I saw an article the other day which I can’t find a link to, so you’ll just have to take my word for it. It was “3 Weeks to a Better You.”
Sounds innocent enough, right?
One of your tasks to better yourself was to go on Facebook, read through your News Feed, and delete everyone who wrote or posted something negative.
Well, okay, but…
Am I the only one who is skeptical of “wellness plans” that involve slashing and burning your way through your social network like some sort of Facebook Attila the Hun? Deleting everyone who is not currently useful to you?
That asshole doesn't like his job/lunch/current surroundings/government? The nerve of that guy! DELETE!
That bitch is complaining about her splitting headache? How dare she? DELETE!
What happened to patience, or empathy? The ability to tolerate, and even like, someone you disagree with? The ability to stand by a friend who is going through a rough patch, without condemning him or her as an “energy vampire?”
There is a bizarre misanthropic undercurrent in self-help these days, which goes something like this:
“Once you have rid yourself of all those pesky energy-draining stimuli (a.k.a human beings), you will achieve your full potential!!!”
Meanwhile, my new favourite author Emily White argues that true self-fulfillment doesn’t come from isolation at all. Rather, humans as social animals reach their full potential only with the give-and-take support of a community (made up of close friends, significant others, relatives, or even…online contacts).
Read the book – it’ll rock your world. And make you think twice about choosing solitude as the path to enlightenment.
