Albert Schweitzer said, "There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed." And the ancient Chinese believed that 'a little fragrance always clings to the hand that gives you roses.' One of the greatest lessons for a highly fulfilling life is to rise from a life spent chasing success to one dedicated to finding significance. And the best way to create significance is to ask yourself one simple question, "How May I serve?"
All great leaders, thinkers and humanitarians have abandoned selfish lives for selfless lives and, in doing so, found all the happiness, abundance and satisfaction they desired. They have all understood that all-important truth of humanity: you cannot pursue success; success ensues.
It flows as the unintended but inevitable by product of a life spent serving people and adding value to the world.
Mahatma Gandhi understood the service ethics better than most. In one memorable story from his life, he was traveling across India by train. As he left the car he had been riding in, one of his shoes fell to a place on the tracks well beyond his reach. Rather than worrying about getting it back, he did something that startled his travel companions; he removed his other shoes and threw it to where the first one rested. When asked why he did this, Gandhi smiled and replied: "Now the poor soul who finds the first one will have a pair that he can wear."
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