We live in a world with increasingly shorter attention spans due to the vast quantity of information bombarding the average person every moment of everyday. 99.9% of this information is useless and not actionable. Most of it people don’t even seek out, it is just in there face and targeted at them based on prior engagement to keep them scrolling along in the hopes that they see more advertisements and eventually buy something. Another unfortunate side effect of this is that you are increasingly seeing people who do not have original thoughts of their own and instead are walking around parroting off whatever is popular at the moment. The useful idiots are being used very effectively yet again, unknowingly walking a path they didn’t choose.

We often are striving for more to mask whatever inadequacies we feel we have. Some of these inadequacies are valid and worthy of pursuing greater goals, but most are superficial and the bandaid solutions of retail therapy, porn, substance abuse, and the like are only making the inadequacies harder to address. For example, if the root cause of your dissatisfaction with your appearance has to do with your weight, then buying new clothes to hide your body isn’t going to fix the behaviors that led you here long term. When you’re satisfied with how your body looks, whether you’re starting from too skinny or too fat, you will look good in whatever you wear.

I encourage you to address that what is causing a blow to your ego. Often times the solutions will not be quick and they will not be easy to continue for the long periods necessary to create the desired change, but the solutions will be more simple than the behaviors you’re choosing to mask your problems with. If you’re struggling with depression, taking time to go outside everyday and move your body will make you feel much better over time than abusing substances (legal or illegal). Taking time to write and reflect on that which is causing you pain will be much more effective than trying to numb it with cheap pleasures.

Tangent here, but you know what they say about cheap things? Buy cheap, buy twice. You won’t get what you wanted the first time and will have to inevitably put in the effort you should have put in to begin with, plus more, to overcome the bad choice you made trying to numb your pain.

I think a lot of issues with people nowadays is we live in such a fake society that is focused on what can be had right now, without thinking about the expense to be had later. If the types of content you see now that are largely popular don’t drive that point home then maybe the fact that everywhere you look there is the option to finance purchases (not even just big purchases, but even a coffee from Starbucks can have a Pay in 4). Why worry right now about what future you can deal with?

Therein lies the major problem with our civilization. We have lost the desire to think about the future that many see as filled with depression and struggle. Instead we focus on the right now which isn’t that bad, but isn’t that great. We live as a people who act as though nothing is within our control. Nothing can be changed by our effort. There are powerful people or forces in our lives that cannot be overcame, or the perceived effort is so large that it’s pointless because failure is the only outcome.

This is obviously utter bullshit. You have power within you that you couldn’t even comprehend if you tried. We glamorize those who have it all, but ignore the build up that took years of quiet desperation and struggle to make it to that point. This system is going to reach a breaking point soon and those who are able to capitalize will be those who are able to focus on what is important through delayed gratification and healthy relationships.

Be genuine and authentic towards yourself and those around you. Stop pretending to be someone and something you’re not, as that is providing mental strain and stress that is only preventing you from being the person you could be.

Until next week friends,

Ian