Modern Gloom

Nietzche presents a glaring problem of "modern gloom" as soon as we flip into Part 2 of Book 1. For 38 pages, he illustrates the steps mankind took to get here today, highlighting pivotal moments in history including the 'age of aristocratism', 'age of feminism' as well as 'age of animalism'. While objectivity and study of history are debatable, his version of history is undoubtedly far from objective, as he infuses his own reasonings and theories every step of the way. Something I appreciate but also find incredibly frustrating.

"My friends, we had a hard time when we were young: we even suffered from youth itself as from a severe illness."

If this is something that speaks to you, welcome to the party. Nietzche hits us with a sense of bleakness, something that can easily overwhelm us. If we let it.

He goes on to say, "Uncertainty is peculiar to this age. Nothing stands on firm footing or rests on an unwavering faith."

We live in a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) world (a term that presented me as 'woke' every time I used it for my English essays). This fact escapes no one. As individuals, families, and organizations, we have two options. (a) find strategies to survive (b) do nothing. At this present moment, I am not a Nihilist, so I opt for option (a).

In this article, I present some personal examples that might shed light on some strategies to get my head in the game.

(A) Marketing. Marketing is everywhere and everyone does some form of it. It could be your full-time job, or it could be your Instagram feed or Linkedin profile (yep, that's personal marketing). Whether you like it or not, people are watching. And they are judging, for better or for worse. Yet, something this pervasive and important was something I avoided at all costs before 2021. Why? Because I associated it with design, pictures, graphics... all the aesthetic stuff. To top it all off, there were dozens of software and websites that daunted me. If you know me at all, I am not very artistically inclined or proficient, and I like to keep things simple.

But I had to do it. I watched my uncle suffer from the pandemic as his Limousine business took a hit. He made the pivot to the food delivery business and had to rebuild his brand from scratch in a limited amount of time. He was up against businesses that already had a marketing plan going, the tides were against him. Or were they? Everybody knows you need tides to surf, and you need to choose your tides wisely. Timing is crucial.

For a business with so much potential, you cannot just give up. I got my hands on a Canva account, made my first graphic, and uploaded it onto the new Instagram page I created for the business.

I was pretty proud of myself, we managed to use it to expand our reach and hire more drivers, allowing us to reach more clients. More importantly, I realized that Canva was not that hard to use. I was encouraged to try other software like Biteable and made me a sweet donation video for Caring for Life.

With all these skills I learned, and the confidence I gained, I now help with the marketing at Singapore Mental Health Film Festival! (+fingers crossed I manage to figure out a website for the Limousine business.)

(B) Financial Literacy. Something I wished they taught in school. When I volunteered with Beyond Social Services, they do a really great job teaching youths how to fish, instead of just giving them fish. To break out of the poverty cycle, it is essential you understand the mechanics of money and how the economy works, at the bare minimum. Without cryptocurrency and NFTs, it is already confusing enough. However, these same people have other worries that keep them up at night, like how to pay their utility bills or how to keep their children in school. I believe that the rest of society needs to step up and share knowledge that disadvantaged groups lack. As someone who was the recipient of many generous sponsors, I am well aware that I could not have survived to this day without the support system I have.

And I hope to be someone else's support system in the same way. I read up on financial instruments as well as rules and regulations affecting the financial sector. I simplified complicated concepts so people younger than me could understand them when I explained them. I studied and passed papers at the Singapore College of Insurance. I am well aware the world is changing as we speak, and I will never know it all, but at least I know more than I did two years ago. Learning is a process and not a destination, and yes, I will always fumble when someone asks me about cryptocurrency.

(C) Dance. With all the "practical" knowledge, it is easy to neglect your mental wellness and physical health. I never danced before taking up Jazz lessons, and man was it an experience! I never felt more unacquainted with my body in my life. There were moments when I thought to myself "where is my right foot?" It was tough.

But it was so rewarding. When I dance, I take up different personas, and my 'energy' changes. When I dance, I try to manifest Jen Harding in Dead to Me (a great show by the way). I never felt so much power in my body. In addition, my instructor was so supportive, and it was nice to be surrounded by people so passionate about their craft. While I am no Matt Steffanina, I am content with being able to move to a beat.

If your book of life had a Book 1 Part 2 detailing your history and how you got here, what would it say? Did you just give up? Or was there something worth mentioning, and maybe even bragging about?

Thanks, Nietzsche for giving me something to think about.

Words I had to Google.

- Conviviality: the quality of being friendly and lively; friendliness.

- Insouciance: casual lack of concern; indifference.

- Portents: a sign or warning that a momentous or calamitous event is likely to happen.

- Profligate: recklessly extravagant or wasteful in the use of resources.