It’s safe to say that people live in their own little universes nested within varying sizes of microcosms from family to community, state, nation, planet, and the macrocosm: the universe. As they maneuver in and around each of these, they’re impacted personally whether they’re conscious of it or not.
When it comes to relationships, jobs, decision-making, world view, and one’s place and purpose in the universe, everyone is influenced and shaped by the ever-changing landscape of personal to global movements and events. There seems to be no way to avoid the non-stop onslaught of news and distractions assaulting one’s senses, sensibilities, and emotional equilibrium. It’s overwhelming, dispiriting, frustrating, and depressing.
To put this in perspective:
- Researchers are finding that average human knowledge is doubling about every 13 months.
- According to IBM, the build-out of the “Internet of things” will lead to the doubling of knowledge every 12 hours.
- There are over 817,000 television programs to watch 24/7.
- The total number of video games in the world is over 5 million.
- We now have over 8.9 million mobile apps to download to our tech devices.
- There are over 1 billion websites to visit.
- Consumer spending on virtual reality is expected to reach $72 billion in 2024.
That’s an astounding tsunami of information availability — and the question is what are people supposed to do with all of it, how are they to deal with it or just keep up?
The world is changing at an alarming rate every day, making it hard to stay afloat. Inundated with mostly negative news, it’s a challenge to want to get up in the morning and once again venture into the unending noise, the endless demands, the attacks, the disconnection and disrespect, the devaluing of personal contributions, the dismissal of actual history, and the specter of AI hanging over society like the Sword of Damocles. All of this pressure is creating an amazing amount of mental and emotional turmoil.
- 6 million adults are affected by panic disorder
- 6.8 million adults suffer from generalized anxiety disorder
- 7.7 million adults suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder
- 15 million adults have social anxiety disorder
This ongoing stress and anxiety is seriously impacting what’s termed the “standard of living index.” The index, begun around 1820, measures every facet of a country’s standard of living including human rights, democracy, freedom, economy, health, corruption, competency, future, and actions abroad.
Two more recent indices are the Augmented Human Development Index (measures life expectancy at birth, schooling, and gross national income) and the Quality of Life Index (measures purchasing power, pollution levels, housing affordability, cost of living, safety, healthcare quality, commute times, and climate conditions).
These indices, though generally indicative of American life, don’t really provide a specific enough picture concerning what Americans are facing:
Coping with all of this requires more than just tolerating and managing. Observing American culture today, it’s easy to see that Americans have become inured to, addicted to, and debilitated by 1) the breakneck speed of everyday life, 2) the allure of distraction and vicarious living, and 3) the glitz and glam of fame, influence, status, and wealth.
The world keeps spinning faster and faster without much thought to the consequences on health, well-being, and the ability of society’s members to function harmoniously and reasonably. One of the most important changes Americans are seeing is how little respect, consideration, and empathy people have toward others.
Reality TV shows are a great example of people displaying the worst of human behavior, communication, and interactions. Those types of programs, plus the growing disconnection experienced through tech devices, have given people the feeling that “anything goes” behavior is appropriate. So, each year more programs come out that lower the bar of human decency and conduct — and it’s all rationalized as just “entertainment.”
The challenge with these programs is that they purposely heighten drama, emotional acting out, outrageous behavior, and exaggerated conflict. That seeps into people’s psyches and, without their being aware of it, they end up emulating the behavior of disrespect, dishonesty, dismissiveness, deceit, outsized egos, and more.
Out in the world, these behaviors are constantly being reported on via news outlets and social media — and the fast-changing world doesn’t let up for a second. It’s always in everyone’s face, inundating them with changes, new things grabbing their attention, and revisions and updates continually pushing the envelope of experiential reality.
For many people, the only way to deal with this assault is to turn to addictions of all kinds, get defensive and fight back, ignore or rationalize changes, withdraw into fantasy or a dissociative reality, or give in and be a part of the chaos. None of these are helpful and they only end up adding to the discord, divisiveness, petulance, callousness, insensitivity, insecurity, anxiety, paranoia, lack of empathy, and irrationality we’re seeing in the world.
