No more…

Please. Please. Please. No more LinkedIn posts of cheesy grinned, videoconferencing screen grabs. I get it. You’re working from home. The technology works and, yes, these are strange times. But you’re just like everyone else.

The amount of repetition and unoriginal posts on social media is staggering. Have we truly lost the ability to be creative and the talent for original thought during this period of isolation? As the legend that is Yogi Berra is supposed to have said; “it’s déjà vu, all over again” The same themes appear again and again. The same shared posts. The same overdramatic news feeds.

I recently read a report from a newly recovered coronavirus sufferer, where he advised all other suspected infected to avoid watching the news. He claimed that every time he saw reports of the pandemic, the lockdown and the death rate increase, his anxiety levels rose. His symptoms seemed to get worse and he felt heightened levels of stress. It wasn’t just the topic in itself. It was also about the manner in which it was reported.

It feels to me that since the advent of 24 hour news channels in the UK, and the rise of social media platforms, that news reporting has changed. Everything is sensationalised. The words used are over dramatic. Teams no longer lose. They crash to defeat. People no longer cry. They apparently break down in tears and some stories Break the Internet. No they don’t.

This over sensationalised portrayal of the news distorts peoples view of the world. This focus on the gory, upsetting or dramatic moment, leads to an inflated estimation on the frequency and likelihood of experiencing such an event.

An in-depth study of articles and broadcasts across 130 countries over a 70 year period found that the news and headlines have become more morose and gloomier over this time. The consequences of all this negativity leads to a miss perception of risk, anxiety, contempt and hostility to others.

I think its time to lighten the moment. I would strongly advise grabbing a copy of Stephen Pinker‘s book, Enlightenment Now, a book Bill Gates quotes as “my new favourite book of all time“

But for now… back to the incomparable, Yankees legend Yogi Berra. His expressions and turn of phrase were memorable for being nonsensical yet somehow logical… Enjoy.

“No one goes there nowadays, it’s too crowded”

“We made too many wrong mistakes”

“The future ain’t what it used to be”

“It was impossible to get a conversation going, everyone was talking too much”

“I never said most of the things I said”