Climate is fucked, animals continue to go extinct even more, our money will be worth nothing the coming years… What motivation do I even have to care to keep going? The world is ran and basically owned by corrupt rich people, there’s poverty, war, etc. It makes me sick to my stomach the way to world is. So I ask, why bother anymore?
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Talk to therapists and find a hobby. Do whatever you want. If you think something is meaningless but you like doing it. Do it. Try to live a life that bothers others the least. Help others if they ask for help.
I felt the same way, a therapist couldn’t help me either, since I was just looking at the world realistically… It helped me to consume less news and to concentrate on my immediate environment, where I actually mean my actions can change something. For me it’s mainly family, but of course it can also be a hobby or voluntary work, for example.
This is exactly the advice in Voltaire’s Candide. Cultivate your own garden, OP.
I did not know. I just read the story in the Wikipedia article, sounds really interesting. I also realized that compared to the time when this is set, our time is really relaxed. If you live in the western world and ignore climate change…
Maybe now you think they don’t work, but I tell you from my personal experience they will.
Legitimately the best advice in this thread. Speaking from experience.
Hey with questions like this even the therapists need therapists.
The internet is not qualified to be your therapist.
proceeds to diagnose internet stranger with depression
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I have been following the advice of Waymond in everything everywhere all at once: be kind
I think that’s our main job while everything doesn’t make sense.
Indeed, be the change you want to see in the world.
That aside, life does become more bearable when you build up your skillet, make more money, and are able to mesh into the bullshit with a bit more ease, which in turn helps to afford more fun which helps tune out the bullshit. Unfortunately, the assholes have made the game about money, so the sooner one comes to grips with that and starts playing into it a bit, life becomes a little more manageable. It sucks, but it is what it is.
Did you mean skillet or skillset? Either way I’m on board with building it up
Lol skillset, but I’m down for building up skillets
Because you’re human and that’s what we do. There has been and always will be problems that exist beyond our control. What has made humanity unique is its ability to overcome or adapt to conflict.
You’re having what’s called an Existential Crisis where you question what the point of any of it is at all. Be it during the crisis we’re currently enduring or be it in a time of great peace and splendor, there very likely is no point to any of this.
Don’t allow the world to inflict unnecessary burden upon you. Find and focus on your inner peace.
If you want to find a purpose, be a good, genuine, and kind individual. Bring joy to others.
salute Well said! Turn down the noise and focus on the moment. It is possible to overdose on news.
The point is your gained wisdom through experience. That’s what the old people always tried to tell us.
Are you going to solve any of those problems? No. Are you going to be able to join some organization or movement that solves them? Probably no. Will you be able to affect any change that the world will take notice of? Probably not.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be a part of it. Not everything that has value makes meaningful changes on the world. There was a French artist, Marcel Duchamps, who once exhibited a urinal. This was clearly not an attempt to move art in any direction, or change public perception, he was kinda just being an asshole. But it had that effect anyway. People still get pissy about it, in the form of, “Is it art?” conversations. Is it? Doesn’t matter. It was a low effort one-off idea that has lasted for decades.
Life isn’t actually a race to see how much you can achieve. And if it was that, then it wouldn’t be measured by money. It wouldn’t be measured by “legacy,” the way we use that word for rich people and sports stars. If it really was a contest, then it would be based on how much good you can manage in the face of constant depressive onslaught.
The world has never seemed like it has a point to most people. But they try their best, and they make meaningful impact on the lives of others, often without intention or even knowledge of having done so .
One of my most influential people has no idea that he did anything. He’s around somewhere, although I haven’t seen him for 20 years. All he did was treat me like a person when I was a dumb teenager (not to say all teenagers are dumb, but I was). It really wasn’t much. But I hadn’t been treated that way before, so to me it’s influential because it was something he did that he didn’t have to do.
That guy is not going to be lying on his deathbed thinking, “At least I was a good influence on scared of planes.” For all I know, he doesn’t remember me. Doesn’t matter. He spread some good into the world. That’s your job. That’s your point.
Just be a better you tomorrow than you are today, as many days as you can manage. Know that no one does that every day. And you’ll live a meaningful life that maybe has influence. Your legacy is you.
All very well said.
OP I would read the above comment a couple times and anytime you’re feeling down. Especially the part about just being a positive influence on those around you, that’s all most of us can hope for. Be the light in the darkness, as they say.
In addition to these methods of finding some peace within, I’d also say that the world is not as bad as it sometimes seems. It’s difficult because “bad news” generates more outrage and clicks. And as you said the world is indeed run by money, so we get it shoved in our faces a lot. But there is always good too. By my estimate, I’d say about 2/3 of people just want to live a life of peace and fellowship with their neighbors, friends, and family. The other third kinda suck. But hey, they scream the loudest and seek out positions where they can abuse power, so we end up hearing about them and being influenced by them more.
