You must have heard of the golden rule often in your life. It is a moral philosophy principle that you should treat others as you want to be treated. For that, you extend the same courtesy to others. If you don’t want others to disrespect you, don’t disrespect them. The golden rule has existed in many religions and cultures, for years, in various versions, preaching the same principle of treating others as you want them to treat you.
What Are the Different Forms of the Golden Rule?
There are principal forms of the Golden Rule:
Positive Form
This interpretation of the golden rule simply states that treat others as you want to be treated. For instance, if you want others to be polite to you, treat them with politeness.
Negative Form
The negative interpretation of the golden rule states that you should not treat others like you wouldn’t want to be treated. For example, don’t be disrespectful to others if you don’t want them to be mean to you.
Empathic Form
The empathic version of the golden rule says that when you wish something on others, you also wish it on yourself. An example of an empathic form would be when you hope for the well-being of others; you also wish for your well-being.
How Do You Treat Others as You Want to be Treated?
Do you consider others as you would like others to view you? Can you feel about people as you would like others to think about you?
Treat Others How You Would like to Be Treated
You must treat everyone with respect, honor, and dignity. It is unfair that you demand what you do not deliver. You will find yourself in situations where people unintentionally hurt you or cross a limit and fail to see their fault. Instead of chastising them for it, help them change their minds. Teach them the error of their ways and thought processes. Assist them in evaluating the repercussions. It is essential to understand others and feel empathy for them. You should constantly be open to seeing their side of the story and compassionate for what they may be going through.
Regard Others as You Would like to be Considered
When you find yourself in a better situation than others, avoid thinking or speaking pityingly about them. You must look for the good in people rather than the bad. Comparing yourself to others and trusting their judgment to determine your level of success or happiness is not a healthy strategy. If you want to support someone less fortunate, do so out of love, not pity.
Feel for Others as You Would like Them to Feel for You
Our brains are naturally thinks negatively, so it stands to reason that we find it much more convenient to hang on to negative feelings than positive ones. But harboring such a negative mindset only makes it difficult to trust and love others. Many situations warrant people the benefit of the doubt. So, make an effort to think positively about others.
Speak To and About Others the Way You Want to be Spoken To and About
Everyone is complex, and you cannot fit them all in a single box. When recounting an event, tell the objective version, where all people have substance and compassion. Talk to people about your life, not someone else’s, because you dislike them. If you can’t say something good, don’t say it.
Respect even Those You Deem Unworthy of it
You will come across people in life who don’t deserve your respect. People who made you out to be the bad guy in a situation or went out of their way to destroy your reputation. You want to treat them the same way, but you should still show them respect regardless of how reasonable it may seem to do otherwise. It does not make you weak. It is a reflection of the strength of your character. You don’t know what motivated them to act this way, but you can choose to respond differently to the situation and offer them compassion instead.
Limitations
You want to treat others as you want to be treated, but how do you know if that’s what people want? Maybe they don’t want you to treat them the way you want others to treat you. For instance, you might feel good making a blatant romantic gesture toward someone who doesn’t reciprocate your feelings merely because you think someone would do the same for you. Another platinum rule states you should treat others the way they want you to. But this may require you to violate your values.
Other moral principles are also in conflict with the golden rule and the platinum rule. For example, if someone committed a crime, these two guidelines would advise that you let them go because that is what you would want for yourself or that you let the prisoner go because that is what the prisoner would prefer. In such circumstances, these principles may cause more harm than good.
Take Away
Treating others is one of the fundamental principles that guide how people should behave with one another. It grants respect, love, and kindness to everyone. However, it is imperative to remember that others may not want you to treat them the way you want others to treat you. The only optimal solution is to view this principle as a guideline rather than an absolute law.
FAQs
What is it called to treat others the way you want to be treated?
It is the golden rule of philosophy. It simply means if you want respect and kindness, you should treat others the same way. If you don’t want people to be mean to you, don’t be mean to them. And if you wish good to happen to you, you should wish well for others, too.
Why is it important to treat others how you want to be treated?
It allows you to treat everyone well. People who do horrible things to others have frequently been victims of some unkindness in the past. Due to this, people are unmotivated to do good to anyone except themselves. People cannot care to be kind if they grew up around unkind people. A psychological principle states the law of reciprocity is the idea that treating people nicely allows us to be treated nicely in return. It has the potential to make the world a better place.
Who said treat others the way you want to be treated?
This phrase is associated with a Bible verse, Matthew 7:12. But it has been a part of many cultures and religions throughout history in various forms. The underlying principle of this phrase is present in the teachings of all major religions like Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Philosophers like Aristotle, Epictetus, Confucius, and Zoroaster have also preached the essence of the golden rule in their teachings.
Why is it important to treat others with respect?
According to Immanuel Kant, you owe respect to everyone because everyone has dignity. You must acknowledge their dignity in how you treat them. Treating others with respect will ensure that you are respectable too. It essentially enables you to treat everyone with respect.
What is the golden rule of respect?
According to Immanuel Kant’s ethical theory of respect, all people deserve respect simply because they are people, that is, free rational creatures. According to him, respect is the recognition in attitude and behavior of the dignity of humans as ends in themselves. Essentially, every human has dignity, and people should recognize each other’s dignity in how they treat one another. So be careful how you treat others, uplift them, and seek good wherever possible.
How do you use the golden rule in life?
There are various ways you can use the golden rule in life:
- Imagine yourself in other people’s shoes to assess their situation with an open mind.
- If you can understand what someone is going through, try to help them in whatever way you can.
- Ask people how they want to be treated in a situation. It is the platinum rule.
- Take the time to listen to others.
- Try to see past prejudices.
- Resist the urge to control other people’s behavior.
- If people mistreat you, continue to treat people with kindness instead of retaliating.
What does God say about treating others?
God says to treat others as you want to be treated in Matthew 7:12.