In his interview with David Letterman, former President Barack Obama said somebody tested the use of Google and the different results that emerge.
The idea was to type the word “Egypt”. When a “conservative” made the search, terms appeared as “Muslim Brotherhood.” If a “liberal” did the search, the result would be something like “Tahir Square,” the square in Egypt where demonstrations related to the Arab Spring occurred. And if a person of opinion considered “moderate” searched the term, the result would be something like “holiday resorts.”
“Whatever your biases were, that’s what you were being,” Obama said.
I think that in real life (real used as the antonym for virtual) the same thing happens: our reality is manifested according to our tendencies or where we focus our attention.
My hairdresser told me the other day about how dangerous it is to leave her son with a nanny for the first time, because she constantly sees on TV mothers who put cameras in the house to find out that their nannies are mistreating the children they should care for.
Well, this news does not come for me. The news that arrives in my “search” is of people trying to create a new type of education that stimulates children to do their best, and not just to be accepted into the best University. They are of mothers choosing humanized deliveries; of people who dedicate a Sunday to take plastics off beaches in order to leave a nice place for the next generations.
There is a world shaken by crisis that has not been able to rise since 2009. And there is another world that is even better than before; more prosperous, more conscious. There is also a third kind of world, the one that began to think that it is possible to live in another way, being less of a work slave and with a better quality of life. You doubt? You can see for yourself: in the same condominium there are those who cannot afford to go through the month, and those who are traveling abroad.
I remember hearing my boss in 2009 telling me that the US crisis would shake Brazil and threaten our jobs, and I would answer: “You can tell this story to someone else because I am not scared.” I was not even aware of how our thoughts affect our reality, but I was sure that fear was counterproductive.
Some will say that I was not affected by the crisis because I left the country. I will say that I left the country because I was focused on how to have a better life, not how to “manage the crisis”. It is not a superficial matter of cultivating “positive thinking” – it is a matter of focus.
The google of life is considering you a moderate, a conservative or a liberal?
There are several small things you can do to change this if you are not attracting things that make you feel good: one is to stop watching the news of fear. No, I am not telling you not to know what is going on around you, but to choose what you need to know; to be an active spectator.
You can also take a test: for a week, unfollow people with negative attitudes in social media – people who foment discord, unnecessary political discussions, biased opinions and who are focusing on misery and pain rather than the solutions for it. Actually, this also applies to the bad astrological foreseers on duty.
You do not have to create controversy: there is a button on Facebook called “unfollow”. You will remain friends with these people but their posts will no longer appear in your panel or feed.
The other thing is: do something for the life you want every day. A small action: save $5.00, make a decent and modern curriculum, call that teacher, drink more water. My husband and I have being doing this for a month and the results are amazing! Not to mention the good feelings and the sense of accomplishment at the end of the day.
Remember: focus. Do this for a week and then tell me what results life has brought you.