| I also used to be interested in effective altruism. They're mostly smart people, and I respect them for sticking to their principles. However, I don't think working at something you feel neutral, or negative, towards, and then donating the bulk of your income, is a path to personal happiness. You need to do more thinking and reflection on your personal values, priorities, and the work you personally find fulfilling, meaningful, worthwhile. It can take years of thinking to figure out your purpose, but it can be done. Try this as a place to start: https://www.romangelperin.com/shop/self-actualizing-people-i... Or maybe this: http://aristotleadventure.blogspot.com/2008/05/what-is-centr... |
https://80000hours.org/articles/comparative-advantage/#shoul...
> Should I earn to give or do direct work?
> We often advise people who say: “I have high earning potential, so I have good personal fit with earning to give, so I should earn to give”.
> But this doesn’t follow. We’re in a situation where we need the right ratio of funders to direct workers, so what matters is comparative advantage. This means you need to compare your earning potential to other people in the community who might do direct work or earn to give.
> If they have even higher earning potential, then you might have a comparative advantage in direct work, even though you have high earning potential compared to people in general.
> Cases like this might be common. There are people doing direct work in the community who could donate over $500,000 per year earning to give. So, even if you have earning potential this high, you might still have a comparative advantage in direct work.
> Of course, some people’s comparative advantage will be earning to give. If it looks like you might be less good than existing people doing direct work, or you have struggled to find work in direct work, we think that earning to give is a great alternative.