As social creatures, human beings forge multiple connections with other beings even before we are born. The fact that social intelligence is recognised comes from the fact that we do need others to be able to function fully, as we can share, communicate and exchange.
It is also true that we cannot do everything on our own and hence, we do need other people who possess other skills and who can contribute to keep our lives functioning. If you think about it, there is tremendous interdependence that we have with all those who help us – our house helps, cooks, the society housekeepers, the plumbers, electricians, guards, drivers and so many more.
As a lot of us will testify, the helps/ cooks that we hire are the glue that keeps our house together, as literally and metaphorically, the system falls apart if they do not turn up 🙂
And while we try to reciprocate by helping them earn an income, many of us also try to help them in any other way we deem fit – a most noble thought, and not necessarily because we want to feel important, but because it is the right thing to do.
On the other hand, we do come across folks who think they are born to be given importance, and that the world will not function if they did not give their ‘highly judgemental’ opinions about those that may be less fortunate than us.
Multiple times, we have been witnesses to very strange remarks, like “We don’t want to buy things which are labour class types.”, “Dogs and maids should only use service lifts.”, or even “Why do they need lifts; they can walk up, it is good exercise.” …
Can you imagine your cleaning person, who works in at least five other houses, walking up all the way to the 27th floor to work for you? If it is such good exercise, perhaps many more of those who sit on their cozy chairs all day ought to do this too?
Such statements, which are so brazenly made, reek of self-proclaimed importance and superiority complexes (which have roots in some kind of an inferiority complex). The worst kind of behaviour is when such people, as a means of teaching a lesson, punish them financially.
For genuine cases, everyone deserves it, but just for another person’s whims, this is unfair… We have multiple examples of this too, and we have all seen it too often. Sometimes, there are other ways also to prove points.
What we try to bring is a balanced perspective on things – perhaps a realisation that it takes all kinds to make the world, but really, it takes virtually nothing to be kind!