The world has problems, no doubt. Climate change is real and it’s going to affect our lives for a number of generations, but it probably won’t be the end of humanity. We’ll adapt, and with any luck the technology that is being worked on today will save us from the worst of it. Species going extinct is sad, but it’s also a normal part of evolution and has happened for millions of years without our help. Our ignorance and negligence has exacerbated the problem and is directly responsible for the extinction of many species, I get it, that sucks. But we’ve also rescued many from the brink of extinction. Most folks aren’t evil, we’re just a little dumb, and greedy.
War, poverty, corruption, again big setbacks to humanity, but, whether it makes you feel any better or not, these things are consistent throughout all of human history. Remember, 1/3 of people kinda suck. However there’s an argument to be made that none of these issues are as bad today as they have been in the past. I think of all of the above as our room for improvement as a species, something to be hopeful for.
It’s important to be mindful of our shortcomings, but don’t beat yourself up by focusing on them all the time. Instead, consider all the good that we’ve accomplished. Medicine, civil rights, scientific discoveries, technology, art in its many forms, advancements for the disabled, we’re coming up on robotic limbs and hands controlled by your mind, that is simply incredible. In nearly every way the quality of life today vastly exceeds what it did even just 150 years ago, and the average person today lives better than kings of yesterday. Air conditioning? Cold, clean drinking water? A hot shower??! If I were shoved back in time and couldn’t ever take a hot shower… well I’d be very very upset.
TLDR; Yea, sometimes we suck pretty hard. But there are people doing good in the world every single day, and we have come a long way already from our worst habits and living conditions. It’s entirely fair to be optimistic about and fight for the future you want to see.
Well said. I would also add that for me, stopping my consumption of news has dramatically increased my happiness. The news outlets only spread negative fear mongering bs. Most of it you can’t change. I stopped consuming negative media and its helped a ton.
I really love what you have said here.
At the risk of being a dick I wanna make one point though. When Marcel Duchamp submitted “Fountain” aka a urinal, for an exhibition, he wasn’t just being an asshole.
He’d joined the Dada movement and they really were unhappy with the status quo after the horrors of war. They held lots of public meetings, protest demonstrations, published art criticism etc, trying to change it.
But this kind of makes it even more supportive of your point. He was just one guy, part of something he believed in, and somehow his small act with the urinal had a huge legacy.
This aligns very well with my own philosophy about life, you couldn’t have said it better!
While climate is new, corruption among ruling classes is a story as old as civilization.
Was living ever motivated?
Well, one of the differences between now and then is the access to bad information.
If you were living in a village and a village far away from you was all killed off, maybe you’d hear about it eventually.
Today, you’d be able to see photos the same day.
So online access is overstimulating your “wow this is screwed” circuitry in ways you wouldn’t have experienced decades, centuries, millennia ago.
Maybe a bit of a break from online news would be helpful.
The world has always sucked and had issues. But you were just way less likely to be constantly aware of it.
If anything, the past few years show some incredible promise for things changing in terms of corruption among ruling classes, even if the climate is long term going to completely screw us.
But humanity was never going to last forever, and whether or not you are part of the last hurrah for the species shouldn’t necessarily detract from your experience in the here and now of it.
Find your own meaning and path on a relative basis, and be less caught up in existential dread, especially given there’s little benefit to absorbing yourself in the latter.
While I see the world with same problematic lenses I draw a different conclusion.
If nothing matters why not remove buts from life!
Travel the world. Eat things that are not healthy. Take a simple job because no point chasing the future. Help out other people. Test all the hobbies you want but afraid of.
The world is fucked but it doesn’t mean your life have to be fucked.
I don’t know who told you this but there has never been any point to anything.
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I don’t think many people like this. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Not everyone should know this. Many will try and destroy everything just because there is no point to anything. End and beginning has no meaning. It’s just the journey, that matters to ME.
Why bother? Don’t bother! What can you do about climate change? What can you do about animals going extinct? What can you do about the economy?
Nothing!
So if you can’t do anything about it, it’s not worth fretting about. You should worry about your life! Care for your family. Care for your friends. Do your best at school or work. Try to grow in life by learning new things. Try to gain as many new experiences as you can. Set a goal (not too big) and work towards that. Set a new goal and work towards that.
The point I’m trying to make is to stop worrying about the big problems in the world and focus on the little things, because the little things are what matter. You can still support Greenpeace or XR, you can vote, you can donate, but there’s not much more you can do. If you waste your life worrying about things you can’t influence and wither away in depression, everybody looses.
/r/FoundTheStoic
Sorry, old habits from Reddit. I agree with you. This is one great thing I learnt from stoicism and is a great approach in life. It doesn’t mean to become an ignorant about global issues or don’t care at all, it means to focus on what you can do in your life to help or to have a good life:
Can you fix global warming? Not alone. Then, don’t worry about it in your day life. But, what can you do to help? Can you reduce or stop using plastic bags? Then do it. Have you the money to buy an electric car? Then do it. If not, don’t worry about it until you can.
