Nowadays, it has become more frequent to see people prioritize their individual needs and interest above all things, which in some cases is fine and admirable because we can learn from them to pursue achievements.

However, I remember an experience I had with my classmates. We had an exam and we had about a week to study, but there were five students who did not want to take it because they weren’t ready, or that was what they told us. We were around fifty in the class and everyone except them had been studying hard for days to pass the subject, which was one of the hardest. The five students asked the principal to postpone it, but clearly he didn’t accept the request because they did not have strong arguments.

This experience showed me that when individuality affects the common good, it becomes a hindrance for the good performance of society. It brings stress and tension and is part of the typical situations we encounter when interacting with a group of people.

Sometimes individuality is necessary because it is part of the development of a community or a person. I remember once my elementary school teacher read a text to the class. Part of the text said “that formerly goods such as beef were exchanged for coats or wool, and that this action maybe wasn’t because the butcher wanted to feed the other person, maybe it was because he just needed a coat for the winter.” This example is pretty different from the experience I had with my classmates, because in this case individuality contributed positively to the relationship between people, but my classroom experience created discord among people who had studied hard and people who didn’t care about the exam.

In short, I strongly agree that we should respect the individual's actions, as well as think about not only satisfying our own needs, but also contributing to achievements that benefit other members of the community. Surely with time, this gives a unique satisfaction, and it can make more difference than we think.