The outcome for Americans is that they’ve become trapped in several isms: judgmentalism, separatism, racism, elitism, fundamentalism, absurdism, egoism, materialism, ignorantism (ignorance), and tribalism.
Not one of these isms is positive. Combined with a continuously shifting and frenetic world, what we’re observing now are people living in a maelstrom of mis- and disinformation, no-holds-barred marketing, lying and obfuscation on a shocking scale, and the denigration of anyone and anything simply to satisfy personal agendas. The result is unparalleled selfishness, crassness, and immaturity.
There’s one more ism that’s shown up in American life: fatalism, the belief that all events are predetermined so that we’re powerless to change or influence our lives. What we’re seeing more of is a resignation to accept the inevitable — defeat. Many people are feeling there’s no way they can stand up to the amount of reckless social disruption and disharmony in our world.
The upshot of all of this is that there’s one unwavering, universal law everyone is faced with: The Law of Change. We can do everything in our power to not deal with it, but the truth is that we can’t escape it. Somehow, some way, it’s going to pull us into its vortex and we’re going to have to deal with it. So, how do we do that?
Here are a couple of ways to quiet the raging storm of change whirling about us.
Friendships – These are important as they help us to not get stuck in emotional funks. We have to determine what kinds of friendships to invest in: are they uplifting, fun, life-affirming, inspiring, and creative? Do they add value to our lives and support us in being the best we can be?
Meditation – Quieting the mind has many benefits including allowing us to relax and open ourselves to greater peace and joy. It gives us respite from the chaos of life and creates a space of tranquility wherein we can more clearly hear and see the Divine at work in our lives.
Nature – Getting out of the house is important as nature offers us sights, smells, and sounds that are organic and that speak to our connection to nature as an intrinsic part of it. It also gives us a break from the din of life and a chance to enjoy nature’s beauty.
Exercise – The positive benefits of exercise are many, health-wise mentally and emotionally. Regular exercise pumps more blood to the brain, making us more mentally activated, positive, and energized.
Museums and art galleries – Art and history add depth and perspective to our worldview. They also help us develop an appreciation of those who came before us, as well as artists living today, and they give us insight into the extraordinary talents and lives of people from all walks of life.
Music – Listening to music or playing an instrument can give us a needed break from life’s demands and responsibilities. Music keeps our creative juices flowing and the more we listen to uplifting and expansive music, the more we radiate those positive vibes to the world around us.
Hobbies – A hobby is a great way to focus on something other than our jobs and responsibilities. Hobbies activate our creativity, enhance our joy quotient, increase our knowledge base, and even expand our friendship network.
Book clubs – Reading is fundamental, it’s also a great way to draw us out of our life circumstances. Sharing our perspectives and hearing those of others can give us insights into human nature, history, our own lives, initiate solutions to life’s challenges, and catalyze dreams of the future.
Community service – There is nothing like the feeling that comes from being of service to one’s family, neighbors, and community. Giving selflessly of oneself without thought of “What’s in it for me?” can be deeply rewarding and fulfilling.
Tutoring – So many students need help and support in their studies. Being a tutor provides one-on-one, individualized attention for the student, as well as provides interaction with an older person besides a teacher or family member. It’s good for us as we get to practice patience, supportiveness, remaining neutral, giving authentic praise, and exercising our creativity muscle to find ways to engage, draw out, and help a student truly understand the subject being focused on.
Learning new skills – Whether learning a new skill for a job, to expand our knowledge base, or just for the fun of it, this is one way to keep ourselves out of the doldrums of boredom and change overwhelm and keep life interesting. Like hobbies, this is also a way to meet new people who could potentially add immeasurably to our lives.
In a 2019 article, The Forbes Coaches Council listed several important keys to embracing change and reducing anxiety: 1) change is necessary for your growth, prepare for it, 2) determine the value of change, 3) consider the possibilities, 4) redefine change as n opportunity, 5) create an achievable roadmap to change, and 6) make change an adventure.
Chefali Raina, one of the Forbes coaches said, “Stop thinking about change as the big bad wolf — ‘scary,’ ‘uncertain,’ and ‘negative’ — and start thinking about change as an adventure and a fun experience where [you’ll] learn and grow and have fun in the process.”
Brian Tracy said, “You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.”
