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Do your best to live your own morals and beliefs, the rest is not for you to worry about. Worrying will not help and makes your life worse. Avoid unproductive
by Buttons840 5y ago
Do your best to live your own morals and beliefs, the rest is not for you to worry about. Worrying will not help and makes your life worse.
Avoid unproductive worry, but if you want to actually participate in organized efforts to improve things, that's good. Accept that there are only one or two problems you will be able to focus on, ignore the rest.
If God exists, presumably all will work out as he wills. If not, nothing matters beyond enjoying an ethically lived life, so enjoy life, be ethical, and know you've done your part for others.
Stop consuming media that draws your attention to things you are doing nothing about. If you participate in organized efforts to improve things, then you may consume some related media to inform your efforts.
Seriously, just push the off button. This will not hinder your ability to vote or support worthy causes. A limited amount of research before voting or taking on a new project is enough. You don't need to look at that stuff every day.
- captn3m0 5y agoFeynman had something similar: https://www.futilitycloset.com/2014/04/06/unquote-406/amp/ https://www.futilitycloset.com/2014/04/06/unquote-406/amp/ “[John] von Neumann gave me an interesting idea: that you don’t have to be responsible for the world that you’re in. So I have developed a very powerful sense of social irresponsibility as a result of von Neumann’s advice. It’s made me a very happy man ever since. But it was von Neumann who put the seed in that grew into my active irresponsibility!” — Richard Feynman
- s1artibartfast 5y agoRelated serenity prayer. "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference" Even as an atheist, the sentiment is crucial for navigating a complex world full of both beauty and horror.
- AnimalMuppet 5y agoIf you are responsible for fixing everything, you know you're not big enough, and it's hopeless. If you have no power to change anything, you're helpless and it's also hopeless, but for the opposite reason. In between, there's a balance. Do the best you can to help with what you can. Let the rest go - you can't fix it, so you can't try to carry the responsibility for it. As a theist, I'm trying to find and maintain the same balance as s1artibartfast. Especially "wisdom to know the difference"...
- s1artibartfast 5y agoI think people are far too prone to black and white thinking. No individual can fix the world, it is foolish to think you can, but just as foolish to feel helpless and ineffectual. You can still do good in the world. It wont fix it, but maybe you can leave it better than it would have been without you.
- tommiegannert 5y agoI love the Serenity prayer. Now that I've read Stoic philosophy, I realize it's a beautiful summary of thoughts from at least 2,000 years ago.