People are beginning to wake up en masse. I see it everywhere.
Ever growing pockets of humanity are starting to see through and believe less of the bullshit we’ve been force fed since the dawn of time by governments, corporations, and individuals who seek to financially and ideologically enslave and control us.
A multitude of institutions, facades, and falsehoods are crumbling and being recognized for the scams they are – crushing college loans that steal away our best earning years, insolvent economies, politicians’ lies and broken promises, predatory consumer credit, mortgages, obsessive consumerism, abusive interpersonal relationships, toxic corporate culture, deferring dreams until our “golden years”, the list goes on.
People are self-educating, using cryptocurrency to free themselves from oppressive economic systems, connecting with other cultures, healing from past traumas, and generally working to become the best versions of themselves.
"The computer can be used as a tool to liberate and protect people, rather than to control them." — Hal Finney
More of us than ever are realizing that we have the power to craft our own narratives, and we have no time to lose. We have the power to choose our frame of mind, the way we see the world, this is infinitely powerful. It seems like society is on the cusp of a genuine social renaissance but the window of time is short to escape the rotting shell of our broken system, the abyss.
The internet has been mainstream for nearly thirty years, social media has been in existence for close to twenty. We’re just beginning to adapt to these and find our balance again. The thing with technology is that it progresses a heck of a lot faster than human brains and behaviors can adapt to it. We are absolutely spellbound by these massive technological shifts, they leave us completely distracted and enamored, and they can throw off our balance for a decade or more. Until the honeymoon phase wears off with these new waves of technology we can be even more vulnerable to manipulations of all sorts.
Most of us saw Apple’s debut of their new product, Vision Pro last week. This is a very small glimpse into a near future where we’re even more immersed, distracted, and disconnected from each other. In five years or less some version of augmented reality will be widely available and cheap enough that it’ll cause the next massive technological wave. In regard to tech, history shows us that the more immersive a product is the more addictive it will become. What's coming is a perfect storm. This AR/VR wave, when paired with highly advanced artificial intelligence, won’t be quite so easy for us to escape. We can’t escape or even pause evolution but we can be proactive and manage it smartly.
If the paradigm isn’t shifted and we don’t seek balance and restraint before these products hit the mainstream we’ll lose at least another decade, probably more, before we see substantive social change.
How do we make the best use of these handful of years before big tech convinces us we need to have these hideous goggles strapped to our faces?
Pay extra close attention to how you start and end each day. Don’t start your day by doom-scrolling on your phone, instead feed your brain positive and useful things. I’ve spoken before about how I read from The Daily Stoic each day but there are many books like this that offer you a new passage for each day to reflect on. Good reads offers a list of the most popular ones.. For years, in the early nineties I read from 365 Tao and it was very helpful for the stage of life I was in then.
Remember, you control which media outlets you consume information from. Try positive ones like David Byrne’s (form lead singer of The Talking Heads) organization, Reasons To Be Cheerful. They have a newsletter that will deliver uplifting stories right to your inbox. Here is a website that lists many more similar “good news” sites.. Only when you go on a “mainstream media fast” do you realize how dangerous it really is.
Read books. Establish a regular reading goal/time each day. Social media has drastically decreased our attention spans but, with practice, the damage can be undone. Focusing for even twenty minutes a day on a good book can help bring you inner peace and reverse the damage social media has inflicted on our brains. If you’re not a regular reader of books this will be tough at first but the dividends you receive from it are well worth it.
“Whether you’re keeping a journal or writing as a meditation, it’s the same thing. What’s important is you’re having a relationship with your mind.” Natalie Goldberg
Keep a journal, not only to record your thoughts but also your dreams. I was gifted a fancy leather-bound notebook for this but after a few weeks just switched to the Notes app on my phone. It’s so much easier to use the phone while traveling or when you’re out and about and have a random thought you want to record. I’ve noticed that once you start documenting everything you remember about your dreams after you first wake up you start remembering more of your dreams and they become more vivid. Dreams can greatly assist us in our spiritual and personal evolution, they’re often symbolic and full of guidance.
Force yourself to try something new once a month. It infuses energy and excitement into your life and relationships. Routines can be so comforting that we all tend to wrap ourselves in them like a warm blanket. However, routines can also stifle our personal growth and leave us stuck. Whether it’s a new restaurant, a park you’ve never visited, a tour, a class, learning a new hobby, or even an Airbnb experience in your home town. It’s good for the soul to try new things and you might even make new friends in the process.