Stoicism for me is also a great tool to reduce a big problem I can’t solve into smaller actionable problems I may be able to solve and helps me focus on them. It truly helps you to reduce stress about big problems.
I seem to hear more and more about stoicism lately. I might check it out sometime.
I went down the rabbit hole of stoicism 15 years ago when I had a lot of existential anxiety and while it didn’t miraculously help, it really did nudge me into a new path over time.
Small things like not focussing on happiness as a goal, having a momento mori around and taking the time to stop and think about its meaning when I’m overthinking. Doing the negative visualizations on rough days.
It’s more than a philosophy. It’s a good self help tool to have in your tool belt.
I’m with this guy. Do what I can to help, and carry on with my own agenda. Can’t control something? It is what it is. I wasted a few years of life worrying about the world as a whole when I should have been focusing on my own little bubble.
When I’m in that pit, most good advice isn’t helpfull.
What is helpful is to acknowledge that the pendulum of this cold and indifferent universe swings both ways.
When you’re deep in the shit, and you see all the walls crumbling down, and you feel how fleeting all the good things are, just remember that the bad things are just as fickle and fleeting.
The world has been ending since it began. It’s important to pay attention, notice, and do your part when the opportunity presents itself. It’s equally important to remember that none of the apocalyptic events in human history has ended humanity yet. When you can’t stop ruminating on the lowest points of your life, remember that you’ve been through all of that, and you’re still here.
Life is a struggle, and a beautiful mess. Nobody is ever “done” with the hard parts, but we’re never “done” with the good parts either.
Take a deep breath and remember that you’ll never get dealt a good hand if you cash out, and you’re never playing alone.
very well said Mr. Poopy Butthole.
There is never a point. Just do enjoy while it goes.
Same reason people have gone on for a million years. Noe of that matters or is really as bad as it sound at an individual level. Individually you have it better now than at any point in history, asking why ‘you’ should go on because of the unknown future effects of the climate crisis (which is real enough, and shouldn’t be understated) sounds more like depression than a valid outlook that people should have considering actual world events.
Even the worst off people on earth, on average, are better off now than they were 1000s or even 100s of years ago. There have always been poverty, starvation, wars, rich taking advantage of the poor, and fewer safeguards or oversight on top of that.
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The native Americans where I live are said to have only had to “work” for about 2 hours a day. That was enough to provide food, shelter, and clothing. They were known for their high quality weaving and art as they had so much free time. I’m hard pressed to think these times are better.
That’s great, and my post isn’t about every group of people at all times, but broad averages. You can find that exact lifestyle here today as well. But even at that relaxed level of living, life expectancies were lower, and security was tenuous at best. Working a few hours a day and being comfortable is great, but you can assume someone living in that tribe at that time would almost certainly have the same viewpoint as you…things have never been worse, grain gathering is worse than ever, herds are thinning out to their worst levels ever, relations with other tribes make me fear for our very lives, sickness has killed more people than ever, etc.
Sigh… Definitely feels like that more and more
All we can do is be nice and try to have fun. Take days off, don’t work beyond the hours you’re required to. If a boss gives you shit about it, let them have their little fit and ignore them.
Life ain’t about work. It’s not about Instagram, Facebook, or any of that pointless bullshit. Find things you like to do, even if the interest is initially mixed, and give them a try. Buy old video games and books. Buy a Raspberry Pi and make something. Buy some pencils and a pad and draw random shit, even if it’s a bunch of 5 second drawings. Turn it into a challenge where you draw 3 things from the world around you daily. Go take walks and don’t think. Just look at birds, animals, trees.
Fuck the US government, politicians, pundits, any of the people that leech off of our emotions. They are not worth our time and the manufactured outrage they shovel on us everyday is not worth our time. Ignore social media and the dumb shit celebrities say. Turn the TV and the news off.
Want to help the environment in an immediate way? Go pick up trash in a neighborhood. No one else doing it? Go by yourself or start up a group.
Just do anything other than plugging into every news pipeline that is an onslaught of mentally-taxing bullshit that you can’t change. If it’s out of your control, it’s not worth worrying about.
The world is pretty fucked up, it always has been and so it will continue to be.
And none of it really matters either, it’s all just a tiny flash of light in the darkness that will soon fade away to nothing.However, here we are, living in a beautiful planet that was blessed with life, so many different plants and animals, sounds, smells and tastes, music and art, being able to talk with others, laugh, cry, love. We’re only microscopic creatures that live on the tiniest spec of dust imaginable, but to our tiny eyes there is plenty of beauty to be found. And for as long as we are able to see that beauty, there is a point to it for us, we can try our best to enjoy what we have for the little time that we have it, before we finally become one with the universe.
"It is no measure of good health to be well adjusted in a profoundly sick society " - Jiddu Krishnamurti
