Out There
Much can, has, and should be made about how this is the most challenging time, psychologically speaking, to live on this planet. For 200,000+ years of homo sapien existence we as a species had to focus outward, on survival. Which led to bursts of stress, but nothing chronic—we were too busy. Now, for so many, our focus is both outward on evaluative comparisons (social media, etc.) and inward on how we feel lacking and without purpose, that so many are led to spirals of loneliness, depression, addiction. To modern-day us, our brains can’t discern between being chased by a lion and the constant hyper-vigilant thoughts of the parade of maladies of life. So we are now largely in a chronic state of stress. No acute spikes of cortisol; it is 24/7 for so many. As Dr. Gabor Maté, best-selling author of The Myth of Normal and In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts, posits, if you wanted to create in a lab a society as toxic to the human mental condition as possible, this is the exact society you would build.
But, it isn’t all bad, and as I walked through downtown Boulder, CO this early AM watching the bustle of countless entrepreneurs set up for the weekend farmers’ market, I started thinking about how this is also our singular most prolific time, as humans, to do things. Because we do have the time (when was the last time you had to hunt for food to survive and build a shelter?), and most interestingly to me in the moment as I pondered, there are more things to do than ever before. So much!
There are 7.8 billion people on the planet. How many are close in your life—so much so that you could tell them anything, and they you? Sadly, for most, that number is smaller than it could be. Great people are out there, but we hide behind our phones and closed doors. There are, of course, more books than ever before. More ways to devour information that ever before, too. Documentaries, audiobooks, podcasts. I often hike and listen to a book or podcast with my dog. It’s like a triple dose of being “out there” and soaking it all in.
There are more activities and hobbies than ever. In fact, for most of human existence there likely were almost no hobbies. Life did not afford that luxury. Now we can go to musicals or the theatre, participate in sports, read, write, learn, dine, travel, journal, etc.—all of which is to say, when we look inward, we can also GROW. Which is what this blog is about. In a life of diminishment for many, the sad irony is that the possibility for expansion and growth has never been so abundant.
Gary John Bishop, author of Unfu*k Yourself, said it best:
You change your life by doing, not by thinking about doing. In fact, when you become closely associated with the actions you are taking, something magical starts to become apparent. Thoughts without action are just that, thoughts, and your negative thoughts about yourself, others, and/or your circumstances will have no impact on your success as long as you leave them where you lie.
So don’t leave your dreams inside only to remain there. Get out and live them! Get out there and maybe, like me this morning, you’ll see a part of life that inspires you to do yet another thing… like sit down and write an article that hopefully can help others. Which is why I’m glad I did both!
– Mike Spivey