"I believe that the problems coming at us are too large to be solved by egoic awareness, even well-intentioned, collectively organized egoic awareness." — Christopher Bache
Frederik, you’ve written so many top-notch essays, and this one is right up there with my favorites. It’s incredibly powerful, maybe because of the times we are living through, but it’s full of ideas and insights worth revisiting with fresh eyes. Thank you for such an incisive and timely piece.
Candidly and sadly, I'm pessimistic. I wrote about this:
"COVID sealed the social contract in amber. For the first time in modern history, a nation declared—explicitly, unequivocally, and without reservation—that the old would be protected at any cost.
Schools closed.
Careers froze.
Dreams deferred.
We inverted the moral hierarchy and tore up the social contract: preservation replaced possibility."
Thanks for sharing and I agree on the issues of gerontocracy, generational conflict, and the explosion of gambling. That's what I took away from Bache: things get worse before they get better, perhaps over multiple generations.
What a piece! I think many would resonate with what you shared here. I agree, "maybe we can’t save the world, but we can create spaces of connection, healing, and beauty." Maybe that is all there is.
"That’s not a hero’s journey, but a healing journey. What if nothing more is needed to allow a greater intelligence to do the work through us?" Beautiful...
The reframing from "who will save us" to "what if the world needs loving attention" flips the whole savior narrative nicely. I've noticed the same pattern in startups where founders get stuck trying to heroically fix everything instead of createing conditions for better outcomes to emerge. The idea that crisis is a threshold ratherthan catastrophe is tough to sit with but probably more accurate than the doomscrolling suggests. When I worked in climate tech, folks would burnout fast becuase they carried that impossible weight individually instead of understanding they were part of a larger process.
Agreed and I like the Taoist notion of subtly working to create better conditions.
I think the Emerald episode on "the Weight" is an excellent listen for anyone struggling with that mission-driven burnout. Do your best but do not assume a weight not meant for you.
Frederik, you’ve written so many top-notch essays, and this one is right up there with my favorites. It’s incredibly powerful, maybe because of the times we are living through, but it’s full of ideas and insights worth revisiting with fresh eyes. Thank you for such an incisive and timely piece.
Thank you so much Shrikant, very kind of you! 🙏
Candidly and sadly, I'm pessimistic. I wrote about this:
"COVID sealed the social contract in amber. For the first time in modern history, a nation declared—explicitly, unequivocally, and without reservation—that the old would be protected at any cost.
Schools closed.
Careers froze.
Dreams deferred.
We inverted the moral hierarchy and tore up the social contract: preservation replaced possibility."
More: https://www.whitenoise.email/p/the-three-gs-of-global-decline-gerontocracy
Thanks for sharing and I agree on the issues of gerontocracy, generational conflict, and the explosion of gambling. That's what I took away from Bache: things get worse before they get better, perhaps over multiple generations.
If that isn’t a macroscopic rule of thumb I don’t know what is.
What a piece! I think many would resonate with what you shared here. I agree, "maybe we can’t save the world, but we can create spaces of connection, healing, and beauty." Maybe that is all there is.
Thank you so much, April. Maybe whatever we need will be born in those spaces . . 🌀🙏
"That’s not a hero’s journey, but a healing journey. What if nothing more is needed to allow a greater intelligence to do the work through us?" Beautiful...
The reframing from "who will save us" to "what if the world needs loving attention" flips the whole savior narrative nicely. I've noticed the same pattern in startups where founders get stuck trying to heroically fix everything instead of createing conditions for better outcomes to emerge. The idea that crisis is a threshold ratherthan catastrophe is tough to sit with but probably more accurate than the doomscrolling suggests. When I worked in climate tech, folks would burnout fast becuase they carried that impossible weight individually instead of understanding they were part of a larger process.
Agreed and I like the Taoist notion of subtly working to create better conditions.
I think the Emerald episode on "the Weight" is an excellent listen for anyone struggling with that mission-driven burnout. Do your best but do not assume a weight not meant for you.
Thank you for sharing your heart, Frederik. Grateful for you.
Thank you, Jeff ❤️
Incredible writing 🙏🏼
Thank you!