"It seems to me that people have vast potential. Most people can do extraordinary things if they have the confidence or take the risks. Yet most people don't. They sit in front of the telly and treat life as if it goes on forever."
- Phillip Adams

So true, it's scary. The middle class conventional way of wasting a perfectly magic life in mediocrity and superficiality, not meeting your own potential, never developing a search for what is it that you can be a genius at, not daring to risk your lazy inertia in order to discover Mystery, missing the connection that goes beyong your petty daily routines; constant examples I meet everyday making me feel angry and, in a way, lonely.
We are so priviledged economically and socially speaking, why not live our life at its fullest, and challenge ourselves to improve the world's condition so that at least the true unsung heroes can fulfill their special dreams?
It feels very good to spend a minute of my day reminding myself that others think about this, perhaps feel the same and that we can make an effort to transform things...
Aurora

I personally believe that the statement made by Phillip Adams is correct, and I often wonder if this apathy towards life?s possibilities is new to society, or has always been there. And if it is new, what is causing it. Could it be the amount of globalism that is present in everyday life and that people don?t feel that they as an individual can make a difference. Or perhaps to extend that point, people don?t feel a sense of community hence there is nothing worth doing (?if you can?t act globally, what is the point?).

Is this a new occurrence or has it always been the case?

Is it a case of history remembering brilliant inspiring people and forgetting those with no passion for life?

Was someone like Mozart an extraordinary, confident risk taker, or just some guy who liked to relax by playing the piano?

Are there just better things to watch on TV these days?

Once upon a time I met a man who stated he was 'lazy' - but everything about him and his life was neat and organised. When I queried him on the disparity - he said "it is always easier to do things as soon as they are there to do eg. if you do the dishes straight after eating, then the food hasn't stuck like glue to the plate etc. I remind myself of this when I am tempted to procrastinate.

Are we as a society lazy? Yes, i think we are. I think inertia goes with not being empowered. A lot of us have dreams of 'changing the world' when we are younger - but we are not taught how to believe in ourselves or how to cope with the fear of either success or failure. We get ourselves into a comfort zone of being unremarkable. I feel that we all have astounding capabilities and quests within us - but we grow up out of touch with nature, out of touch with ourselves, out of touch with others. Our society promulgates self centered attitudes and instant gratification - neither of these attitudes leave much room for an individual to stand tall.

TV has a lot to answer for as well. It is addictive and uses up a lot of the first world's time. Time that could be used for more healthy pursuits - time for thinking/exercising/learning/teaching/being in your own flow etc.

This is no excuse for us not to stand tall and achieve - but i feel that these are some of the reasons why we are lax.

I think we haven't all learned the lessons that we can achieve more together than we can alone. Our intelligence and resources are amplified when we share them.

I join Trent, Anj and Ian, but I keep reminding myself that we are just talking about a small portion of our global society. There are still millions of those unsung heroes who from a very early age go through amazing odysseys in their lives in order to survive, to support their families. While we lazy around hoping for better TV programs, they carry heavy loads on their backs for 10 hours a day, or walk kilometers to get water or attend school, or cope with constant abuse for a meal a day, etc.
I do feel it's our lack of empathy that takes the power of reverting negative processes away from us, because those human beings are part of our reality, they are our equals, and yet we don't feel the NEED to do anything about them. The 'by-stander' effect is so strong, but it's our choice.

I think inertia goes with not being empowered. A lot of us have dreams of 'changing the world' when we are younger - but we are not taught how to believe in ourselves or how to cope with the fear of either success or failure. We get ourselves into a comfort zone of being unremarkable. I feel that we all have astounding capabilities and quests within us - but we grow up out of touch with nature, out of touch with ourselves, out of touch with others. Our society promulgates self centered attitudes and instant gratification - neither of these attitudes leave much room for an individual to stand tall.

I'd like to add to Anj's response and say that as children, we didn't give much - if any - thought to the hurdles we'd hit along the way with our dreams, we simply believed that we would save the world because that is what we wanted to do. Simple! Childhood was about fun and imagination, and our true selves shone through. Growing up under guidance then steers us towards concentrating on the self, & seems to be a bit too focussed on teaching us to make decisions in life based on the reality of the present. The subject of dreams & passions is only really touched on again as young people when we are encouraged to choose an occupation. Even then, I remember getting this speech from all angles - "Are you sure you want to be an artist... a musician... a volunteer? They don't make any money. You're smart, you don't want to struggle all your life." It was no wonder my faith in the ability to achieve my true ambitions was ground down, and I'm sure I am not alone here.

Looking back over the years I received guidance from family, teachers, and others, it was all about doing things for ME. I was nudged into focusing on MY job, MY financial situation, MY health, MY relationships - but never the community or the the planet. And its still the same when I talk to my parents.

Childhood aside, I do think some of us are lazy adults. Apart from the lack of encouragement throughout childhood, I'd say it is also a product of the complexity of existing in this world and the affect of considering the population figure, working together to create an overwhelming feeling & sense of hopelessness. Its easy to hide behind numbers - there's always someone else to save the world, and on a global scale we can reason to ourselves that our impact is insignificant. Look at music/film piracy - we are aware that we are stealing, but we can get away with it so we continue to do it. No one is holding individuals accountable for their actions on the Earth, so we can easily slip through leaving the bigger challenges to others.

Of course we can discuss this all day - but what I believe needs to happen, is for the more inspired, confident people to show others what they can do & hold their hands. That's the easy part though, the hard part is retraining people to see the importance of looking beyond their own lives in the first place. Perhaps more recognition would probably encourage people as well - the results and benefits are usually obvious and somewhat immediate when doing things for oneself, but not so obvious when doing things for the greater good. Its arguable that we shouldn't need validation that we've done something positive, but it seems to be part of our society, as Anj has also pointed out.

I know this is an old subject but I am new to the group and have just come across this.

I see things differently. We may be human, but we are also of this world and a part of nature.

When I look around at the natural world, I see animals and all living things doing only what they have to do.

If you go to a nature reserve, whether in Australia or anywhere else in the world, most of the time you will see the animals doing nothing. They will hunt, feed, mate when they have to or need to but when they have done all that, then they do nothing.

Humans are not apart from this world. For the most part, humans are just like the rest of nature and really do what they need to survive and then they rest.

Yes, there are exceptions, some people are extremely driven and industrious. Many (but not most) people get bored and seek stimulation and excitement, going to parties, movies, clubs, etc. but even then, that is a part of a social imperative that is driven from mating rituals and practices.

I could go on with more, but I hope you understand where I am going with this.

What we call "laziness" is actually the natural order of things, but we have through our activities, both mental and physical and also through our competitiveness changed our perceptions and are using unnatural judgements in this regard.

I'd be happy to discuss this further with anyone if they wish.

Damn! what a pity this group stalled. what a fascinating bunch of people and insights who i would love to have had the opportunity to meet.
Leeza