Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference Kindle Edition

Now this book is the kind of thing that can change your thinking radically - yet its conclusions are so evident that you wonder why nobody thinks about the topic this way.

Doing Good Better is well-written and well-researched. For people familiar with the subject matter there will be some repetition. However, I was positively surprised that compared to Peter Singer's 'The Most Good You Can Do', MacAskill's book is really full of new information and new ways of thinking about things.

MacAskill breaks effective altruism down into five key questions and a few core topics. Each of them is illustrated with examples that are actually good to know. That's a key difference to 'The Most Good You Can Do'.

For example, the chapter on ethical consumerism tells you which popular climate-saving measures are not really helping much (and which are) and the chapter on expected value helps you figure out which risks are worth taking, e.g. how bad it is to ride a motor bike compared to using ecstasy. The careers chapter contains some options I might actually try.

All of this culminates into a pretty decent understanding of how to make a big difference.The book ultimately provides ways to get involved with the effective altruism movement.

A read that's both entertaining and indispensable if you want to make a difference.

This is a superb introduction to effective altruism.

 Doing Good Better is an excellent introduction to effective altruism.

As a 78 year old codger, I've spent the almost five years since my wife's death mourning and then selling off real estate and other assets to simplify my life, being sure my family's and my own needs are met, and devoting the balance to charitable giving -- something my wife and I agreed on throughout her long illness -- we had plenty of discussions about the matter.

 Doing Good Better is superb at introducing some basic concepts. So far I've worked out a three step program to determine my own "effectiveness", using four different charitable organizations as training wheels. I plan to take a long ocean trip next January to decide on how to proceed on this life journey next year and for as long thereafter as possible.

Step one -- raise money with the goal of obtaining additional funds from others. For example, issue a one for one challenge grant -- for each dollar you donate, I will match with one dollar. Financial ratio: 1.0 -- your funds divided by my funds donated, both of us to the same charity (although I am going to experiment with a criss/cross, where you donate to my charity and I donate to your charity). So far, in 18 projects, my financial ratio has ranged from a negative 1.0 to an average of 6.4 -- trending higher as I gain experience.

Step two -- take into account my time invested. Compare time invested with financial return ratio. It takes almost no time to subscribe to Amazon's great Smile program which matches my purchases with a donation of 0.5% from Amazon at no cost to me. Small potatoes, sure, but a great financial return -- infinite really -- with only ten minutes invested. And, talking the program up with others. So far, $38 donated this year to the Trail Conference. Obviously, bigger returns are worth more investment of time; but small returns with big investment of time is not so good, unless there are other factors in play.

Step three -- rate each project on intangibles from 1 to 5 stars. A 1 for a miserable return on investment of time and money and a failure to analyze the failure for what went wrong and how I could do better in the future. 34 years of caregiving taught me that I make many, many mistakes, but if I analyze the reasons and find a way to do better in the future, I can turn that 1 into a 2.

5 stars means a great financial and time return and a great intangible feeling of success -- whatever that feeling may have come from.

I will apply additional lessons from this fine book, and report on my progress or lack thereof as time goes on.

Robert C. Ross
August, 2015

It will probably come as no surprise to many readers of this review that The Charities Aid Foundation lists the United States as the most charitable nation in the world. We are now and have been a generous people both with our time and treasure.

My guess is that many people reading this review are charitable people who want to know if their hard earned money is well spent when they give it to their favorite charity. In his new book, William MacAskill, cofounder of the Effective Altruism Movement, gives us a thoughtful method for determining what charities will make best use of our contributions and make a genuine difference for good in the lives of desperate and destitute people.

In Part One of his book he answers these questions:
1. How many people benefit, and by how much?
2. Is this the most effective thing you can do?
3. Is this area neglected?
4. What would have happened otherwise?
5. What are the chances of success, and how good would success be?

In order to accurately answer these questions, economists have developed a metric called the quality-adjusted life year (QALY). Time and again MacAskill will use this metric to highlight effective and ineffective organizations. Toward the end of his book he gives us a list of those charities that pass the QALY muster such as GiveDirectly, Deworm the World International, Against Malaria Foundation, etc.

Part Two of MacAskill's book shows us Effective Altruism in Action. From beginning to end he tells us interesting stories about people who make a difference for good. He makes the point repeatedly that even small contributions that are well placed can significantly impact the quality of life of poor and sick people. He often challenges our assumptions about strongly held beliefs such as that we should avoid purchasing products made in sweatshops. We are not wrong about the dreadful conditions in many of these workplaces, but the true fact is that work in a sweatshop is much to be preferred over even worse alternatives.

As we think about our own pattern of giving to charity, MacAskill encourages us to establish a regular habit of giving and to evaluate carefully whether our time spent serving in a charitable organization or working to earn money to give the organization is more valuable. We need to plan carefully what we will do to incorporate altruism into our everyday lives. MacAskill suggests that we join the effective altruism community (effectivealtruism.org), put our name on their mailing list, and invite our neighbors to do the same.

From beginning to end Doing Good Better is about enlightened behavior; that is, thinking less about self and more about connecting with networks that make a difference for good in the lives of the poor and unfortunate people of this world. People who read MacAskill's well written and thoughtful book have a game plan for action, not only in how to contribute meaningfully to worthy charities, but also to consider how to structure their lives to get the most from their talents and the best opportunities to use these talents to help others.

I mentioned at the beginning of this review that Americans are a giving people. William MacAskill gives us a plan and a program to channel our best tendencies and motivations in directions that will do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Highly recommended.