The Lies We're Sold
By Les Mottosky
An evolutionary biologist recently coined a phrase that resonated. He suggested modern humans were dealing with a form of "shock exhaustion". Since 2020, we've dealt with unending, stunning, life-intruding headlines.
A pandemic, lockdowns, wars, catastrophic disasters of fire and flood, political soap operas mired in corruption plus mind-numbing levels of government spending as a response to all of those. (And the above is only a partial list of the world-rattling disruption we've experienced!)
The impact on us is an overlapping phenomena of: chronic stress, equilibrium overload, decision fatigue, information saturation, and collective trauma. The term "shock exhaustion" captures the feeling that our systems can recover from occasional shocks, but not designed to absorb an unending stream of them.
The problem isn't simply that life is difficult; we're losing the rhythm our biology expects. Our ancestors experienced intense stress like storms, predators and famine. But those events ended. Modern humans are enduring continuous, low-grade uncertainty. We're equipped for acute danger, not perpetual vigilance.
Curiously, the answer probably isn't "more resilience." It's better cycles. We have to think of ourselves as athletes instead of machines.
So below are some approaches for the idea of a new human resilience.
Reorient "Reality": Pursue wisdom, loosen beliefs and eliminate hubris.
No matter how demanding or ubiquitous a headline, we don't have to believe it. Or even notice it. Reorienting reality isn't about swapping one ideology for the next. Switching from a hiking boot to a running shoe doesn't fix a broken foot.
This reorientation is about softening into a mental position of "Maybe. And...".
As an example, take water. Is it liquid? Maybe. And... it could be ice or vapour. "Maybe. And..." is the stance of the Universe. If Nature had advice, it would be those three simple syllables.
Reintroduce Downtime: Performance isn't maintaining all-out max output.
It's found in oscillating between stress and recovery. Our nervous system needs to know, "The hunt is over." Things like walks without our phone, swimming, gardening, woodworking, reading fiction, deep conversations, prayer or meditation; activities that turn-off the work and the world.
Reduce/Ignore the never-ending to-do list: One hidden source of exhaustion is unfinished thinking.
Our brains are continually tracking unanswered emails, political uncertainty, career possibilities, investments, relationships, health and random errands. Each consumes our background energy. Over a 12 month period, developing an effective system will restore more energy than another vacation.
Narrow the world: Modernity expands our attention incessantly.
As sages of the past knew and evolution theory now asserts: growth rewards narrowing our attention. Instead of asking "What's happening?"we can ask "What deserves my attention today?" Discernment is almost a spiritual discipline now. It's not ignorance, but selective engagement.
Spend more time in Nature: Our nervous system knows faces, weather, movement, touch, sound and building stuff.
But most modern work occurs inside symbols like email, slides, dashboards, social feeds. The more time we spend in the real world, the more our nervous system chills out. This may explain why many people report that an afternoon hike can feel as restorative as a 3 day vacay.
Pursue meaningful difficulty: Not all stress is equal; there's a profound difference between imposed stress and chosen challenge.
Stuff like building a business, learning an instrument, training for a marathon or writing a book. These require enormous effort and they're energizing. Because they organize suffering around purpose. As Friedrich Nietzsche pointed out: “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.”
Purpose changes the chemistry of effort.
Simplify aggressively: One of the strongest findings from behavioural science is that reducing complexity often produces larger gains than increasing motivation. Every unnecessary decision taxes the same mental resources needed for creative work. People often ask, "How do I become more disciplined?"
The more effective question is, "What can I remove to become more creative?"
Build awe into ordinary life: Awe widens perspective and quiets the brain's constant self-monitoring. Research has associated regular experiences of awe with lower inflammation, reduced stress, and greater well-being.
No need for extravagant adventures. You can cultivate awe by watching a sunrise or night sky, listening to moving music, spending time in old-growth forests or mountains or witnessing exceptional craftsmanship
Awe reminds us we're part of something much larger than our inbox.
Replace certainty with adaptability: Many people are zonked because they're trying to control an unpredictable world. As Byron Katie likes to remind her followers: "Relax. Nothing is under control." The wisdom in that message is profound – the implication being: nothing has ever been under control. and we're all still here.
The healthiest orientation toward an unpredictable world is "I require capacity not certainty." Capacity means recovering quickly, learning quickly, adapting quickly and – under pressure – staying emotionally available for others.
Graceful adaptation is the defining advantage of the 21st century.
So those are some practical tips to experiment with.
Now for the upshot:
Instead of imagining yourself as an engine that must produce ever more horsepower to get by in a world spinning out of control, imagine yourself as an ecosystem.
Healthy ecosystems don't maximize production every day. They maintain diversity, renewal, and resilience. They have seasons of growth, seasons of conservation, and seasons of regeneration.
Paradoxically, those ecosystems are the ones that endure.
If "shock exhaustion" is a defining condition of modernity, then the competitive advantage may no longer be with the person who can tolerate the most stress. Instead, those who can recover the fastest, simplify the most wisely, and keep directing their energy toward work that genuinely matters will define the new human resilience.
TAGS: #The Lies We're Sold
Les Mottosky
Writes to expand the capacity of the human behind the career.
Adaptation Strategist // I help organizations turn creativity into their competitive advantage by aligning leadership, culture and strategy to unlock adaptive innovations.
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