The Quieter You Become, The More You Can Hear
A new approach to this newsletter
Preamble
Something unexpected happened recently. I broke my addiction to Instagram. Since the birth of my son five years ago, Instagram has been a constant presence in my life. Easy distractions and endless scrolling are hard for sleep-deprived parents to avoid.
Despite the temporary escape, Instagram always annoyed me. Yet, its grip has been so strong that even when I deleted the app, I ended up mindlessly accessing the site via a web browser. Then, all hell broke loose in Israel and Palestine. Instagram quickly became a wasteland of anger, misinformation, and misdirected emotion. Not only were friends and family sharing their shockingly extreme positions, they were doing so at a maddening pace.
The fever pitch of posting and arguing over Palestine has laid bare how Instagram takes advantage of our unconscious egos. What is the endgame of working ourselves up online when we’re merely expressing an opinion on something that the majority of us have no control over? This is egoic. I am telling you about myself by sharing how angry I am about this issue. (If you want to go deeper into the psychological motivations of social media, I strongly encourage you to listen to this episode of This Jungian Life.)
I have long struggled with the profound sense of helplessness that Instagram preys upon, but something about the gravity of the assault this time was too much. Seeing the desperation on my timeline gave me a visceral peak behind the curtain at Instagram and revealed its toxicity without any varnish.
As the violence in Israel and Palestine escalated and the positions became more emotional, logging on became physically repulsive. I deleted the app weeks ago and, much to my surprise this time, haven’t felt the desire to check my feed. While it might be too early to say that Instagram’s pull is finally lost on me, I am hoping that this will be a turning point. Some people can engage with Instagram in moderation, but for me, it’s all or nothing.
Programming note
I ghostwrite several newsletters about a variety of subjects as part of my day job. This newsletter is a personal space for me, one reserved for essays instead of shorter content. Given family constraints and life challenges, I have been low on energy for longer essays lately, but I still feel the pull to write here. So, I am trying something new in the hopes that it gets the writing gears working again.
Over the next couple of editions — I have no idea how many — I will structure the newsletter into three sections. The top section will focus on a particular idea in a couple of paragraphs. I will follow with two sections that may or may not include highlights from recent work, book recommendations, music playlists, images, or quotes. Let me know what you think of this new format, and don’t forget that you can unsubscribe instantly if you find any of this content annoying.
Two items
I have spent my entire adult life looking for the perfect notebook. I haven’t found it, but my current setup is working well. I use a Baron Fig Confidant notebook for longer-form writing. The paper is high quality, and it’s designed to lay flat on a desk.
I also recently stumbled upon the Traveler’s Notebook from Japan’s Traveler’s Company. The notebook is essentially a leather sleeve that you fill with paper inserts (sold by Traveler’s Company or knockoffs). There’s ample hype around these notebooks because they are customizable and have a cult-like following. I love how I can put two or three inserts in a single item and have a space for to-dos, quick thoughts, and longer writing.
For people who love notebooks, these are great options for thoughtful gifts. If you want to pair it with an insanely well-designed pen, check out RIIND.
Finally
Spotify has recently jumped into the audiobook space. If you are a premium subscriber in the US, you get several hours of free audiobook listening per month from just about any title you could ever imagine. The sweet spot here isn’t full-length audiobooks but lectures that have been marketed or sold as audiobooks.
James Hillman, for example, has several digestible, short, and brilliant lectures available on the platform. Last week, I listened to the Myths of the Family, a roughly four-hour lecture Hillman gave about two decades ago. Hillman’s ideas are piercing, and hearing him lay them out makes for a moving experience.
If you have strong thoughts about the style of this newsletter, let me know. I will be back next week with a similar offering minus the gift idea. I think that’s a one-time offering. ❤️
Oh the exact same for me on Instagram! I’ve also recently broken the addiction, also down to extremist and angry views by friends re Palestine / Israel.
Works for me xx