The Antidote to Negative News (plus a SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT)
To tune into mainstream media (even most social media platforms) these days is to expose yourself to a steady stream of hate and fear mongering. I try my best to limit my exposure to mainstream news in general but lately it’s been nearly impossible to escape. Over the past few months I’ve noticed so many friendships and family relationships needlessly altered because of this divisiveness. I believe we can do better.
Current political circus aside, lead stories on the national and local news are typically about war, crime, or some other kind of calamity. Although I do believe it’s good to be informed, it becomes psychologically toxic when the negativety begins to affect your world view and mood. If you take the messages, as well as the spin of those messages, that the mainstream media reports as the truth you would be terrified to leave your house, let alone have the courage to step outside of your comfort zone and experience other cultures.
When you start to cross borders and really immerse yourself in other cultures it literally transforms you. Traveling also makes it less likely that you’ll fall victim to propaganda. One of the first lessons you learn is the world is different from the one the news portrays. There’s a large number of genuinely kind people on each and every continent. In fact, I would go as far as to say that basic human kindness is pretty much the majority.
The catch is to experience this lesson you must immerse yourself amongst common everyday people, not just merely observe them through the security gate of some sterile and swanky all-inclusive resort. This is one reason I love travel so much and why I feel it’s so important for your well-being to become a global citizen, get a passport and invest in travel.
“For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
UBUNTU -- Let's revisit this word again. It sums up why I was first so attracted to Steemit and have invested myself so heavily in this platform. I see the great potential of our platform to blur cultural and socio-economic boundaries and bring people from all walks of life together. People from all over the planet are connecting here, sharing ideas about the world and their cultures, and working together to help shape a better future for us all.
Being a creative person who feels things on a deep level I’ve noticed it’s been extremely difficult to shake the negativity lately. I realized I needed a cleanse from it all. To try to counter this, I’ve stopped watching the news and have started to actively seek out things that inspire and uplift me. This past weekend I was searching Netflix and found a show I started to binge watch and become instantly obsessed with. The show is called, The Kindness Diaries, and is produced by British traveler, author, and motivational speaker, Leon Logothetis.
With the show Leon sets out to prove that kindness still exists in this world...in greater abundance than most people realize. His only traveling companion, aside from the clothes on his back (and camera crew), is a bright yellow vintage motorcycle, dubbed Kindness One. Leon begins his journey from his home base in Los Angeles with the goal of traveling around the entire globe, with no money, no resources, continuing only through the kindness of others.
The lesson of Kindness Diaries is infectious and the perfect antidote to the particularly potent strain of negativity that is so prevalent in our world today. I urge you to check this show out in the TV Shows category of Netflix.
More than ever we need to look out for each other’s well being. We also need remind one another that the kindness of humanity is very much alive and well, despite what the talking heads would lead us to believe.
Now on to that Special Announcement I promised! Leon Logothetis, host of The Kindness Diaries, has graciously agreed to take part in an Q&A with me that will be published exclusively here on Steemit! I’d like you all to be a part of it.
If you have a question you’d like me to ask Leon, please share it in the comments below. I will be choosing a few at random to use in the article. All of the proceeds of this Q&A will be donated to a, yet-to-be named, charity of Leon’s choice. The article should be posted later this week and PLEASE be generous with your Upvotes, Comments, and Resteems, as 100% of the Q&A post proceeds will be donated to charity!
In closing, I’d like to share a quote from the Dalai Lama, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”
I am an American novelist, poet, traveler, and blockchain enthusiast. Your upvotes, comments, and resteems are always appreciated!
What an inspiring post, once again! Thank you for sharing and I have the feeling the Ubuntu Party of South Africa, led by Michael Tellinger would love to read this, most possibly like to be interviewed and even more possibly become part of the Steemit.com train!
Just a few thoughts I had while reading this precious message of yours for us all. No kindness however small ever is ever given in vain. All for one and one for all! Namaste :)
Thank you, Eric! That's a fabulous idea. The more, the merrier. Namaste, my friend!
Okay.
Leon, your dedicating your life to improving the lives of others is a story which should inspire us all. However making the transition you did from stockbroker and more typical 9-5 job holder, to traveling philanthropist must have been a surreal moment in your life. What were you feeling as you decided to do this, and what would you say to encourage others thinking of making a similar transition?
Thank you for your question!
Another superb recommendation from you, I'll have to check it out. As for a question, I will have to give that a bit of thought.
Thank you, @opheliafu! This show is really something special, you'll understand instantly when you watch. Leon did a similar show exclusively in Britain, he could only spend 5 pounds a day while traveling across the U.K.
That rings a bell. I'm still working on a question.
I may be a little late but my questions are : 'do you believe kindness is infectious and if so what is the best way to spread it?'
"if it bleeds...
....it leads.."
good news on the Q and A!
Thank you for encouraging others to look beyond the negativity.
You're welcome @marymg2014! I appreciate you taking the time to read the post and comment.
Bravo, dear Eric. You put into words exactly how I have been feeling lately with all the bad news and political childishness. You have to wonder if that's not the main goal - to divide us even more. I look forward to watching this series. Thank you for such a timely post.
You're welcome, my friend! Thank you, for your comment! I think you're onto something, definitely. There's usually always an agenda.
This is great. Yes, kindness is infectious.
Thanks! It certainly is, the best kind of infection. : )
Negativity seems to be trendy, these days. A little kindness will be refreshing...
Isn't that the truth, @macksby! Thanks for stopping by!
"Although I do believe it’s good to be informed, it becomes psychologically toxic when the negativity begins to affect your world view and mood." This is what I warn my friends and family about. You may even be aware that you're watching propaganda but still be affected. It's toxic, like you say.
I have also been struggling with a bout of negativity lately, and it has affected my inspiration for writing, which is annoying. So thank you for this inspiring post. I will definitely be checking out that show and that's awesome that you got a Q&A with Leon.
That's so true @skypal, exposure to negativity has an accumulative effect...even if you realize it's propaganda. It's so important to have something to help counter it. I hope the show provides the same kind of antidote for you as it did for me.