Hone your critical thinking skills. I can’t stress this enough. In the age of AI it will be much more difficult to discern truth from fiction. Be proactive and begin honing these skills now with books, classes, and products like these critical thinking flash cards from The Thinking Company. This also has the added benefit of being able to more quickly recognize gaslighting and narcissistic behavior in others.
Rediscover and cherish the importance of connecting with others. Humans are social beings, we need meaningful connections with others to thrive and be our best and happiest selves. There’s an abundance of research out there that shows we even need these connections to maintain our mental and physical health. It’s easy to blow off invitations from friends, especially after we’ve gotten used to seclusion during the pandemic, but it’s more important than ever to say yes to this.
Last, but not least…practice meditation. It's not as easy as you'd think to but it will enhance your life more than you can possibly imagine. It's the single best thing you can do for yourself and I'm not just saying that because I want to sell books. After over thirty years of practicing myself I shudder to think about what kind of person I would have become if I hadn't found meditation in my 20's.
Technology is an important tool for humanity. In just a few years it will help our species evolve to do things that today would seem like magic. But it will be equally important to maintain some kind of balance and retain the important parts of our humanity as we wade into the uncharted waters of our not-so-distant future. I may be biased but I think there are many parts of us that are well worth saving.
All for now. Trust your instincts, invest in you, live boldly, and take chances.
Growing weary of the ads and divisiveness on mainstream social media? If so, why not try Hive? Click on this link to sign-up and join our growing global community.
Poetry should move us, it should change us, it should glitch our brains, shift our moods to another frequency. Poetry should evoke feelings of melancholy, whimsy, it should remind us what it feels like to be in love, or cause us to think about something in a completely different way. I view poetry, and all art really, as a temporary and fragile bridge between our world and a more pure and refined one. This is a world we could bring into creation if enough of us believed in it. This book is ephemera, destined to end up forgotten, lingering on some dusty shelf or tucked away in a dark attic. Yet the words, they will live on in memory. I hope these words become a part of you, bubble up into your memory when you least expect them to and make you feel a little more alive.
Pick up a copy of Ephemera today on Amazon.
Most of us have experienced a moment of perfect peace at least once in our lives. In these moments we lose ourselves and feel connected to everything. I call these mindful moments. Words can’t describe how complete they make us feel.
These moments are usually fragile, evaporating in seconds. What if there was a way to train your mind to experience more of them? It’s deceptively easy and requires nothing more than a subtle shift in mindset. My new book, Mindful Moments, will teach you to be much more content despite the chaos and imperfect circumstances continuing to unfold around you. Upgrade your life experience today for only $15.99 on Amazon.com.
Let’s Keep In Touch
Great stuff here! I like to think that Hive is kind of my journal these days, but I probably don't go as in depth here as I would on something that the whole world can't read. It's still a bit therapeutic for me on some level. I'm looking forward to doing some camping this weekend and disconnecting just a little bit.
Thank you @Bozz! Yes, you're right about Hive! I just recently started journaling again as well. It's been a great tool for me. Where are you camping? We're heading North to Lutsen in a few weeks and staying on a working farm for the weekend of the 4th. I can't wait!
This is our first trip of the year so we are just going to a small town about an hour away from where we live. Just before the fourth we are heading up to the straits. Sounds like you are going to have a fun and busy time!
That should be fun for you! We're hoping the smoke's cleared a bit before we head up north. Enjoy your time away.
Thanks, you too! Fingers crossed the smoke clears.
We should always encourage ourselves to educate us, think critically, and find a balance between technological advancements and preserving our humanity.
It's so important to keep learning and be aware of what's coming down the road!
Yes you're right dear friend.
I agree with you 100% and try, as much as possible, to do the things you recommend! These days I was telling my students how much they communicated, personally, verbally, with each other. The answer was devastating: Very little. Some of them dared to ask me: And what for, teacher? I reminded them at that moment of the movie The Castaway (original English title: Cast Away) directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks, in which Tom Hanks' character, among the many things he did in order to survive on the island, had to invent a friend (Wilson) to be able to communicate, to talk, to feel accompanied. Like eating, sleeping, communicating is a human need. As a joke, I told my students: if you go on like this, you won't be able to survive your personal shipwrecks. hahaha. As always, a pleasure to read you. Hugs, Eric
That is so sad to hear about your students! I see it with the young people around us too. Some of them have social anxiety just because they're not accustomed to communicating face-to-face, they've never developed the skills. That is great advice you gave them! Enjoy your day, Nancy, and thanks for your comment!
