A tale about how my frustration with the 'enshittification' of the internet and love of Rumi's wisdom got together and created what I hope will evolve into a practical and useful resource for anyone wanting to thrive in the 21st Century.
I've been thinking about starting this blog for quite a while, wrestling with a bit of a catch 22 that it puts me in. How do I go about creating a practical and useful resource on thriving in the 21st Century when I know almost all of the techniques that help you reach your audience and cover your costs tend to be damaging to the wellbeing of the people you are trying to reach ?
Attention spans are shortening, so I should be giving you bite sized blogs that you can consume before you get distracted by a squirrel or the ping of WhatsApp (other messaging apps are available). I should be making lots of reels under 60 seconds to break into your doomscrolling feed so that I get more clicks, because clicks mean cash ! My blog titles and social posts should be drama generating click bait, because we all love a bit of drama don't we ? If you're not sure, just have a look at any of the social platforms you frequent - the click bait posts are getting the lion's share of the attention.
The algorithms that were put in place to allow 'creators' to monetise their content are now driving the type of content that we are exposed to. Creators know that clicks mean cash so why produce a high quality, thoughtful blog or video that takes you 5 minutes to consume when five 60 second reels can be produced quicker and get five times the money ? And they only need that one reel to go viral and they're minted !
We all remember that day when we woke up and thought:
I wish someone would create huge amounts of vacuous, bite-sized content and platforms would enable me to scroll through it for hours in a trance, getting little blips of stimulation whilst my mental faculties slowly deteriorate
don't we ? Nope, because it never happened. The monetisation algorithms drove the content change, the tech companies enabled their delivery and doom-scrolling just became a thing. The content hasn't got shorter to meet the needs of reducing attention spans. Attention spans have been eroded by the combination of doom-scrolling and the constant distractions of advertising and technology. And it's all impacting negatively on our happiness and wellbeing.
You can't blame the creators for following the trend and i'm pretty sure that if you ask most young people what they want to be when they grow up it will be:
A content creator
And why not ? If the choice is to go into an office for the next 40 years to just about pay the bills, or sit at home in your pants making vacuous content that might make you a millionaire, the desk job isn't very attractive. They know deep down that it will probably get them a bit of extra cash, there is a small chance they will make a living and a very few will be minted. The most attractive thing about it is you don't need a college degree to be one of the chosen ones, you just need a bit of luck.
The tech companies don't give a stuff about the impact this is having on people. First they slaved to get you hooked on their platforms. Then they slaved to get advertisers hooked. Then they slaved to get creators hooked. So now they are just sitting back with smug grins raking in the revenue. Yes there are creators out there making millions, but I don't think any of us can imagine what that is generating for the tech platforms.
The author Cory Doctorow introduced the term 'enshittification' to the english language to describe the gradual degradation of online platforms to maximise profits. We're seeing it happen across the internet and it is driving unhealthy changes in all of us, but particularly in our young people.
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I’ll meet you there.
I can't remember when I first came across this quote from Rumi, but it had a really powerful impact on me that has just grown over time. I feel it describes a way of interacting with the world that is fair, loving and without judgement. A place where empathy and kindness rule.
When I dug deeper the next line made it even better, speaking of a togetherness that could overcome all the conflict in the world
When the soul lies down in that grass, the world is too full to talk about. Ideas, language, even the phrase each other doesn’t make any sense.
When I looked at the full poem it is a harder read, as is most of Rumi's poetry. It likens the journey of life to a great wagon moving across the plain. I've included the full text below for those who are interested.
I'm using Rumi's words as a set of guard rails for this site, to ensure it enhances wellbeing and happiness rather than impacting on it. I want the content to make you smile and have a positive impact on your day. I want it to draw you in rather than distract you. I want it to make you think about where you are and where you want to be in terms of your wellbeing. Most of all, I want it to inspire you to take action and make the changes you need to help you thrive in the 21st Century.
So I'm going to do my best to keep the content drama/advertising/click-bait/doom-scroll free. When I can I'll keep the content light hearted, with a core vein of realistic optimism running through it, but there will be times that heavy will be the best way to present things.
My hope is that I create a body of material that is useful to anyone on the journey to rediscover the full magnificence of this thing we call life, without adverts, distractions and fluff, so that they spend more time living and loving life and less time scrolling and watching reels of cats being a**eholes.
Mike xx
When I see your face, the stones start spinning!
You appear; all studying wanders.
I lose my place.
Water turns pearly.
Fire dies down and doesn’t destroy.
In your presence I don’t want what I thought
I wanted, those three little hanging lamps.
Inside your face the ancient manuscripts
Seem like rusty mirrors.
You breathe; new shapes appear,
and the music of a desire as widespread
as Spring begins to move
like a great wagon.
Drive slowly.
Some of us walking alongside
are lame!
Today, like every other day, we wake up empty
and frightened. Don’t open the door to the study
and begin reading. Take down a musical instrument.
Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.
~
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,
there is a field. I’ll meet you there.
When the soul lies down in that grass,
the world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, even the phrase each other
doesn’t make any sense.
~
The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
Don’t go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want.
Don’t go back to sleep.
People are going back and forth across the doorsill
where the two worlds touch.
The door is round and open.
Don’t go back to sleep.
I would love to kiss you.
The price of kissing is your life.
Now my loving is running toward my life shouting,
What a bargain, let’s buy it.
Daylight, full of small dancing particles
and the one great turning, our souls
are dancing with you, without feet, they dance.
Can you see them when I whisper in your ear?
~
They try to say what you are, spiritual or sexual?
They wonder about Solomon and all his wives.
In the body of the world, they say, there is a soul
and you are that.
But we have ways within each other
that will never be said by anyone.
~
Come to the orchard in Spring.
There is light and wine, and sweethearts
in the pomegranate flowers.
If you do not come, these do not matter.
If you do come, these do not matter.
