True altruism involves sacrifice and is thus incompatible, in people’s minds, with benefits to the benefactor. Consistent with this prototype, selflessly motivated prosocial actors are perceived as less likely to benefit from their acts compared with selfishly motivated actors ("Nice guys finish last"), and prosocial actors who benefit are perceived as less benevolent than those who do not ("Guys in last are nice")—even in situations for which benefits are randomly determined and completely out of the control of the actor. The studies present supportive evidence of the reflexive association between a pure, selfless motive and sacrifice with respect to both individuals and organizations.