Nice reflection I particularly like to read and meditate, but I think that in the future technology will advance so much that it will be part of the human being, maybe we will not get there, but our children and grandchildren will live the era where they will try to work man with machines and those people who allow it will lose their essence, their soul, their humanity.
Thanks! Yes, we're only a handful of years away from the first batch of people who are technically cyborgs because of products like Neuralink. This is when evolution really begins to accelerate.
How scary, but in a couple of years it will be a great reality, I like how you touch the different topics, both personal political and technological continue to flood the platform of your creativity, blessings.
I absolutely agree with everything you talk about here Eric!
Perhaps it was that awful period of lockdown that stopped us in our tracks and gave us time to mull things over?
Good and bad came out of that as I was one of those who were reluctant to go anywhere once lockdown restrictions ended, but how freeing when I did get out and about!
The squaller and the slow imploding of basic services in our metro made me want to run away at times, or just stay within our property. But slowly, we as citizens are taking on smaller projects meant to be done by the local authority who have defrauded the property ratepayers in a big way! We're all banding together to ensure our safety with rampant crime.
However, I do some of the things you recommend, and one thing we've been trying to do quite a bit is to become tourists in our own city and province. At least those places are still being maintained and preserved and are an absolute delight, reminding us why we love our country so much. Just the city's main beaches which were Durban's main tourist attraction are grossly neglected.
I simply HAVE to get back to meditation - stopped when Mom was ill for so long as she needed constant care.
A free gift that I have been denying myself, despite knowing the fantastic benefits, both mentally and physically. I have your books, and it's time I took them off the bookshelf again.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful insight here!
It's time you got us busy again with your #blockchainmemoryproject, or challenge us with topic suggestions.
Or am I being presumptious here ;)
Thanks Lizelle! It's always good to hear from you. What I'm starting to realize about the pandemic is it inflicted a lot of deep financial, emotional, and psychological trauma on people. I think the behaviors we experienced after the lock-downs were lifted was the effects of that trauma resurfacing. I'm starting to see some people in our lives venturing out and becoming more like the people they were before all this. I know from particularly stressful events in my life that we're in a kind of survival mode during the stressful times and then the trauma surfaces after the stressor is gone. I had a corporate job that nearly broke me down during 2011-2013 and it took close to a year to fully recover from that. The pandemic was way worse than that for many people.
It sounds like you and your community are healing nicely! I'm glad to hear that. Sometimes the only option left is for the community to come together and solve things themselves. Things in our area are still quite bad. There's a lot of apathy. Many people around us still have hope that the police, politicians, and social programs will save them. They keep electing the same crooked politicians hoping "it will be different". We need block watches for crime and citizens that are willing to ban together to rebuild the fabric of the neighborhoods.
I really hope you can establish a routine of mediation again! I was trying the app Headspace for a while but it got old after a few months. I just fell back into my usual routine and have a new appreciation for it.
Thank you for reading this! Yes, I'll have to revive the memory project again! That would be a fun thing to do this summer. Take care!
Some people think that these new technologies are providing benefits to humanity, but I think the opposite, they are dividing us, and they are destroying our base moral values. We are now not spending time with our family anymore. Everybody is busy using cell phones and they have forgotten about their family. Family values have been destroyed.
Yes, I agree with @value-customer. We must preserve our power to use tech to our advantage and not to our detriment. The sad thing is, even if we use tech in a positive way it doesn't guarantee our family and friends will do the same.
That can only happen if we let others determine how we use our tools.
Use them for your benefit, not for the benefit of overlors.
You are absolutely right, the way we see that since the mobile has come to every human being, if we are sitting in front of each other, we are using our own mobile, it is very wrong. Brains are working less and less as they are if we talked to each other the way our brains would be working.
The way we all work on it is understood because we are doing our daily work on it, and if we look at it to use other things, it is very wrong. The biggest loss is that we are far away from our family and also very far away from our friends.
If the people will think about it and start giving time to each other then the problems in our life will also be reduced.
I don't carry a cell phone.
When I can print my own, I might start.
We have been trying to do the best for our life such as self-education, self-improvement. However, those who we elect to rule us destroy our life with their fakse economic decisions. Thus, cryptocurrencies might be a way to free us in economic affairs.
