Recognize that peace of mind, happiness, compassion, and gratitude are trainable skills, not fixed settings. Reframe stressful periods, like an election season, as a ‘dojo’ or ‘workout’ to practice these mental skills, which will benefit your entire life.
Sit quietly, focus on the feeling of your breath, and when distracted, simply notice it and gently return your attention to the breath. This practice helps you gain inner clarity and self-awareness, preventing reflexive reactions to thoughts and emotions.
Prioritize and nurture the quality of your relationships, as they are the best modulators of stress and contribute to a long, healthy, and happy life. When facing stressful situations, engage with others by watching debates, reading polls, or simply texting with them to find community and reduce your fears.
Combat feelings of helplessness and reduce anxiety by getting involved and taking action within your sphere. This could involve volunteering for a cause, helping friends and family, or performing small acts of kindness, which are ennobling and empowering.
Live your life by a ‘regret minimization framework,’ evaluating decisions to reduce the prospects of having a giant regret later for not having done something. This involves taking ‘big swings’ and bold actions, which is a route to minimizing regret.
Acknowledge that conflict is unavoidable in human interaction and learn communication skills and intellectual humility to keep interactions on the ‘healthy conflict’ side, avoiding destructive ‘high conflict’ prevalent in culture.
Use self-awareness to notice when news consumption is leading to extreme negative emotional states (e.g., ‘sending messages in all caps’ or ‘hating everybody’) and turn it off to prevent unhealthy behaviors and reduce stress.
Seek out a diversity of news opinions, preferably through more thoughtful formats like newsletters or podcasts rather than social media. This helps achieve a non-caricatured understanding of differing viewpoints, reducing venom and vitriol.
When discussing disagreements, focus on expressing your personal concerns (e.g., ’this is what worries me’) rather than attacking others’ opinions or trying to change their minds. This strategy fosters more productive conversations.
Recognize that habit formation is ‘diabolically hard’ and it’s completely normal to fall off healthy routines like meditation or exercise. Use the subsequent increase in ‘inner toxicity’ as an intrinsic motivation to get back on track, rather than feeling self-loathing.
View failure as underrated and an opportunity for significant learning and growth. Don’t be afraid to take ‘big swings’ and experiment with new approaches, as trying things, even if they don’t all work, is incredibly valuable.