What is an Echo Chamber and How Can you Escape One?
An echo chamber is an area in the digital space where everyone agrees.
Initially, it feels good.
No conflict.
Soon, these people get more deranged.
They don’t get any pushback.
When someone says something ridiculous, someone from their crew says:
‘I think you may be onto something.’
Since you see a group agreeing on a point, you think:
‘Hm… they may be onto something.’
When you leave the echo chamber (turn off the digital media app) you run into people who disagree with your echo chamber.
They call your echo chamber a bunch of conspiracy theorists.
Rather than hearing those people out, you view them as the enemy.
Anyone who disagrees with your echo chamber is now seen as not knowing any better or a straight-up enemy.
Why Echo Chambers are Dangerous
Echo chambers are dangerous because you have no clue when you are in one.
Humans love to mimic.
If 50 humans jump off a bridge, the 51st person will be like, ‘Eh.. why not?’
The more that your personal experiences resonate with what the echo chamber is saying, the deeper into the quicksand you will plummet.
We all get stuck in an echo chamber. Maybe it’s for:
- Investment strategies.
- Religious beliefs.
- Politics.
- Intersexual dynamics etc.
The more we agree with the echo chamber, the more we begin to process our personal experiences from the lens of the echo chamber.
If the echo chamber says that all women are evil, we will look at the women in our daily lives with a pessimistic eye.
Once a woman does one thing out of the norm, we’ll say:
‘Guess the echo chamber was right all along… Who is crazy now?’
The Good Types of Echo Chamber
A few years back, I joined the 5am club.
We woke up early and would encourage new members to do the same.
We all had a similar viewpoint on life.
- The earlier you wake up, the better.
Every now and then, a detractor would make their way into the group and say:
- Why wake up so early? Why not sleep in?
But the 5am-ers just ignored these people.
We knew we were in an echo chamber and completely fine with it.
This echo chamber strengthened our conviction.
The strengthened conviction led to positive benefits in our lives.
If you know you are in an echo chamber, and it’s helping you, then I believe that’s fine.
One person’s echo chamber is another person’s positive reaffirmations.
How To Get Out of an Echo Chamber
You don’t have to exit the echo chamber that you’re in.
Stay in it.
Just willingly introduce conflicting ideas as well.
Let’s say you’re in the echo chamber on why marriage is bad for men in today’s society.
You consume podcasts, blogs, and talks on this type of content.
Well, still consume this type of content.
But consume the opposite viewpoint as well.
There are plenty of creators who talk about the benefits of marriage.
Rather than just labeling them as “simps” or “blue pill”, hear them out.
Initially, you will cringe.
It’ll physically hurt to listen to these people.
Because they contradict your world view.
Go through the pain.
It’ll be worth it.
When you willingly introduce conflicting ideas to your life, you become way more objective.
You’re less impulsive now.
Who knows… you may learn something new.
Changing Your Mind
If you have not changed your mind a single time from your 30s to 40s, then that’s a sign of weakness.
Chances are you are being stubborn or egotistical.
Changing your mind is perfectly fine when you can logically explain your new position.
Changing your mind is not fine when you do it just because others did it.
When you consume content from the other side, initially, it’ll be awkward.
Then you’ll start to consume the content effortlessly.
As a matter of fact, you get excited when you hear opinions from the other side!
Soon, you’ll start to hear good points from the other side.
Your echo chamber made the other side seem like a bunch of cartoon characters.
They straw-manned the other side and made you think they were foolish.
Not quite.
Groups don’t just form out of the blue moon.
There were a series of similar experiences that led to the group formation.
Give each set of experiences the respect that it deserves.
You’ll learn something new.
And you’ll often change your mind on a topic that you were adamantly against.
Debating Better
One underrated benefit of leaving the echo chamber is that you learn to debate better.
The worst way to debate is to argue.
Where you are trying to win.
When you try to win, both parties lose.
You make the debate less about the ideas, and more about yourself.
But when you consume content from different creators, you get into the “ideas first” mindset.
It’s not personal.
It doesn’t matter who is right.
It matters what is right.
The more you consume content from different sides, the less impulsive you become.
There is a calm to you.
Escape the Echo Chamber
The wrong echo chamber will waste years of your life.
It’s sad when you can spot when others are stuck in an echo chamber, but you are unable to spot when you’re stuck in one.
If you quickly get pissed off by a particular group, then pause.
Willingly consume their content.
If it physically hurts to hear the group leaders lay out their points, then listen to them anyway.
Whenever you feel strong emotions towards a group, then chances are you are stuck in an echo chamber.
Your side vilified them.
The more you listen to the opposing side, the more you will understand they have their own set of experiences that they processed.
Place value on everyone’s experiences.
Willingly invest in all types of content and you won’t feel one-sided anymore.
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