Empowerification and the art of saying “nope”.

Most of yesterday morning was spent trying to cobble the next issue of The Dice together. Around eleven o’clock I decided to put the computer away, get out of the house, and do something completely different. It just wasn’t going to happen. 

I started with Cory Doctrow’s recent post Enshittification isn't caused by venture capital and kept digging into the themes found within. Hours later I started to resurface with the unshakable feelign that Cory’s diagnosis for social networks honestly applies to just about everything. I traveled too far down a path.

In his post The Dichotomy of Control, Steve Makofsky writes:

Truth be told, I've been sitting on this post for a few months now; it hasn't just felt like it was the right time to put pen to (digital) paper, but given the overwhelming, chaotic energy I felt inside towards the end of 2024, it was the nudge that I needed. And, from what I can sense from many of my friends, 2025 doesn't feel that much different.

It's a lot.

Politics, society, social media, work drama, life drama, health drama, school stress, crazy weather and fires exploding everywhere, a war here and there, the price of eggs, etc. The list goes on and on.

In a daily bombardment filled with endless notifications, and unpredictable events, it's easy to feel like you're drowning in stress. The sheer number of wacko curveballs thrown at you daily is exhausting.

That was me yesterday in a nutshell. Exhausted and drained. After I left the house and positioned myself in the path of natural vitamin D I started to feel better—staying offline most of the afternoon and evening. As Steve shared, It’s too easy to experience dread right now and new protocols are needed to remain safe and of sound mind. Jason Kottke’s How to Weather the Storm is a good place to start.

Steve’s post goes on to remind us about the wisdom of the Stoics and the empowerification in saying "nope".

Epictetus also said that people are stressed not by events but by their judgments about events. So don't waste time, stress, or energy on those things.

It's been amazing how such a simple shift of thinking has positively affected my mood and mental health. It's taken a massive weight off my mind. It's like putting down a backpack full of stress that I've been carrying for no reason.

Solid advice. I’ll add: If you look for things to fear†, you will find them.

† Such as evidence of enshittification in everything: Internet platforms, consumer goods, work, government, diplomacy, politics, etc.