We have that same problem here in the US. The SEC has almost destroyed any chances of the US becoming an epicenter for blockchain innovation. The great thing about crypto though is it's decentralized so other countries will carry on with the development of it.
If I had a nickel for every time I said to myself, "C'mon brain, we need to work together on this. We'll have plenty of time to relax later. Let's focus on the task at hand.", I'd be retired by now. :)
Haha, we're all guilty of that. ; )
Here are a few things that I've found helpful for me:
Set boundaries. Decide how much time you want to spend on your devices each day and stick to it.
Find other ways to connect. Technology can be a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, but it's important to find other ways to connect as well. Go for a walk, play a game, or just sit down and talk.
Being mindful of my screen time. I pay attention to how im feeling. Are you feeling stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed? If so, it might be time to take a break.
Get outside. Spending time in nature is a great way to relax and de-stress.
Great suggestions, @malos10. Thanks!
Living in this modern era requires us to be able to interact with modern technology. I'm glad to read your writing, Eric. have a nice day.
For sure! Technology imparts many positives and negatives. Thanks for reading and commenting Eliana! Have a wonderful day.
This is something I really need to do. That's me you're describing there. I visit a handful of news sites while drinking my coffee. During the pandemic I was quite obsessive about reading the news to the point that people were making fun of me. "So, have you figured it out already?"
I'm in the process of establishing more healthy routines so I guess I'm going to try to read something useful while I have coffee. I got a few psychology books on my last trip so I guess this should work.
Try forgottenbooks.com
It's neat.
I just bookmarked it. Thanks! Looks very interesting...
Thanks for the suggestion!
I was really bad about using the Google app like my morning newspaper for a while. Each morning I did that I felt like I was falling deeper into the abyss. That feeling seemed to linger throughout the day as well.
You're smart for developing positive/healthy routines. Habits and routines make the difference between healthy or not and happy or not.
I'm reading two or three books at the moment...Be Here Now by Ram Dass, The Creative Act by Rick Rubin, and Rather Splendid London Walks by Julian McDonnell.
The world is changing likewise our economy is progressing and with this occuring makes people ti have experience on things without lacking much ideas abd thought.
My Hive blockchain blog is my journal. I document my life.
Sometimes I try something new, but I do not force myself to nothing. I try new things, if I would like to try them. I do things, if I like/enjoy doing them. Nothing is forced.
Have a nice day. All the best. Greetings and much love from Hungary.
Thank you, enjoy your week! I hope you're healing up quickly!
Thank you. Fortunately/luckily I no longer feel pain in my arm, and
I can move it too, so the fracture is not serious.
I'm glad to hear that! Any immediate plans to go back to Spain?
Yes. I would immediately go back. Probably I will go back around the end of June, or around the beginning of July. It all depends on when the doctors will say that my left arm is healed, when they will remove the plaster of Parish, and when my new eyeglasses will arrive.
I'm glad to hear that! It seems like life was good there and you were happy.
I used to try a new kind of fruit once a month, or a new cheese, or a new beer, or wine, or fruit juice. It was pretty interesting, and I could just switch to something else if I got tired of cheese or beer.
I also try new fruits, new foods and new drinks from time to time. For example I tried prickly pear and Sangria, while I was on Tenerife. It is delicious/tasty.
Good advice, all.
Being old enough (early 60's) to remember a time of rotary phones and no Internet - while still being no Luddite (I love technology!) - I found all the clamor around Apple's new headset more alarming than intriguing.
Whereas change is potentially "inevitable" as the saying goes, not all change is good. The invention of the steam engine started our addiction to shaping our days around clocks; cell phones and email started stealing our "private time;" social media went to work on shortening our attention spans, and now we're being served up the invitation to completely check out from our own reality and move into our imaginations.
"Matrix," anyone?
Honestly, the technology bothers me less than the thought about who gets to hold and control the proprietary technology "purse strings" and impose their narrative? Apple isn't exactly the shiniest example of corporate ethics and honest dealings.
We start our days with a good half hour of drinking coffee and just talking about the day... which will involve gardening (summer), writing, arts and crafts, cooking and the like. We are close to dirt poor (by choice) because we don't subscribe to the societally prescribed standards of success and what the good life looks like. (Read: "largely non-consumers").
Even so, we live with the (potential) reality that the Matrix will find ways to poke its long tendrils into our reality and suck us in. It's unlikely it will since we only have maybe 20 years left on this planet and "old people are irrelevant... hah!" but we're somewhat concerned for our grandchildren. What world will that be, when they reach old age?
