raawcase

[raawcase]

Easy To Consume, Hard To Digest

If you think junk food is severely impacting people, I will say open your eyes wide and you will see the wrath of junk media.

Just like fast food, it's easy to prepare and easier to distribute and consume.

Open any popular social media platform, they all are filled with junk media.

From weird TikTok challenges to bite sized business knowledge, these junk items are causing serious mental issues -- increased anxiety, depression, loneliness, and even cyberbullying and body image issues.

Compare McDonald's with TikTok or Instagram, PizzaHut with YouTube, or Burger King with X, you'll definitely see a pattern to exploit the consumer and the user.

Recently, I was watching a video by Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram. He mentioned that he rarely uses his phone for media consumption, and the main reason for this is to avoid consuming unnecessary short-form content.

And it suddenly made me aware of my media consumption behaviour.

Lately, I have been spending a lot of time watching carousels and short form videos. And I noticed a few things on how it is impacting my mental health:

It makes me believe that I can do anything I want. Though it is true, but it diverts my attention and focus from a pressing priority.

It is giving me a constant dose of dopamine. And when I stop consuming junk media, I feel stress and anxiety.

It gives me a false impression of learning new things. Whereas it is simply putting me onto a path of dangerous half knowledge about topics of my interest.

So I took a breather. I decided not to consume short form videos or carousels anymore. It is simply stressful and useless.

I'll be more mindful of what I consume and how I consume. I would rather take five minutes to read an article than consume a 30 second summary on the same topic.

One could argue that it is time consuming. But I believe, at least in my case, my brain needs some time to absorb and process certain information. And if I don't give me brain the time it needs, it won't open a node which can lead to new discoveries.

For example, while reading an article from the Orwell Foundation, I observed that my head didn't hurt much. It was a long read, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This also made me realize how intentional media consumption can be an enjoyable experience.

So, in this time of fast consumption, I will say -- consume slowly, intentionally. Avoid junk media.

Now, my intention here is not to make this a long read. But if you enjoyed this slow read, do share your thoughts here or in DMs.

Links:

Telegram CEO Doesn’t Use a Phone, Why?

Should great art excuse monstrous artists? Orwell didn't think so

[raawcase]

You don't have to conform to the world and its way of how things are done. In a fast paced world, be slow. Rebel against time. Move at your own pace. Experience things slowly. Feel something deeply. You don't need to rush. You don't need to beat the futile records. Breathe and feel the very essence of life.

[raawcase]

Sometimes, letting go of the desire to prove something to yourself or to the world is the greatest thing you could do for yourself.

[raawcase]

Neither my deeds that brought smiles,

Nor my actions that brought tears,

Neither my triumphs that make mountains puny,

Nor my defeats that shattered my confidence,

Nothing defines me.

Not my face, my body,

The language I speak,

The food I eat,

The clothes I put on,

The thoughts I leave behind,

Nothing defines me.

You're free to perceive me,

In your own way,

But, nothing defines me.

[raawcase]

“In reality, freedom is aristocratic, not democratic. With sorrow we must recognize the fact that freedom is dear only to those men who think creatively. It is not very necessary to those who do not value thinking.”

— Nikolai Berdyaev, The Realm of Spirit and the Realm of Caesar

[raawcase]

Those who have been through pain and use that experience to be more empathetic to others rather than vengeful, are people worth knowing.

[raawcase]

Being Judgmental

That's the last thing I want to be when it comes to people. But many times, I have noticed that I judge a person's actions without even trying to understand the reason behind them. I feel bad about it when I realize what I've done.

So why do we become so judgmental toward others?

To find it out, I analyzed what I felt after judging a person or being critical of their actions. These are a few immediate feelings:

I felt smarter, thinking that I don’t make the same silly mistakes this other person does.

I felt privileged to be in a situation that's better than this other person has been in.

I was relieved that I don't have to go through the kind of situation this other person is experiencing.

I was sympathetic talking about this other person's situation.

There could be many more feelings one could experience while judging somebody else. It definitely gives me a good feeling about myself. It makes me forget about my own mess. But when I detach myself from these feelings and observe myself, I detest myself to the core for this. I feel like a phony, a person who only cares about themselves and thinks they’re the smartest person on earth.

On the other hand, being judgmental encourages the mind to analyze certain situations and behaviors, which brings valuable lessons. Maybe it has helped people in shaping their relationships, taking a call regarding a business deal, and refining and defining life choices among other things.

But here, I just want to focus on the feeling that comes to you after the initial feelings settle. So, what can be done about it?

If we start focusing more on the events that led the person into that specific situation, maybe then we can empathize more with the person.

If we empathize, perhaps we can understand that the person has likely analyzed their situation a thousand times before taking action.

Hopefully, that will allow us to judge something without being judgmental about a person.

But why is it necessary?

It will stop you from being a phony person. And no one likes to be called a PHONY. Otherwise, you end up showing only fake concern for that person. Unconsciously, your mind enjoys it when that person is in such a difficult situation. After all, who doesn’t like to feel smarter, privileged, relieved, sympathetic, and enjoy other such good feelings?

So from now on, I want to be more mindful about not being judgmental.

JUDGE THE SITUATION AND ACTIONS, NOT THE PERSON!

[raawcase]

Need For Survival & GOD

If the need for survival were the only basis of human society, what would the world have been otherwise?

Could there be a man who’s self-sufficient, fears none, communicates with all, and belongs only to himself?

Is food the only driving force behind the existence of this world?

What if there was no hunger? What being would have trodden this earth? Would they have been immortal? Is that GOD?