I'm grateful you're reading these words.
And these.
Perhaps even these.
Thank you for momentarily giving this any of your attention.
Continue down this wordy waterfall with me...
When you think about our own existence, it all happens in our minds.
"That's a hell of an abstract sentence, Justin."
It is. My apologies. But if you bear with me, I'll briefly explain.
You and I take inputs from our many senses, and our minds translate those inputs into something that becomes who we are. Our own existence. The world is happening around us, but the interpretation of that world -- our existence --happens in our minds.
And our minds are at the basis of a war because there's a constant fight for our attention. Whoever captivates our attention can deliver any message they please (more on that later).
We're in an era where your attention is monetized, but you don't get paid for it.
If you're like me, you were tricked by social media because the mindless scroll on Instagram and TikTok is where you give most of your attention in your free time, isn't it? Any moment or break in "life" goes to the feed. No longer do we even wait in line without a quick scroll.
It's worth noting that those platforms aren't inherently evil. They're simply designed to be attractive; to be easy and temporarily rewarding to give your attention to.
They offer the quickest and easiest hit of dopamine. Which isn't bad, but if you aren't mindful of how much of your attention you're giving to them...you'll give all of your attention away. For free. And perhaps to things that you wouldn't otherwise care about.
Do you think you're doing social good by projecting your support for the latest injustice in the world in the form of a story, reel, or post? Maybe you are. But maybe you aren't. Either way, do you feel like your content on these topics is worthy of your followers' attention (who likely already think like you)? Maybe it is. But maybe it isn't.
Does it matter? No, not really.
Personally, I'm a "live and let live" proponent.
But I hate seeing people blindly give away their attention (and their voice) for free.