Something To Worry About
It doesn't take too long to recognize that people respond to things that elicit fear.
We're barraged with gobs of information, day in and day out, and we can't possibly acknowledge all of it. So we're selective about the things to which we grant our attention. And the things that are victorious are those things that make us uneasy or afraid.
And so it is that everything becomes a problem. And not just a problem, but an urgent one, at that. If your job is to raise awareness of animal cruelty/homelessness/the environment/politics/etc, then your job is to paint that thing as an urgent problem that people need to worry about.
My strategy for the last few years has been to ignore the people who are trying to get me to worry. I don't think the world is perfect...not by a long shot. I think there are lots of problems that could benefit from our attention, if we paid more attention to them.
Here's the big problem: problems are not solved by our attention alone.
It's only when that attention translates to someone else, like a monetary donation or personal action, that a problem might be solved.
And so I ignore people who are trying to give me something else to worry about, because I don't want to give them the satisfaction. I don't want to let them think they're correct in trying to elicit fear from people. Mongering fear is at best a short-term strategy, and there's not guarantee that this helps solve problems over the long haul.
Instead, what I choose to respond favorably to are the people who are taking personal action. If you're doing something, and you're not trying to rope me in by trying to scare me, then I'll stop and watch. These are the people who get (and I think deserve) my attention.
Actions might speak louder than words, but the people listening are more likely to respond to words than actions, simply because it's easier.
We're barraged with gobs of information, day in and day out, and we can't possibly acknowledge all of it. So we're selective about the things to which we grant our attention. And the things that are victorious are those things that make us uneasy or afraid.
And so it is that everything becomes a problem. And not just a problem, but an urgent one, at that. If your job is to raise awareness of animal cruelty/homelessness/the environment/politics/etc, then your job is to paint that thing as an urgent problem that people need to worry about.
My strategy for the last few years has been to ignore the people who are trying to get me to worry. I don't think the world is perfect...not by a long shot. I think there are lots of problems that could benefit from our attention, if we paid more attention to them.
Here's the big problem: problems are not solved by our attention alone.
It's only when that attention translates to someone else, like a monetary donation or personal action, that a problem might be solved.
And so I ignore people who are trying to give me something else to worry about, because I don't want to give them the satisfaction. I don't want to let them think they're correct in trying to elicit fear from people. Mongering fear is at best a short-term strategy, and there's not guarantee that this helps solve problems over the long haul.
Instead, what I choose to respond favorably to are the people who are taking personal action. If you're doing something, and you're not trying to rope me in by trying to scare me, then I'll stop and watch. These are the people who get (and I think deserve) my attention.
Actions might speak louder than words, but the people listening are more likely to respond to words than actions, simply because it's easier.