Tag: Evolutionary Psychology

Why are we all so Pissed Off with Life?

Are you pissed off with life? Do you feel disillusioned with the world? 

If so, you are not alone. 

• According to the World Health Organisation, close to 800,000 people die every year from suicide. (To put this into perspective, as of writing, 1,000,800 have died from Covid-19 and this has brought the world to a halt). 
• Again, according to the World Health Organisation, more than 264 million people suffer from depression.
• When it comes to anxiety, 40 million adults in the US experience this mental disorder. Furthermore, there’s been a huge 50% increase in mental disorders worldwide between the years of 1990 and 2013. 
• Our relationships aren’t fairing any better. According to 2012 statistics, 42% of UK marriages end in divorce. (This figure is actually declining but that’s because more people are choosing not to get married). 
• Finally, 66% of all adults in the US are on some form of prescription drugs. This means that 131 million people are unable to function without some form of pharmaceutical assistance. 

Why are people feeling this way and what can be done? 

In my attempt to answer this question, I must draw on two sources. The first reveals how our system is set up and the second explains how we, as humans, are wired. 

The 1%

In a popular YouTube video I created in 2018 (How the World Works and Who Rules It), I postulated that there are 3 types of people living on planet earth (categorised by the amount of wealth they possess).  

At the top, we have The Kings, representing 0.7% of the world’s population. These people are fortunate enough, either through hard and ingenious work, family inheritance, manipulation or having the right connections, to be in a position where they can do what they want with their lives. The world is their oyster. 

Next, we have The Facilitators, representing 29% of the world’s population. The people that fall into this category are the glue that sticks the system together. In general, they live comfortable but dull lives. They work for, and buy The King’s products, making their masters super rich while, in the process, enjoying a small portion of the spoils. 

Finally, at the bottom, we have The Poor. They represent 70% of the world’s population and, in general, are ignored. Individually, they haven’t got much money so they can’t contribute to The Kings wealth. However, collectively, they provide a useful resource for the Kings factories, prisons and a host of menial roles.  

What does this analysis mean? 

If you take one thing from this brief breakdown of how our world is structured, let it be this – the overwhelming majority of people on this planet are living and working so that The Kings can do whatever they want. 

The system isn’t set up for you! In fact, it’s set up to exploit you. No wonder you feel so angry, used and out of place. You were never meant to win or be happy. Unless you are part of the 1% (or, more accurately, 0.7%), you are an expendable asset, here to serve the elite’s agenda. 

Evolutionary Psychology

Evolutionary psychology is the theory that evolution plays a significant role in the way our brains are currently wired. For tens of thousands of years (99% of human existence), our environment was wild. We lived off the land, hunted, gathered and later farmed. As a result, we evolved to deal with an environment where food was scarce, threats were ever present and acceptance within the group, or tribe, was everything. 

Within a relatively short space of time, though, huge changes occurred. The Agricultural Revolution brought us one step removed from the way we’d adapted to survive, but the Industrial Revolution and, now, the Information Age, has brought us light years from our ancestral origins. 

In some ways, this is a problem. Evolution moves at a far slower pace than human innovation and, as a result, we find ourselves living in a world out of sync with how we’ve evolved to adapt. 

Evolutionary psychology calls this an evolutionary mismatch  and examples of this phenomenon are everywhere.

We crave fatty, and sweet, foods because we evolved to live in a world where food, and energy, supplies were scarce (a disaster for our health now that we live in a world – at least in the developed world – where there is an overabundance of food). We adapted to live in tribal communities (a clan could extend to 100 to 150 people) and, as a result, feel isolated and alienated by the smaller and smaller family, and individual, units where we now reside. Finally, for millennia, we inhabited the African savannah, with its open spaces and abundance of nature. As a result, we feel depressed by living in polluted and overpopulated cities, hemmed in to our office spaces (or, increasingly, our homes), rarely getting the time to venture outside. 