Thanks! I remember all that stuff too. Isn't it crazy to think back and remember the world without the internet or cell phones? We actually could "get away" from everything for a while if we so chose. That's not the case any longer.
I've always been fascinated by tech as well. I had an old Tandy (Radio Shack) computer in the 1970's and would write these simple programs that would make a stick figure walk across the screen and I thought it was the best thing in the world.
Great points about the downfalls of technical innovations. It seems for each downfall there are positives though, that is until super smart/greedy people figure out how to exploit them. I see devices as the delivery system, much like cigarettes are the delivery system for nicotine.
That sounds like a great routine and way of life you have. I've worked way too much in my life to reach personal goals and acquire things only to realize how foolish it was to waste the time and energy in the end. It provided temporary satisfaction but wasn't worth the time I invested. Live and learn. : )
Although it sounds like we're about a decade apart my wife and I have the same concerns. We were walking today in our neighborhood, the air was so thick with Canadian wildfire smoke that we could barely breathe. I couldn't help but think about the world we're leaving the next generation. They have lots of work to do. Thanks for your comment!
Decentralization of the means of production is the cutting edge of every field of industry today. From food to power, to manufacturing, machines that make things are becoming small and inexpensive enough for individuals to own and operate themselves.
We don't need to buy from corporate factories anymore, when we can make everything we need to enjoy the blessings of civilization ourselves.
Seize the means of production today, and create true wealth: independent means.
That is very exciting. A lot of problems would disappear overnight if we found a way to cut corporations out of our equation.
Technology is a tool as you rightfully stated. However, if we allow this fancy tool to control our mind, we're lost. It's crucial to practice the above and establish a routine / rhythm aka a set of empowering habits that will keep us afloat when we're out of the "technology" balance. Very timely post!
Thank you! I'm so afraid of the time we'll lose as a species with this device because of such a deep sensory immersion. We must create good habits/boundaries and, more importantly, teach the younger generation to do the same.
The article display is quite good,Have fun carrying out fun activities there,Greetings from me to the families there.
Can't begin to tell you how much I agree with everything you said here. The how you start your day thing has been on my mind a lot lately, for some reason, and it does set the tone for the entire day. Scrolling seems so toxic, even if you're on social media (as opposed to the news), you end up feeling so sluggish and anxious...
Journaling, I'm finding elusive between writing on here, and channeling my thoughts into fiction. 🤔🤔 or is journaling that different? It may be I've missed the point.
All of this, 100%. You have a great outlook on things.
There's a noticeable difference for me between the days I read a passage and those days I forget. The topic that usually is the most toxic for me in regard to scrolling is crypto. The algorithms send a steady stream of the things you pay the most attention to and, especially lately, the news hasn't been very up-lifting.
Journaling, for me, is just usually more personal stuff that I wouldn't always share publicly and also cataloguing my dreams.
Thank you @honeydue! I'm glad you enjoyed this and I hope your week is going well!
Oh, I imagine that can get depressing quickly. Maybe balance it with something positive? 'Cause I don't think stopping looking at the bad is necessarily an option. Just like forgetting all the good things isn't :)
Thanks for your answer! Appreciate it. And yes, my week's great. hope yours is too!
I have to constantly remind myself that the negative stories have a purpose, to lower prices and drive people out of the market. I just heard three major US banks have increased their exposure to BTC to the tune of $3B just in the past week alone. This is a good indicator of what happens next.
Thank you! The week's been good. I have a birthday coming up on Sunday so we're trying to figure out where to celebrate.
Your own, I take it (since you did mention it was coming up, some posts back)? Many happy returns, my friend! I hope you chase down a dream, and an adventure (at least) this coming year. :D I hope you do something that freaks you out (but in a good way).
Thank you! Yes, I'll be 52 this weekend. I'm very excited about this next year. I'll be publishing my next book and, hopefully, will get the comic strip launched. I'm thinking very seriously about naming it maelstrom of f*ckery. : ) I hope you have a great weekend!
I'm loving it already xD and I'm very curious about the book. So looking forward to both, really!
you too!
I like those critical thinking cards. I wish more people would focus on questioning what they read/view online instead of questioning what's seen as mainstream and blindly believing anything that presents itself as the opposite!
It all comes down to education
The cards are really useful, especially in face-to-face interactions. They keep the skillset honed!
Our dreams is very much important to work on especially when we know what we intend to achieve to better our lives.
#hive #posh