How To Feel Less Enraged And Hopeless When You Consume The News | Sharon McMahon
Sharon McMahon, 'America's Government Teacher,' shares practical wisdom for navigating turbulent times. She discusses how to avoid being 'confidently wrong,' the importance of a diverse media diet, consuming news mindfully, and choosing hope to combat hopelessness, emphasizing the power of ordinary people.
Deep Dive Analysis
13 Topic Outline
Sharon McMahon's Journey from Teacher to Public Educator
The Electoral College Incident and Sparking Public Education
Distinguishing Between a Journalist and a Teacher's Role
Strategies to Avoid Being 'Confidently Wrong'
Separating Opinions from Personal Identity
The Value of a Diverse Media Diet
Tips for Consuming News Without Mental Overwhelm
Cultivating Compassion for Those with Opposing Views
History as an Antidote to Hopelessness
The Power of Ordinary People and 'The Next Needed Thing'
Virginia Randolph's Impact and the 'Next Needed Thing'
Hope as a Deliberate Choice, Not a Feeling
Debunking the 'Things Have Never Been Worse' Narrative
8 Key Concepts
Confidently Wrong
This describes individuals who firmly believe and spread misinformation without realizing or admitting their error, often due to a lack of intellectual humility. It highlights the assertion of incorrect facts with conviction, rather than a willingness to learn.
Opinions vs. Identity
This concept differentiates between one's changeable viewpoints on specific issues (opinions) and one's fundamental, deeply held beliefs and values that form the core of who they are (identity). Conflating these makes it difficult to change opinions without feeling a threat to one's sense of self.
Intellectual Humility
This is the willingness to re-examine one's views when presented with new or better information, admitting that a previous understanding might be incomplete or incorrect. It is presented as a demonstration of intellectual prowess to change one's mind quickly when proven wrong.
Understanding People as They Understand Themselves
This practice involves trying to comprehend another person's beliefs and motivations from their own perspective, rather than through one's own biases or preconceived notions. It suggests that consuming diverse media and accurately describing their viewpoint back to them can facilitate this understanding.
Most Generous Interpretation (MGI)
A disciplinary practice of interpreting a set of facts or another person's actions with the most positive or charitable viewpoint possible, rather than immediately assuming malice or negative intent. It requires effort and helps in declining unnecessary conflict, fostering a reorientation of spirit.
The Next Needed Thing
This philosophy suggests addressing overwhelming challenges by focusing solely on the immediate, practical step that needs to be taken, rather than getting paralyzed by the enormity of the overall problem. It emphasizes consistent, small actions by ordinary people as a path to significant impact.
Hope as a Choice
This idea posits that hope is not merely an external feeling that spontaneously descends upon an individual, but an active, deliberate decision or posture one adopts. Choosing hope is presented as essential for believing in the possibility of positive change and motivating efforts to achieve it.
Recency Bias
A cognitive tendency to believe that current problems or circumstances are the worst they have ever been, often overlooking historical periods that were objectively more challenging or difficult. History serves as an antidote to this bias by demonstrating past struggles and significant progress.
8 Questions Answered
We can avoid being confidently wrong by holding our views loosely, being willing to re-examine them when presented with new information, and embracing intellectual humility to admit when our understanding has improved.
A journalist's role is primarily to gather and report facts, often holding power to account, while a teacher's role, as Sharon McMahon sees it, is to help people understand 'what is' and 'how to think about something,' rather than uncovering new information or dictating what to think.
Opinions are specific viewpoints on policies, events, or people that can and should change with new information, whereas fundamental values are underlying principles (e.g., all humans are worthy of respect) that are more steadfast and guide our opinions, not to be conflated with them.
A diverse media diet challenges preconceived notions, forces grappling with uncomfortable viewpoints, and helps one understand how others think by seeing the world through their eyes, even if one doesn't agree with their conclusions.
Sharon McMahon recommends reading the news instead of watching it, avoiding excessive time on opinion pieces, not getting news from social media, and knowing one's personal limitations for news consumption to protect mental health.
Cultivating compassion involves a 'change of heart' or a 'reorientation of the spirit' towards a more generous interpretation of events and people, refusing to let differences lead to contempt, and being willing to interact with those who hold opposing views.
History provides a balm for hopelessness by demonstrating that while current problems are real, humanity has faced and overcome far worse challenges in the past, highlighting significant progress and the enduring power of ordinary people to effect change.
Hope is a choice because waiting for it to spontaneously 'descend' often leads to inaction and cynicism; instead, actively choosing a hopeful posture is necessary for believing in the possibility of positive change and motivating efforts to achieve it.
16 Actionable Insights
1. Choose Hope Actively
Make hope an active choice rather than waiting for it to be a feeling that descends upon you. This mindset is crucial because positive change can only occur from a place of believing it’s possible.
