Crash Tag

Consider for a moment 2 races ... In the first, 2 runners sprint to the finish line.   As the winner passes the finish line he sees that the person he has been running with for several miles has fallen.  He returns onto the course to help his fallen racer up and helps him complete his journey.  The winner then stands at the finish line cheering on the others ... here comes the first wheelchair participant who lost his legs in a car accident that wasn't his fault.  Here comes the first woman who at 5'2 just doesn't have the same length strides as the 6'2 inch winner.  The next participant to finish grew up in a country without many paved roads and no sports facilities, followed by someone whose parent fell ill and they spent the 6 weeks leading up to the race caring for them and not training as hard ...  In the other race, the winner walks back onto the course and points and laughs at the fallen runner.  He says to the person in the wheelchair and the woman "You jus

All over the internet you will find memes with "uplifting" messages that are actually damaging. Let me give you an example: Feels good right? Rise up and conquer! But consider this: 1. Grapes are more healthy than wine. 2. Diamonds only have value as a reflection of wealth (except maybe as a diamond cutter) and human blood is spilled to collect them. 3. It take 5kg or olives to create 1L of oil - a single olive tree will at most create 4-5L of oil a year - everything else is waste. 4. Flowers bloom in the light. There is always another way to look at things.  This meme is a great example of the mindset that "only if I keep you down can you rise up".  It is fundamentally flawed ... #meme #wine #changemanagement 

So ... 2020 has got me thinking ... There is so much going on right now that it's hard to absorb it all. Information is coming at us one meme or tweet at a time with no context, no perspective, just meant to evoke an emotion. Why do we love them? Because we all want to feel like we are part of a community (more on that later) and we post click-bait to get likes ... Now why likes? Well for that you have to drill down into some basics - like what creates human happiness (or any creature with a brain really)? Chemicals! Yes, really. Stimuli cause the release of endorphins, serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin in the brain that create a sense of happiness, wellness and belonging. As people (or animals) we are all seeking to find happiness. Moving from stimulus to stimulus to create a feeling. Consider for a moment that brain development is complex - there are 7 billion people on the planet (consider the magnitude of that number for a second) and our brains are formed thr