How Ethics Can Help You Make Better Decisions | Michael Schur | TED

Summary

The speaker, a television comedy writer for 25 years, recounts a personal experience from 2005 that sparked a passion for ethics. After a minor car accident, he offered to donate money to Hurricane Katrina relief if the other driver didn't file a claim. His self-righteous campaign backfired, leading to an ethical dilemma. This prompted him to delve into moral philosophy, studying thinkers like Kant, Aristotle, and utilitarians to better understand decision-making and human behavior. He emphasizes the importance of preparing for moral dilemmas by understanding ethical theories to improve our chances of making better decisions in complex situations.

Takeaways

• 📺 The speaker has been a television comedy writer for 25 years but found a passion for ethics in the last decade.
• 🤣 His humor is self-deprecating, admitting to being an intense rule follower even from a young age.
• 🚗 A minor car accident involving his wife led to a moral dilemma that sparked his interest in ethics.
• 💸 The speaker tried to convince the other party in the accident to forgo a claim by offering a donation to a relief fund, escalating the offer significantly.
• 🤔 He questioned his actions when he felt a sense of unease and shame about pressuring someone into a deal that seemed unfair.
• 📚 The incident led him to delve into philosophy, seeking wisdom from renowned ethical theories to understand his actions better.
• 🧐 He learned about Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative, which emphasizes the importance of universalizability in moral decisions.
• 🤝 Aristotle's virtue ethics taught him about the importance of having virtues in the right measure, which he felt he lacked during the incident.
• 🌐 Utilitarianism offered a perspective that initially justified his actions by focusing on the overall happiness created, but also highlighted the potential negative societal impact.
• 📝 The speaker started a blog about the incident, which garnered significant attention and pledges of donations, but also led to introspection.
• 🙇‍♂️ He ultimately apologized to the other party, realizing the moral complexity of his actions and the importance of ethical understanding.
• 🌟 The speaker concluded that studying ethics prepares us for the inevitable moral dilemmas in life, emphasizing the value of ethical theories in guiding our actions.

Q & A

What was the speaker's profession before becoming interested in ethics?

The speaker was a television comedy writer, having written sketches, animated shows, and sitcoms for almost 25 years.

What event triggered the speaker's interest in ethics?

The speaker's interest in ethics was sparked by a car accident incident in 2005 where he felt he had made a significant ethical mistake.

How did the speaker's wife, JJ, get involved in the car accident incident?

JJ was driving in slow-moving traffic and bumped into the car in front of her, which led to a subsequent dispute over damages.

What was the speaker's initial reaction to the car damage claim?

The speaker felt the claim was exaggerated and tried to convince the other party that it was not worth pursuing, even offering to donate money to a relief fund in his name instead.

How did the speaker's approach to the car damage claim escalate?

The speaker started a blog, gained media attention, and received pledges from people across the country, totaling over $25,000, if the claimant would drop the claim.

What ethical theories did the speaker explore after the incident?

The speaker explored Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative, Aristotle's virtue ethics, and utilitarianism by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill.

According to Kant's categorical imperative, what should guide our actions?

According to Kant, our actions should be guided by a maxim that we could will to be universal, considering the potential consequences if everyone acted in the same way.

What does virtue ethics suggest about the qualities we should have?

Virtue ethics suggests that we should cultivate certain qualities such as generosity, courage, friendliness, and mildness, and practice them to achieve the right balance.

What is the core principle of utilitarianism?

The core principle of utilitarianism is to create more happiness and pleasure than pain and suffering, focusing on the overall outcome of our actions.

How did the speaker resolve the car damage claim situation?

The speaker called the claimant, apologized, explained the situation, and offered to cover the cost of the repair, which led to a resolution and a sense of relief.

What was the final outcome of the money pledged through the blog?

In the end, more than $25,000 was donated to the Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, despite the ethical concerns raised by the speaker.

Why did the speaker continue studying moral philosophy after this experience?

The speaker continued studying moral philosophy to better prepare for complicated moral dilemmas that one might encounter in life, aiming to make better decisions and become a better person.