“We are living in a time of brain-hacking algorithms, pop-up propaganda, and information everywhere. From the moment we wake up to the time we stumble into bed, we are fed messages about what we should look like, wear, eat and buy, how much we should be earning, who we should love, and how we should parent. Many of us spend more time thinking about other people’s lives than investing in our own. Add the pace we are encouraged to function, and it’s no wonder so many of us are feeling overwhelmed, insecure, untethered and worn out. What’s more, we are surrounded by bright, artificial light, in our homes, stores, offices and on our phones and laptops. We are overstimulated and obsessed with productivity. It’s playing havoc with our nervous system and ability to sleep. We are paying the price of having banished the calming shadows and rich texture from our lives, in favor of speed and efficiency. Our eyes and hearts are weary. While powerful and valuable in many ways, social media is turning us into comparison addicts and validation junkies. We interrupt precious life moments to take a picture and post it, then spend the next hour checking how much approval we have received from people we hardly even know. Any time we have a spare minute out comes the phone and down goes the eyes as we scroll our way into someone else’s highly styled life, the jealousy bubbling as we make the assumption that they actually live like that. Every time we do this, we miss unknowable opportunities for connection, serendipity and everyday adventure in our own lives, for the mind has gone somewhere the body cannot follow. Many of us can’t make a move without stressing about what others will think. We stand in line waiting for permission from somebody else, all the while worrying about things that haven’t yet happened... Somewhere along the line someone started a rumor that happiness lies in the accumulation of things, money, power and status, all the while looking young, pretty and skinny, or young, handsome and strong. But when we measure our lives with other people’s yardsticks, opening ourselves up to the tyranny of “should”, we put ourselves under immense pressure to achieve, to do and own stuff we really don’t care about. This desire for more affects our behavior, our decision making and the way we feel about ourselves - not to mention the impact on our planet... And here’s the real irony - what we outwardly push for is often very different to what we inwardly long for. We have to come a point where we need to pause, take a look around and decide for ourselves what really matters...”
