tactics would best suit it, taking into account what is relevant for its success. Whether you’re (re)introducing something or adjusting based on current offer and demand.
Naturally, you would have a stronger inclination to one than another side. And perhaps, despite knowing better, you are perpetually compelled to keep inching toward it. It can be as relieving to treat everything as a transaction as it can be relieving to treat everything as a contribution. But there comes a point where you must pull back to the other side. It doesn’t have to be an equal distribution. You don’t have to sit precisely in the center. People are born to deal with one side more than the other. And if it’s simply not in you, you can delegate it.
What comes easiest to you? What invigorates you the most and barely ever tires you? This could be circumstantial, and you could have different answers at different periods, as your brain pushes to activate and develop in various sections. But there may ultimately be a default for you to lean into.
CREDIT: AI-Generated Examples done on Leonardo.AI