2. Differentiate Opinions from Values
Understand the fundamental difference between your opinions and your core beliefs or values. While opinions can and should change with new information, your underlying values can remain steadfast, preventing a loss of ethical moorings.
3. Hold Views Loosely
Hold your views loosely in your hand, rather than gripping them tightly, and be willing to re-examine them when presented with new and better information. This approach helps you stop being wrong faster and demonstrates intellectual prowess.
4. Prioritize Being Right (Truth)
Honestly ask yourself how much you care about being right, meaning aligned with the truth. If you genuinely prioritize truth, it requires a higher degree of humility to dissect your opinions from your identity, leading to personal growth.
5. Assess Group Membership vs. Truth
Examine if you are willing to give up your membership in any group in pursuit of the truth. Being honest about this question allows you to make clear-eyed decisions and reorient yourself in the world, even if the answer is ’no'.
6. Initiate Change of Heart
Cultivate a change of heart to be part of the solution to polarization, rather than the problem. This means actively choosing not to let differences of opinion lead to contempt for your neighbors and being willing to interact with those who hold opposing views.
7. Practice Generous Interpretation
Reorient your spirit towards viewing situations and facts with the most generous interpretation possible, instead of the least. This discipline helps move away from malice and fosters a more compassionate and understanding worldview.
8. Don’t Cut Off Dissenters
Avoid cutting off people who believe differently from you, unless the relationship is abusive. Historically, great leaders have not taken this tactic, as those ideologically opposed cannot have a change of heart if they are never exposed to different perspectives.
9. Decline Unnecessary Fights
Give yourself time before responding to invitations to conflict and realize that you don’t have to accept every fight. Declining these invitations can significantly contribute to your personal peace and ability to maintain compassion for the world.
10. Cultivate Diverse Media Diet
Consume a diverse range of media sources, including those that challenge your preconceived notions or present viewpoints you might disagree with. This practice is crucial for intellectual growth and helps you understand how others perceive the world.
11. Read News, Don’t Watch
Prioritize reading the news over watching it for daily consumption. Reading creates a different, often less emotionally intense, mental experience compared to the graphic detail often presented visually.
12. Limit News Obsession
Avoid spending excessive amounts of time obsessing about the news, particularly opinion pieces. This allows you to form your own opinions and prevents mental exhaustion from constant exposure to negativity.
13. Avoid Social Media News
Do not get your news from social media platforms. Social media is inherently clickbaity and can provide a distorted or incomplete view of information, making it an unreliable source for understanding current events.
14. Know Your News Limits
Understand and respect your personal limitations regarding news consumption. It is acceptable to limit your news intake to just enough to be an informed citizen if more extensive consumption negatively impacts your mental health.
15. Do The Next Needed Thing
Focus on consistently doing ’the next needed thing’ rather than waiting for the perfect moment or for yourself to be the perfect person. History shows that ordinary individuals make significant impacts by taking small, necessary actions, offering a powerful antidote to feeling overwhelmed.
16. Study History for Perspective
Learn history to gain perspective on current challenges and counter the recency bias that suggests ’things have never been worse.’ Understanding past struggles and progress can provide a more balanced view and a balm for hopelessness.
7 Key Quotes
The fastest way to start being right is to stop being wrong faster.
Sharon McMahon
Being willing to change your mind is a demonstration of your intellectual prowess in many ways. Because the smartest people in the room are almost always the people who have changed their mind when they were wrong the fastest.
Sharon McMahon
Learning how to think about something, in my mind, as a teacher, is more important than learning what to think about something.
Sharon McMahon
How will your enemies ever have a change of heart if they are never around anyone to show them the light?
Sharon McMahon
We are the plan.
Sharon McMahon
You don't have to accept every invitation to a fight.
Sharon McMahon
If anybody ever rolls in on a white horse with a scroll titled, the plan, that plan is always bad news.
Sharon McMahon
1 Protocols
Navigating Tumultuous Times and Political Polarization
Sharon McMahon- Hold your views loosely, being willing to re-examine them when presented with new and better information.
- Differentiate between your opinions (which can change) and your fundamental values (which are more steadfast).
- Ask yourself: 'How much do I care about being right?' and 'Am I willing to give up my membership in whatever group it is in pursuit of the truth?' to clarify your motivations.
- Consume a diverse media diet to challenge your preconceived notions and understand other viewpoints.
- Read the news instead of watching it, avoid excessive opinion pieces, and don't get your news from social media.
- Know your own limitations for news consumption and prioritize your mental health.
- Reorient your spirit towards the 'most generous interpretation' of events and people, rather than assuming malice.
- Give yourself time before responding to provocations and realize you don't have to accept every invitation to a fight.
- Choose hope as an active decision, rather than waiting for it to be a feeling that descends upon you.
- Engage in 'the next needed thing' – small, consistent actions – rather than waiting for grand plans or perfect moments.