Cosmic Insignificance Therapy
Plus: Seven Things on quiet quitting, generative art, productivity satire, and more
Hello friends!
The crumbling Christmas trees littering the streets say it all: 2023 is now in full swing. I hope it’s been a good one for you thus far. Here’s what I wanted to share with you in this newsletter’s second edition of the year:
One — A story on finding comfort in the indifference of the universe
Two — Seven Things on quiet quitting, generative art, productivity satire, and more
1. Finding Perspective In The Clouds
Have you ever made a mistake at work that left you feeling anxious about returning to the office? I know I have. The following day, as I walked back to work, I couldn't shake the feeling of dread that came with facing my colleagues and accepting responsibility for my error. As I made my way through Trafalgar Square, I stopped in front of the National Gallery. Leaning against the wall below its imposing columns, I let my mind wander to all the worst-case scenarios that might be waiting for me at the office.
As I stood there, I noticed the changing weather above me. The sky was filled with dark clouds being pushed around by a strong wind, occasionally giving way to glimpses of bright blue sky and warm sunshine. Down below stood the monuments to centuries of human striving and power. Swathes of suited commuters darted between them. But no matter how large or ornate the monuments, how expensive the suits - it all seemed so small under that vast sky. I realized then that my mistake, as significant as it felt to me at the time, was just a tiny blip in the grand scheme of things. The clouds didn't care about my mistake; they just kept moving on regardless.
It's easy to get caught up in our problems and feel like they are the most important things in the world. But the truth is that they are often relatively insignificant in the grand scheme of things.
As Oliver Burkeman writes in 4000 Weeks - Time And How To Use It:
»What you do with your life doesn’t matter all that much […] the universe absolutely could not care less.«
While this may seem like a defeatist, nihilistic idea at first, embracing this perspective can actually help us manage stress and break out of unhealthy thought patterns.
»It’s natural to find such thoughts terrifying. To contemplate “the massive indifference of the universe”, writes Richard Holloway, the former Bishop of Edinburgh, can feel “as disorienting as being lost in a dense wood, or as frightening as falling overboard into the sea with no-one to know we have gone”. But there’s another angle from which it’s oddly consoling. You might think of it as ‘cosmic insignificance therapy’: when things all seem too much, what better solace than a reminder that they are, provided you’re willing to zoom out a bit, indistinguishable from nothing at all? The anxieties that clutter the average life - relationship troubles, status rivalries, money worries - instantly shrink to irrelevance.«
It’s a form of constructive absurdism - recognising that our problems are minute in the grand scheme of things allows us to let go of the pain and move on.
Years later, when on my morning walk with Bao Bao, I still seek out an area with a good view of the sky and take a few minutes to watch the clouds. I consider how little any difficulties I might face that day matter. Then I walk home to begin my day in earnest, feeling more positive and energised for it. The clouds, they’ll keep moving no matter what.
/// Title image: DALL·E2 responding to “Thousands of commuters in black suits move across Trafalgar Square. Thick clouds moving across the sky with small windows of sunshine. In the style of Monet.”
2. Seven Things I thought were worth sharing
Personal Growth: What Quiet Quitting is, and why it is so prevalent in GenZs
Creator Showcase: Check out the insane beauty of Markos Kay’s generative art on Instagram
Books: In case you set a reading goal for 2023, here are my current top 10
Photography: The winners of the Monovisions black-and-white photography awards are out.
Data Visualisation: Apple created an insightful tutorial on how to create useful data visualisations. If you’ve ever drawn a doughnut chart, this is for you.
Good news: Running the risk of overloading you with reading material this week, here is a roundup of good things that happened in 2022 containing many links worth reading in their own right. I’d, for example, completely missed that the Patagonia founder gave away his entire company to fight climate change.
Fun/Entertainment: Clicking a link to discover that it leads to a paywall is infuriating. Be warned, this one goes to the Economist. But the satire column Bartleby alone makes it worth signing up for a at least the free account. This edition features a satire piece on New Year’s productivity hacks.