While insane individuals have always existed, I feel that a lot of people are crazy today for varying reasons that I will share today.

That’s not necessarily because our cognitive abilities have deteriorated, but rather because our way of living is not in tune with how we’re supposed to live. As a result, our perception about the world, and what’s true and false becomes warped, and we’re more likely to experience an increased amount of negative emotions such as anxiety and sadness.

Let me explain what typically goes wrong in modern society according to my personal view.

1. People prefer comforting lies over the harsh truth

   

   We always say we want to hear the truth, but that’s only the case if it’s not considered unpleasant. If we have to choose, then most of us prefer a comforting lie over the harsh reality, even though we would learn a lot more from the truth.

   That’s a real issue since we need to know what the truth is to ground ourselves in reality. That sweet little lie can be comforting in the present but will lead to devastating results in the long run because we’re only deceiving ourselves.

2. People are irrational

   We like to think of ourselves as these perfect rational individuals, that don’t make any mistakes, but that’s simply not true.

   I would go as far as saying that even the most sophisticated of people are still highly irrational and subjective since they’re heavily influenced by their emotions as well.

   Still, intellectuals are less irrational than their peers most of the time since they’re guided by seeking out the objective truth, and what the empirical evidence has to say about a topic.

3. The truth has become optional

   I feel like people used to aim at the truth because it was seen as something virtuous, and like something that could enhance their lives, a notion I certainly agree with.

   But in recent times, the truth has become optional, and not a requirement. It’s only used as a tool when it suits the user, only to be thrown to the wayside otherwise.

   We’re often lying to be polarizing or as a cry for attention. But lying is deceiving others, which isn’t something to be proud of. That’s why I urge everyone to refrain from doing so.

4. A lot of us are weak

   

   A large amount of the population is mentally, but also physically weak, and resorts to degeneracy and seeking out hedonistic pleasures as a result of being incapable of delaying their desire for instant gratification.

   Due to this, society has regressed, and we’ve moved away from what makes life worth living, and what makes it all meaningful. Virtuous traits such as discipline, perseverance, honesty, and seeking truth are rare these days. And that makes it so we don’t live according to our natural tendencies anymore.

5. People have been misled

   People have been misled by their peers, social media, and the media in general. That’s not to say that all the news is false, but a lot of organizations and individuals have their hidden agenda for their gain.

   That’s why they will alter the news to suit their narrative, which is a poor starting point for portraying the data straightforwardly and honestly.

6. We’re constantly craving attention

   

   Social media makes people crave attention all the time since this validation of others makes them feel better. The fact that people are insecure, and have a tendency to seek out external validation to support their low self-worth and low opinion of themselves doesn’t help either.

   But if those you don’t know personally influence your self-esteem that much, then you know you’re doing something wrong. You should live according to your values, and the only groups that should influence your mood are your best friends and family, who mean the best for you.

7. Constantly searching for external validation

   Our low self-regard makes us seek validation to validate our sense of worthiness. That’s why people often talk a big game or play the victim, to garner attention that makes them feel better and more self-assured.

   Social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram play a critical role in this negative behavior as well, since people all around the world can watch our posts, and consequently influence our emotions.

8. People are insecure

   

   Instead of working on ourselves, we’ve been fed the lie that we’re born perfect, and that we don’t need to do any work to improve ourselves.

   This might sound great on paper, but it’s plain wrong, and not conducive to the improvement of society. People are filled with potential, but we need to draw these dormant skills out. And we absolutely should, since there’s nothing worse than wasted potency.

   We know deep inside when we’re not as good as we could, and should be. That makes us insecure since we don’t have the necessary abilities to handle ourselves properly, and to survive on our own.

9. Our morals and ethics have degraded

   

   Morals and ethics have degraded substantially compared to our previous generations. Divorce and infidelity have become normalized, and lying and cheating to get ahead is praised at times as being smart instead of despicable behavior.

   All of this creates a self-centered society where the inhabitants become overly selfish without much regard for the other citizens. This leads to a society without much collaboration, teamwork, and empathy for one another.

10. People are overly selfish

    People are self-absorbed and only focused on doing well for themselves. But it’s the other people that make life worth living, due to sharing our beautiful experiences.

    And that’s why we should try to aid others to do better and improve. Even from a purely selfish standpoint, that’s still beneficial to us since others living well enhances our lives since they will do their job better, and help to create a better environment for everyone involved.

11. We’re too jealous of one another
     

    A bit of jealousy at times can be considered a normal human emotion. But people regularly can’t stand it if someone else does better than them in some aspects of their lives.

    Instead of being angry and vengeful because they’re doing better than us, we should use that as motivation to strive to do better ourselves. We shouldn’t compare ourselves with others, and should only analyze ourselves with the person we were yesterday, trying to do a bit better each day.