Simple Step 3 - Reduce Exposure to Mass Media

This is just too unbelievable WalMart shoppers!

This simple step is really out of sequence, but it's really important given an item in the news. On black Friday, a WalMart employee was trampled to death by shoppers focused on getting good deals! This is one of those times where people rhetorically ask what kind of lunatic culture we live in. According to reports, shoppers took the front doors off the hinges in a mad rush to get what they wanted for Christmas at a lower price. In the process, they trampled a 34 year old worker… and the really sad thing is that in a company that makes 30 billion dollars a year, this worker probably made near the average for a WalMart worker of $19,200 per year.

Now, here's the deal. Bloggers and newscasters are pitching a fit about how dehumanized the shoppers were for ignoring what was going on in pursuite of their "cheap crap". Others talk about what ogres WalMart is for not adequately managing the crowds with sufficient security and paying their workers far too little. So far I haven't seen anyone ask how the heck the shoppers and WalMart got that way.

Choice

The thing is that neither the shoppers nor WalMart made a conscious choice for this to happen… and to create a better world that we can enjoy we all need to start making conscious choices. So, how did those people become an unthinking, uncaring, herd intent on nothing but satisfying their need for more stuff at lower prices? Really, the answer is simple… mass media.

Have you ever considered that it is the job of the mass media to create disharmony in you? Advertising creates a basic disharmony that makes you want to buy more stuff. The media creators are complete slaves to the advertisers and to the culture that the advertisers must have, so creating an insatiable desire in media consumers is what mass media is all about. Even the TV shows, articles, talk shows and everything other bit of media that you consume contain content that at a very unconscious level paints a picture for you that says, "You're really a lousy person but you'll be really cool if you buy this stuff and think this way."

Addiction to media

Now here is the really interesting thing about all this. Have you ever noticed that people who run a lot seem to be addicted to running? Well, they are. More precisely, they are addicted to the endorphins that are released in the act of running. Endorphins are endogenous opiod polypeptides. Yup, they are kind of like morphine. They make you feel pretty happy. Now here's the interesting thing… emotions cause particular biochemical reactions in your body, and when you experience particular emotions on a regular basis your body becomes addicted to them and will cause you to engage in activities that produce the same biochemical reactions. So, when you experience anger, depression, happiness, excitement, or any of the other emotions on a regular basis your biochemistry will encourage you to do things to continue to experience those emotions.

Now think about continuous exposure to mass media. Think about the emotions that are routinely propagated in advertising and media content. Over and over in multiple sources of media you are getting the messages about how you will be a better person and your life will be better when you buy more stuff. More is better. Newer is better. You'll be better if you get that. On top of that the "news" beats a constant drum of fear into you. At the moment it happens to be about the economy… so, of course, you've got to get more stuff and it's got to be at the cheapest possible price. Are you getting the picture here? The shoppers are not non-humans. They are addicted! And don't think for one second that the Madison Avenue marketers are not 100% aware of what's happening. They are making it happen.

What you can do

Act consciously to turn off the television, stop reading the paper, turn off the radio, and read books instead of magazines. No, you don't need to cold turkey all this, just start cutting back. You will be amazed at what a difference you experience in the quality of your life. Then, take the next big step and think about what your core values really are. Is it really that important to get a new Mercedes or is quality time with your family and friends more important. Start making conscious choices about how to maximize your life around your core values.

Oh, and by the way one of the free giveaways you'll get for signing up for the newsletter is a system for focusing your life around your core values.