Virtue is its own reward.
This proverb means that being virtuous or doing the right thing is its own reward and does not necessarily require external recognition or praise.
Is Virtue Really Its Own Reward?
Doing the right thing doesn’t always get rewarded. (Oh, you've noticed that!?) In fact, good intentions and actions often backfire, as reflected in the saying, “No good deed goes unpunished.” To quote Ecclesiastes, “There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: the righteous who get what the wicked deserve, and the wicked who get what the righteous deserve.”
But sometimes justice and virtue do prevail. And virtue, it turns out, can be both its own reward and the source of other positive outcomes as well. Recent research plus a variety of studies from past decades suggest that acting on higher values not only has intrinsic rewards but will benefit your health and well-being in other ways, too.
Here are examples of virtuous actions that offer priceless rewards:
1. Find your purpose in life, and sleep like an angel.
2. Even small acts of generous behavior will make you happier.
3. Performing random acts of kindness boosts your happiness level.
4. Expressions of gratitude will increase both happiness and other positive emotions.
5. Good deeds give you “the helper’s high.”
6. Volunteering is linked to longer life, less depression, higher sense of control, and higher rates of self-esteem and happiness.
