Here’s something I’ve learned in my 30 years of life:
DON’T WATCH THE NEWS!!!!
You probably already know where I’m going with this but watching the news is like taking a daily dose of fear vitamins!! I used to think that sex sold but now, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that fear sells just as well as sex--if not better.
Unfortunately, the result of a culture that perpetuates fear and this sense of “us” vs. “them” is that we become anxious and cynical. We don’t see the good in other people and we stress ourselves out waiting for the next big catastrophe.
If you spend five minutes watching the news you get the idea that this world is a terrible place. According the News’ narratives, we humans seem to go from one tragedy to the next with little time in between.
Violence, sexual assaults, and drug crimes fill TV Screens night in and night out.
To think that these stories don’t have an impact on our lives is naive.
Of course they do!
For some people, the effect is conscious while for others, the effect is subconscious. No matter what, these negative energies find their way into our mind and body, and thus, the cycle of fear continues!
But here is something the news doesn't tell you:
The WORLD has never been SAFER!!
According to Steven Pinker, a psychologist, linguist and popular science author, “Violence has been in decline for thousands of years, and today we may be living in the most peaceable era in the existence of our species.”
In Pinker’s Book, The Better Angels of Our Nature, he uses empirical data to show that the popular conception of our world is in fact a misconception.
What’s more, people have never been healthier than they are today. Modern medicine has wiped out many deadly diseases and most of us will live decades longer than did our grandparents…
When you look at the statistics, you can see that the news industry isn’t telling you the truth but then again, I suppose that’s not their main objective. Their agenda is to make money for shareholders, so they need some way to get your attention in an increasingly busy and crowded world.
Their solution?
Fear mongering!
The media and news industries know that you are far more likely to consume content about a horrific car crash than you are to consume a story about a lady from Arkansas living to be 102 years old!
Every year, we fill movie theaters to watch movies about the end of the world and yet, an inspirational documentary goes almost unwatched. We watch and read the news daily, just so we can then rush to social media and argue about who is most to blame for the problems of the world.
Do you see how wasteful this all becomes?
Hours of time and resources are wasted each day because people are busy consuming negative content that does nothing to improve their own lives. We love to blame other people and feed into the fear because to some degree, it takes the pressure off ourselves….
People say things like “Why should I even try, the worlds so fucked up anyway…what’s the point?”
Any of you know someone like this?
Here’s the deal - the second we realize we have the choice to be mindful about what we consume we start to see the world differently. Life is a subjective endeavor and if you choose to live your life looking at everything through the filter of fear, you will find yourself stressed, uninspired and resentful.
On the flip side however, when you're accountable for your own problems in life, you will then have the power to change the filter through which you view this world.
The best way to make our planet a better place is to make yourself a better person.
We can’t fix all the world’s problems, but we can fix our own. If everyone worked benevolently on themselves, the news would have a lot less fear to sell.
So with that, join me in taking a break from watching the news! See if you can go one week without going to social media or tuning into your local news station and instead, read that book you’ve been meaning to read or take a class to increase your knowledge in a particular subject matter.
Whatever you do, try to do something that adds value to your life and see what filling your mind with positivity does to your psyche!
Finally, be sure to let us know how it goes! We look forward to hearing from you!!
Thank you as always for reading and until next week,
Many Many Blessings!