Doing the right thing. These four words, which are so simple when apart, sound so extremely hard to do when put together. In today’s day and age, it has become increasingly difficult to always do what is morally right, as opposed to what other people in society are doing. And yet, aren’t we as humans put on earth to work together and help society succeed as a whole? It seems as if lately people have forgotten the reason we are here on earth.

I am in a philosophy class this semester, and we spend a lot of time talking about morals and virtues. The average person, it appears, has semi-good morals and virtues, yet does not take the time to think about other people before theirs selves. The average person’s goals in life are to get a good, stable job, have enough money to live comfortably, find a husband or wife, settle down and have kids.

Have we forgotten what it is like to truly live? To grab life by the hand and drag it along until you yourself are living as well? If we spend our whole lives only doing what society expects us to do, who are we living for: ourselves, or society? I think we all need to take a moment and think about our personal goals in life. They should not be what is mentioned in the second paragraph. Instead, people need to start doing what they want to do, and when they have found their calling, they need to use that calling to help other people.

For instance, say you want to be a doctor. Do not be a doctor because you get paid a decent amount of money. Become a doctor, and maybe travel to third world countries and help the people there. Or do your best in your home country to help people who may not always be able to afford health care. This may be easier said than done, but there are many ways a person can become a doctor or whatever it is he or she wants to be in life; and still find the means to help other people as well.

There are so many ways we can help other people, and still live the lives we want to live. We do not need to do what society expects of us—because we will never be happy. The people who spend their whole lives trying to make more money without stopping to appreciate the life they are living are very rarely happy. Instead, we should focus on improving our lives and then the lives of the people around us; in order to truly live in a society where we live for each other.