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I really don't think the best way of building up mental health reserves is to approach this thinking like an entrepreneur or an investor. To be honest that soun

I really don't think the best way of building up mental health reserves is to approach this thinking like an entrepreneur or an investor. To be honest that sounds like the broken record that is the Silicon Valley or general capitalism BS machine. Instead, I would advocate participating in communities, working for social and environmental justice, volunteering and acting in a spirit of generosity that is directed away from the self. You can do this in many ways and one of them is to participate in non-toxic open source communities that build together and give away the product freely.

andi999 6y ago
I agree fully, except you shouldnt work for social and environmental justice, but social and environmental improvement instead.
- glutamate 6y ago
  What is the difference, to you? To me, working for improvement can too easily become redirected towards self-aggrandisement. I did this, I accomplished this. Working for justice implies that laws and rights, natural or human-made, are being denied and broken.
  - NalNezumi 6y ago
    Improvements are (often) incremental, and easier to break down in to actionable tasks. You can also already start on existing work/not working parts. Justice on the other hand is (often) focused on the end-goal, which is much harder to break down to actionable task. Work on social and environmental improvements by the day, asses it on social and environmental justice every month.
  - andi999 6y ago
    Yes, one should avoid that. I mean there are a few problems with focussing on justice (you might disagree of course): - justice cannot be achieved. Look at the courtrooms (which is actually there to serve justice), but is the verdict really justice? So persuing justice can make you cynical - for the example of social justice, you could approach it by thinking it is just (or solves the justice problem) to take away the wealth of the rich. Does this improve the social condition of the unfortunate? Also this can make you radical and bitter. - Also if you go for justice, you might start to see a lot of things as 'unfair' this is a negative feeling Generally I believe a mindset of helping others/nature by planning to improving things is better (for the cause itself and for oneself) than trying to fight perceived injustices.
  - antepodius 6y ago
    It just seems like if you rally under the flag of justice, meaning to improve the condition of the world, you also attract people who are interested in retribution and punishment (another element of justice). Lots of middle-class activists for justice, for example, don't actually seem like most of the poor very much (understandable: the poor are a basket of useful idiot deplorables). They're more motivated by their hatred for the rich, and punishing someone is still justice, even if that won't actually improve the material conditions of the poor (which isn't that big a problem, because some of them are trump voters and we still have to punish them).
logicchains 6y ago
>working for social and environmental justice In my experience focusing on political causes of any kind is not a great path to happiness, as it almost inevitably results in anger, frustration or sadness at the state of the world.
- sneak 6y ago
  I think that you will find that directly helping those around you who are in need is a lot more beneficial to your well-being than you might believe otherwise.
  - logicchains 6y ago
    The poster I was replying to used the phrase "working for social and environmental justice". My understanding of that phrase is that it refers to trying to bring about political change, which can be a stressful experience.
    - kiba 6y ago
      It seems to me that there are was to do social changes that aren't necessarily stressful, like helping to provide or deliver food to the homeless.
      - logicchains 6y ago
        I definitely agree if somebody wants to do stuff like volunteering, that would probably be good for their mental health.
- glutamate 6y ago
  The goal is not happiness; the goal is liberation.
  - logicchains 6y ago
    The goal the article is referring to is improving mental health. Is a consistently unhappy person considered mentally healthy?

andi999 6y ago

I agree fully, except you shouldnt work for social and environmental justice, but social and environmental improvement instead.

glutamate 6y ago
What is the difference, to you? To me, working for improvement can too easily become redirected towards self-aggrandisement. I did this, I accomplished this. Working for justice implies that laws and rights, natural or human-made, are being denied and broken.
- NalNezumi 6y ago
  Improvements are (often) incremental, and easier to break down in to actionable tasks. You can also already start on existing work/not working parts. Justice on the other hand is (often) focused on the end-goal, which is much harder to break down to actionable task. Work on social and environmental improvements by the day, asses it on social and environmental justice every month.
- andi999 6y ago
  Yes, one should avoid that. I mean there are a few problems with focussing on justice (you might disagree of course): - justice cannot be achieved. Look at the courtrooms (which is actually there to serve justice), but is the verdict really justice? So persuing justice can make you cynical - for the example of social justice, you could approach it by thinking it is just (or solves the justice problem) to take away the wealth of the rich. Does this improve the social condition of the unfortunate? Also this can make you radical and bitter. - Also if you go for justice, you might start to see a lot of things as 'unfair' this is a negative feeling Generally I believe a mindset of helping others/nature by planning to improving things is better (for the cause itself and for oneself) than trying to fight perceived injustices.
- antepodius 6y ago
  It just seems like if you rally under the flag of justice, meaning to improve the condition of the world, you also attract people who are interested in retribution and punishment (another element of justice). Lots of middle-class activists for justice, for example, don't actually seem like most of the poor very much (understandable: the poor are a basket of useful idiot deplorables). They're more motivated by their hatred for the rich, and punishing someone is still justice, even if that won't actually improve the material conditions of the poor (which isn't that big a problem, because some of them are trump voters and we still have to punish them).

logicchains 6y ago

>working for social and environmental justice In my experience focusing on political causes of any kind is not a great path to happiness, as it almost inevitably results in anger, frustration or sadness at the state of the world.

sneak 6y ago
I think that you will find that directly helping those around you who are in need is a lot more beneficial to your well-being than you might believe otherwise.
- logicchains 6y ago
  The poster I was replying to used the phrase "working for social and environmental justice". My understanding of that phrase is that it refers to trying to bring about political change, which can be a stressful experience.
  - kiba 6y ago
    It seems to me that there are was to do social changes that aren't necessarily stressful, like helping to provide or deliver food to the homeless.
    - logicchains 6y ago
      I definitely agree if somebody wants to do stuff like volunteering, that would probably be good for their mental health.
glutamate 6y ago
The goal is not happiness; the goal is liberation.
- logicchains 6y ago
  The goal the article is referring to is improving mental health. Is a consistently unhappy person considered mentally healthy?