Overcoming decision overwhelm with effective altruism
This philosophy can help you find your way
The battle between the head and heart is a tale as old as humankind. From considering career moves to making choices about where to spend our money, some decisions leave us feeling so conflicted that no amount of “pros and cons” lists or nights spent “sleeping on it” will reveal a clear way out of our conundrum. We simply can’t see the forest for the trees. Amidst a dispute between your emotional self and reasoning self, the philosophy of effective altruism can push you out of a paralysing stasis and set us onto a clearer path.
Popularised by philosophers like Peter Singer and William MacAskill, effective altruism encourages us to pinpoint which choices will result in the highest amount of impartial, positive impact.
“Huh? How will this help?” I hear you thinking. “Sometimes I struggle to make decisions about what to wear in the morning, never mind decide which actions will have the most overall good for the entirety of humanity! ” (Don’t worry, me too.) Yet, the effective altruist view is a powerful source of comfort and guidance in times in which we feel overwhelmed by major life choices.
Decision-making is challenging because our emotional states profoundly influence our ability to discern what is best for us and for those around us. Our urge to protect ourselves and our loved ones from uncomfortable and painful emotions and situations will always influence our decisions, for better or for worse, and we might not thoroughly consider how our decisions truly influence the world at large.
To be able to make a “good” decision, we first have to define what exactly that means. How, then, do we define a good decision?
This is a step that is often forgotten, but to which effective altruism has an answer: Good decisions are those that have the most impartial, positive impact. In other words, good decisions create an improved state of being for humanity, and treat everyone equally.
While you might want to run away from this viewpoint when you’re debating something that seems like a purely personal battle, this view can be hugely valuable once you open up your mind to it. The aim of effective altruism is to encourage individuals to contribute positively to society in the best possible way, but it simultaneously shares messages that have a profound potential to nudge us out of our state of overwhelm…
Effective altruism says… “You are not alone.”
From a mindset of isolation to a community-based outlook
When stuck between choices, the message of effective altruism reminds you to look beyond the self — there, you will find answers and comfort.
Simply finding the courage to wake up every day and say, “I want to do some good today” is incredible in itself. However, given the extent of the challenges we face today, effective altruism encourages us to zoom out to identify in which ways we might have the most impact on the world around us. Through doing so, it also reminds us that we are one piece of the much bigger puzzle of humanity.
When you are feeling overwhelmed, this can take you out of yourself to see the issue you are facing with fresh eyes or let you know that others might have faced the same challenge. It will provide you with the broader perspective you need or open up an entirely new option that you hadn’t thought of before. From this place of community-based thinking, we are much better placed to make positive decisions.
Effective altruism says… “You are valuable.”
From a lack of confidence to the realisation of your most valuable skills
When you’re feeling lost, effective altruism is a form of empowerment. It uncovers the true value of you and your skills.
Between wars and pandemics, and amidst the climate crises and devasting natural disasters, it’s normal to feel that you have little power to make a difference or lose confidence in the significance of your work or skills. Effective altruism reminds you of your capacity to make a difference.
If you have the privilege of being well-educated, and desire to positively impact the lives of current and future generations, then effective altruism lets you know that your skills could create a bigger impact than you realise. For example, if you’re working in sales or marketing, you could use your skills to increase the awareness of companies working to solve high priority global issues.
Effective altruists identify issues to focus on that are large in scale, yet are not given the attention they really deserve or require — in this way, their work creates huge impact. For example, if you are a researcher you might focus your efforts in the field of AI ethics, which is an under-researched area that will become increasingly important in coming decades. Effective altruists also believe that this might be our most important century yet, and we have a huge potential to do a lot of good with our careers.
So whether you’re considering a decision like a career change or simply figuring out how best to spend your time, being reminded of the potential you have to make an impact might just be the push you need. When stuck between career options, you might realise that one is more beneficial than the other, or even find that an entirely new area that is worth focusing on instead. When procrastinating and uncertain where to focus your time and energy, effective altruism will remind you of your potential and help you to find your answer.
Effective altruism says… “You’ll be okay. Here’s your plan.”
From total paralysis to taking action
When we are faced with pivotal life decisions or an overwhelming array of options, effective altruism provides a roadmap. It offers us a process of prioritisation.
Our emotion and our supposed rationality can never be separated — and most of us wouldn’t wish for that — and despite the obvious advantages of using rationality to make decisions, we simply are not wired this way. (To clarify, we aren’t wired at all.)
Effective altruism allows us to step back and just… follow the map. There are tonnes of resources on effective altruism and clear guidance for making career decisions from the movement’s supporters. With many life decisions ultimately coming down to question about where we should we spend our time, effective altruism makes it clear and simple: the place that does the most good for everyone.
At first glance, effective altruism seems to foster more anxieties than it helps to resolve them. Why would we think about the entire world when struggling to decide where to apply for jobs? Why would I think about effective altruism when deciding where to spend my money? However, ultimately the principles of effective altruism provide us with clear guard rails for us to support ourselves with as we walk along the rocky journey we call life. In aiming to have larger impartial impact on the world, in return we will also support ourselves.
When faced with tough decisions, effective altruism is there to help us to feel less alone, recognise the value of our skills, and create a plan that enables us to use those skills in the best possible.
In our efforts to make a difference, we don’t need to forget the inherent value of the small stuff (a smile on the tube, a text message to a friend in need of support, etc.) but, through effective altruism, we can make better choices and recognise how much we have to offer the world and how truly powerful we have the potential to be.