Evolutionary psychology highlights a serious problem. We struggle to function in our present-day environment because our bodies and brains evolved for something else.  

The 4 Steps to Reconnecting with Life 

I hope the picture’s getting clearer. This crazy world is making us insane. It’s alien environment, and practices, coupled with the fact it’s set up to benefit only a very tiny percentage of the population, make it difficult to find happiness, peace and balance in the 21st century. 

What can you do?

Step 1: Reconnect with the natural world 

Ideally, find a place to live which is surrounded by nature. Perhaps this is in, or close, to the woods, perhaps this is by the sea or maybe it’s on a farm.

If this isn’t practical, enjoy the natural world as much as possible. Go for trips or walks at the weekend, visit a park during your lunchbreak. Grow food in your back garden or an allotment. Do whatever you can to reacquaint yourself with the sights, sounds and smells of our natural environment.

Taking this step will make you feel better. Staring at a sunset, watching the sun glisten on the sea, scaling a hill and looking over a tree coated valley, will reconnect you with the magic of life. You’ll remember that, you too, have an untamed side and begin feeling more alive. 

Step 2: Find a tribe 

We live in increasingly smaller units. A husband or wife, with two children is upheld as the ideal. However, is this good for our closest relationships and is there an alternative?

The rise in domestic violence, and increase in divorce enquiries, during the recent lockdown has shown the error of our modern family dream. We haven’t evolved to be in the pocket of just one person, day in, day out. We need to be around more people – friends, people who are committed to working on a similar vision, siblings, parents (perhaps even other lovers?).

Such communal living eases the pressure on our most important relationships, prevents the isolation of living alone and fulfils our basic human need for connectivity. 

While this might not be possible during a lockdown, think of other ways you can get connected to your tribe. Online groups (try Success Club), hang outs or just connecting with other people in the world who are on a similar mission to you, can make a powerful difference.  

Step 3: Take regular exercise 

There’s a reason our brains come with a body, two arms and two legs. We were created to move. It’s unhealthy to stay seated at a desk, or work from home, for 8 hours a day and then spend the rest of the evening either travelling or sat in front of a television screen or laptop. 

Get active.

Whether this means the gym, playing a sport, yoga or dancing, find something physical you like doing and do it on a regular basis.

How regular?

Ideally six days out of seven. However, if a busy schedule prevents this kind of frequency, then an absolute minimum of an hour, three times a week, will suffice. 

Sounds like too much commitment?

Well then make the time! Other pursuits will have to be sacrificed. Work (yes, I said work – I’ll cancel clients to make sure I get my exercise in), family time, tv viewing, socialising should, in some cases, be rescheduled to make sure you exercise. 

Why?

Besides the obvious health benefits (both physical and mental), it makes you feel alive. Your energy will rise, your mind will clear and you’ll reconnect with your wild nature. 

Step 4: Do what you love

Forget money. As much as possible, work because you enjoy doing it.

Get lost in an adventure, or project, that means something to you. You’ll learn how to make money along the way. What’s more important is that you spend every day of your life feeling stimulated. This maximises your talents, helps you come up with great ideas and, invariably, brings products and services into the world that are useful to others. 

Hell, money didn’t even exist (at least not in the way we now know it) in the environment we evolved to live in. We did things (beyond meeting our survival needs), because we were inspired to do so.

There is a drive inside of you that is non-monetary. Follow it. 

Conclusion

We can never go back to our ancestral origins. However, we can learn from them and create a hybrid style of living that honours what it is we need to feel alive and happy. 

Reject the system. Refuse to play a game that only benefits 0.7% of humanity.

The more you harmonise your life with the suggestions listed above, the more you give other people permission to do the same. When that happens, real change occurs. Perhaps your children won’t have to experience the alienating environment that you were forced to endure.   

Call to Action 

If you want to discover a passion you can make a living from and overcome the fears that are holding you back, check out my free course 30 Days to Escape The System. Click here to get the course right now! (You’ll find the tips on developing belief and self-confidence fascinating!)