People are more anxious than ever, and honestly, with some of what is going on in the world it isn’t hard to figure out why. But the world has always been a dangerous, unguaranteed place. So why are we now so much more anxious than before?
Smartphones, social media, political unrest, global pandemics. There are a lot of culprits we can point our fingers at. Any and all of those things could lead us to an understandable answer. But as a coach and a father who sits in the space of raw human emotion literally every day, I believe it’s something different. The reason we are so anxious might not actually be because of the challenges of the world, but because we live in a world that lacks real challenge.
“Here’s the paradox: the image of a dangerous world has never been broadcast more effectively than it is now, while the world has never been less violent and more safe.” -Hans Rosling
One of my favorite books is The Mountain Is You by Brianna Wiest. I recommend it constantly and have even interviewed the author twice. When the subject of anxiety comes up in conversations, there is one quote I continuously come back to.
“The human mind is something called antifragile, which means that it actually gets better with adversity. Like a rock that becomes a diamond under pressure or an immune system that strengthens after repeated exposure to germs, the mind requires stimulation in the form of a challenge. If you deny and reject any kind of real challenge in your life, your brain will compensate by creating a problem to overcome. Shielding the mind from any adversity makes us more vulnerable to anxiety, panic, and chaos. Our minds need adversity, and that’s why it’s instinctual to keep creating problems even if there aren’t any real ones in front of us.“
I know this might seem controversial, but the reason I believe so many are anxious is because they have no real challenge. Our world suffers more from problems of abundance than scarcity. Literally everything is at our fingertips. Food, goods, communication, information. We don’t struggle like we used to. The convenience of our technologically connected world is making everything so easy that our brains are screaming to be stimulated by challenge, yet we fill that need with more social media content.
This isn’t meant to be a gross overgeneralization. I understand that some struggle with chemical imbalances or have been victimized by trauma. And yet the spike in anxiety, when in so many ways the world is safer than it has ever been, makes the case that we are simply too comfortable. Since our brains want to be challenged and thrive on challenge, the absence of real challenge opens up the manufacturing plant to create one. You might want comfort, but you don’t need it.
“As we experience fewer problems, we don’t become more satisfied. We just lower our threshold for what we consider a problem.”-Michael Easter
So what’s the solution? Engineer real challenge by finding the arena that removes you from your comfort zone. I found mine in a hot yoga studio. Yoga is where I go to change my spiritual oil so the engine doesn’t grind to a halt. Those sessions are brutally hard. I often burn 650–700 calories. Sticking with it has made it a necessary part of my life. I feel off when I don’t do it. My encouragement to you is to do the same. Think of this as the equivalent of eating your vegetables, but for your mind. You probably won’t like it, but it is exactly what you need for a more peaceful, anxiety-free life.
So here’s the question I leave you with:
Where are you going to microdose discomfort to challenge and strengthen your mind so you can sit in the seat of a powerful, peaceful soul?
live freed,
Jordan
Comments +