History as an antidote to despair

Consider this the next time the news freaks you out

When you consume the news these days, it’s easy to conclude that things have never been worse. Easy to conclude—but wrong. 

This misapprehension is the result of recency bias, where we mistakenly give greater weight to things that just happened. One countermeasure against this cognitive distortion is to study history. 

Consider Abraham Lincoln. Dude was president at a time when half the country preferred war to abandoning slavery. His life was under constant threat by his enemies. In his personal life, two of his sons had died in childhood and he was struggling with crippling depression. 

And yet, during his second inaugural address in 1865, he called for “malice towards none.” 

Take that in. The Civil War was coming to a bloody end; he had survived multiple assassination attempts; he was struggling with grief and depression—and he called for malice toward none. 

I find this kind of perspective to be extraordinarily helpful when I’m experiencing anxiety over the 2024 presidential election. Things have definitely been worse, and we’ve pulled through.

On my pod today, I interviewed government teacher turned podcaster and author, Sharon McMahon, whose new book, The Small and the Mighty, is a #1 New York Times bestseller. We talked about how history can be a balm for hopelessness, plus many other strategies for managing election stress. Listen or watch for much more.

Hit me up in the chat. What are your strategies for dealing with the political dumpster fire?

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