The Weekly — 12/04/21
3 Recommendations from me. 1 question for you.
Watching this week: The Social Dilemma
I resisted watching this documentary about the dark side of social media as I felt relatively aware of the issues surrounding the subject. Algorithms designed for addiction, filtering of information to sway political opinion and correlations between usage and mental health decline.
However, the filmmakers speak in-depth with senior employees at some of the worlds largest tech companies. Hearing the information from the horse’s mouth made me realise just how calculated and conscious the design of these medias have been.
As one ex-employee explains, never in the history of existence, have such a small and uniform group of people (primarily young-middle aged, white, male programmers in California) been able to dictate and directly influence the lives of billions of people on a global scale.
Reading this week: When the Body says No — Gabor Maté
I didn’t want to rush through this densely packed book so have been taking it at a more digestible pace. It is one of those books that upon finishing, I wanted to immediately order 50 copies and hand one out to every person that I know. If you are going to read one book this year, I would strongly recommend this one.
The book makes its central point very clearly and then spends the final quarter offering the reader a way to work with the quite overwhelming central theme. The book ultimately ends with a message of hope, actual solutions to the problems it explores and a starting point to a journey that will last a lifetime.
Listening this week: Rupert Spira — Guided Meditation
Episode: The Jewel of the Self
Wonderful guided meditation as expected from Rupert Spira. As always Rupert makes the realisation of awareness as the fundamental nature of reality very clear and simple. Allowing the listener to very quickly move into that place of continuous peace.
Question for you: Do I live my life according to my own deepest truths, or in order to fulfill someone else’s expectations?
