Rebekah, a servant of God, had other people's interests at heart. So did Paul's disciple, Timothy. The apostle speaks about Timothy as a son who serves.

I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus.
(Phil. 2:20-21)

Sadly, Paul's words are true: I have no one who will sincerely care for you. Few people are enough interested in others that they will go out of their way to satisfy others' needs. People we employ will mostly do just what they are employed to do. Beyond that, their own priorities are their primary pursuits. But when people's work becomes their passion, the sacrifices serving demands are hardly noticed.

Selfishness is defined as "stinginess resulting from a concern for your own welfare and a disregard of others."

If I expect professionals such as accountants and lawyers to do all the creative thinking regarding my business, I'll be disappointed. What I do is tell them the result I want and ask them to tell me how to get there. I offer some of my own ideas as well. "Can't we do this or that?" Even if I'm told I can't, I'll get another opinion from elsewhere.

If I tell the maitre d' of a restaurant that my wife and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary, I'll ask for a table near a window or near the fireplace or with the best view, not in the middle of the room or near the kitchen or the toilet doors.

If I don't say exactly what I want and what I don't want, too often we'll end up being placed exactly where we didn't want to be. It's rare to find others thinking for you. We assume they are but mostly they're not. This is where a Christian can shine—in thinking about other people's wishes, in anticipating, and meeting their desires. This is practical love in action.

I've found that most architects are happy to use my money to build their building rather than try and build the one I want. This may sound cynical but it's not. It is simply realizing that we are naive to imagine that people will generally be thinking of how they can best serve us and make our lives more pleasant. Most people are looking out for themselves.

Even when you do find a servant-hearted person, they still generally need to be told what is needed. This is the difference between a servant and a son. A son has the seed of the father, or the spirit of the father within. In that spirit, he takes the initiative to look after the needs of the father.

Paul says he has found in Timothy one young man who is a son, who has Paul's interests at heart. Because of that, Timothy also carries the care of the churches, just as Paul does (see 2 Cor. 11:28).

The most valuable people are those who serve. That's why they receive the recognition and opportunities others would like but don't receive because their selfishness overrides their usefulness.

Source: Top 10 Qualities of a Great Leader by Phil Pringle
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers