ENDEAVOR

Sonny Coloma

Zoom is one of the wonders brought on by the coronavirus. It has become the dominant virtual platform for corporate videoconferences, seminars and workshops, family meetings, high school class reunion, novena prayers for the dead — and all other milestone social events like weddings and anniversaries that people want to celebrate and remember.

Zoom means to “move or travel quickly” or to “change smoothly from a long shot to a close–up or vice versa.” Thus, we say “zoom in” or “zoom out.”

Professor Ethan Kross of the University of Michigan’s psychology department writes: “We can think of the mind as a lens and our inner voice as a button that zooms it either in or out.”

This is the essential message of his book Chatter: The Voice in our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It (New York, Crown, 2021).

Two epigraphs give the reader a good eyeball of what to expect.

One is a quote from an interview with former US President Barack Obama who says, “The biggest challenge, I think, is always maintaining your moral compass. Those are the conversations I’m having internally. I’m measuring my actions against the inner voice that for me at least, is audible, is active, it tells me where I think I’m on track and where I think I’m off-track.” The other is from Dan Harris: “The voice in my head is an asshole.” Dan Harris has written a book similar to Kross with a kilometric title — 10 percent Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in my Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works — a True Story (New York, It Books, 2014).

To help readers “step back from the echo chamber of their own minds” and gain a “broader, calmer and more objective perspective” for minimizing negative or counter-productive chatter, Professor Kross offers 12 self-help tools that are illustrated with clear-cut examples.

Broaden your perspective — or zoom out — for a bigger view of the immediate problem you’re facing. Compare it with other difficult situations or adverse events you’ve experienced and hurdled previously. Imagine how people you admire, or whose exemplary lives you find worth emulating, would respond. Corollarily, you could reframe a “problem” into a “challenge.” Use distanced self talk by simply adjusting from “I” to “You.” Imagine that you are advising your friend and you’re likely to become more focused in finding a solution or a good approach to whatever is bothering or vexing at the moment.

Engage in mental time travel. I recall a nugget of wisdom shared by one of my esteemed professors when I was taking my MBA, Fr. James Donelan, SJ. Witnessing how most of us seemed to be overly concerned with difficult class assignments, he urged us to lighten up: “Imagine yourselves five, 10, 20 years from now,” he said, “wouldn’t you be vice presidents of top companies or successful entrepreneurs by then?” He muttered a Latin phrase that translates roughly into: “Someday, you will look back at this and smile.” Indeed “time heals all wounds.” Perform a ritual just like tennis superstar Rafael Nadal. Rafa’s unique pre- and in-game rituals are legendary: “placing his ID faceup, carefully arranging his water bottles so they are perfectly aligned in front of his bench, and making sure that his hair is just right before a serve.” Prof. Kross notes that Rafa is engaged in “compensatory control,” an observation that Rafa confirms: “It’s a way of placing myself in a match, ordering my surroundings to match the order I seek in my head.” Rafa Nadal has won a record 20 Grand Slam finals which ties him with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

Aside from Zoom Out, there’s also Zoom In: Allow yourself to be immersed by pleasant surroundings such as lush greenery, or even by “nature sounds” like waterfalls, flowing streams or birds chirping. Other outside stimuli that could elevate the inner self or raise morale: virtuoso performances by a symphony orchestra or by a rock star like Bruce Springsteen. Observes Prof. Kross, “When you’re in the presence of something vast and indescribable, it’s hard to maintain the view that you — and the voice in your head — are at the center of the world.” Another raft of inner voice control techniques are associated with mind magic, the most common or familiar is the use of placebos. Placebos generate expectations that enhance their effectiveness if these are not primarily intended to heal or relieve pain.

Prof. Kross also encourages us to provide support to friends and loved ones in dealing with chatter. An interesting tip: Tell your kids to pretend they’re a super-hero. The ‘Batman effect’ encourages children to overcome their fears or difficulties by linking themselves with the exploits of the heroes they admire or the cartoon characters they love. And yes, you could also be another person’s placebo.

Finally, a cautionary note on digital disruption: Minimize passive social media usage. “Voyeuristically scrolling through the curated news feeds of others on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms can trigger self-defeating, envy inducing spirals.”

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Zoom in, zoom out