Oriented beyond personal advantage toward a larger meaning, community, or cause.
Reach for it when describing motivation that genuinely reaches beyond the individual self
Her self-transcendent commitment kept the hospice focused on dignity rather than prestige.
| warm | |
|---|---|
| professional | |
| formal |
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| literary |
warm
other-centered
Fits when another person's needs receive deliberate priority
Careful The phrase may imply unhealthy self-erasure if boundaries are absent.
warm
purpose-led
Fits when a larger reason consistently guides choices
Careful A purpose may remain entirely personal or status-seeking.
professional
Fits when concern for others motivates the action
Careful Altruism can describe one generous choice without a wider source of meaning.
professional
service-oriented
Fits when practical contribution structures a role or organization
Careful Service can be transactional and need not transcend self-interest.
formal
Fits when shared identity and collective well-being are the focus
Careful Communal describes organization, not necessarily the motive of an individual.
literary
spiritually expansive
Fits when connection with something larger is explicitly spiritual
Careful The phrase misfits secular purpose and can make a vague mystical claim.
self-transcendent purpose
A self-transcendent purpose linked her research to safer public water.
self-transcendent experience
The vigil became a self-transcendent experience of shared memory.
self-transcendent value
Solidarity was the self-transcendent value organizing their response.
Keep in mind
Self-transcendent does not require religion, martyrdom, or neglect of one's legitimate needs.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Updated
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