Does it seem like every time you turn on the 24 hour cable news network (no matter whether you are watching the ones that lean left or lean right), the airwaves are filled with unrest, distain and negativity? If you feel that way, not only are you not alone, you are correct.
It seems that there are roughly ten times more negative stories than positive stories being put out by the media. There are psychological and, of course, marketing reasons for this to happen, as ad revenue is by far what drives the content on cable news. Please do not be deceived by the thought that the media's goal is to educate you. The media's ONLY goal is to get you to watch more so that they can sell more ads and create more profits.
All of this impacts your mindset and how you feel each day. That makes this a really important topic to understand. Studies show that even small doses of negative news increase anxiety and mood disturbance, and that those levels remain elevated for a prolonged period of time after viewing. This could be doing substantial damage to your psyche if you happen to be one of those people who are sitting at home with the cable news playing all day in the background during this time of social distancing and quarantine.
You have a choice and there are options to combat the negativity that could be affecting your mood, your stress and cortisol levels, which could adversely impact your health. The link here will take you to a blog post from our trusted friend Peter Diamandis, who is author of the Abundance Insider weekly newsletter. I highly suggest you take a few minutes to read the post, and compare the data to your habits and the potential impact on your physical and emotional health.
It is our hope that we can be a voice of reason and optimism during this time of significant health and economic dislocation and volatility. If you do choose to continue to consume what the media is feeding you on a daily basis, please try to limit your intake and balance this with more upbeat and optimistic sources such as Positive News, The Optimist Daily , John Krasinski's "Some Good News" videos, or even subscribe to Peter Diamandis' FutureLoop, which is a free source that outlines news events that have positive sentiment and are future oriented.
It is our hope that we can help you better manage both your financial life and your social, mental and emotional well-being. We truly care about you in a holistic way. I trust this information will be helpful and will allow us all to keep "Moving Life Forward".
© 2020 Jesse Hurst