It is no secret that we are amongst some of the most stressed individuals to ever walk this planet. Despite our technology, unlimited choices and most of our basic needs met, we have seen a rise in anxiety.

No one would predict a downturn in the quality of our mental health one hundred years ago. With all the advancements of science and knowledge, you would hope people would experience higher levels of happiness.

Not to mention, we do not need to follow religious tradition and we are no longer held back from prejudice views. In some sense, this is the best time to live. We have everything within arm's reach and have much less to worry about.

Nevertheless, we have seen rising stress levels in America and our organisations are paying the costs. According to a report in 2021, stress costs U.S. companies approximately $300 billion annually.

These rising work-related stress levels is damaging productivity too. We are seeing more disengaged workers than ever before, and this is costing companies a significant amount.

We have way more powerful tools but have somehow found a way to reduce our output with them. Disengagement from anything productive is becoming the norm. Majority of our social media feeds help us unwind, relax and step away from reality.

All of this summed up should only make you think why this happening. It is contradictory to what we would expect. With more resources, flexibility at work and freedom we have seen increasing levels of stress.

It appears to me that our liberation has come at a cost. And if we do not do something about it fast, we may never be able to recover the cost of it all. Here are two ways our societies liberation has led to negative impacts on our mental health.

Social Media and Our Technology

I do not need to list the number of surveys and studies that have been done on the negative impact of social media on our lives. It is well-known that social media has led to increased stress levels.

“Social Media is more about disconnecting than it is connecting”

Social media was meant to do the unthinkable by pulling us all together. Early adverts of the use of social media displayed our ability to connect with people across the world.

Majority of the notifications we now receive on our devices have nothing to do with human connection. A ping from your phone used to mean someone messaged you, now it is everything but that.

We have endless streams of content specifically tailored to us through algorithms that show us what we want and like. Now when we use social media, it is less to do with connecting and more to do with disconnecting.

Whether it be 10 mins or an hour, we can spend our time indulging in content which requires hardly any connection with others. Social media has turned into something the original creators did not expect and our technology has increased its development speed.

“Too many voices and not enough clarity”

Social media and our technology had the goals to improve our connection with others and accelerate our ability to produce more with less. In some sense, it has done this.

Social media has freed us from the pain of having limited connection with those far away from us. Our technologies have immensely improved our manufacturing processes and has allowed us to create unimaginable products.

However, this liberation has come at a cost. We are now always connected, and struggle to sit in silence. There is this strong push to get things done faster, better, and more efficiently to meet our ever-growing demands.

“Finding the right balance is critical for society”

Whether we accept it or not, our liberation has led to more expectations. Most of our basic needs are met, yet we operate as though we are behind.

Social media and technology have increased our ability to make better decisions and remain connected. Despite having the potential to operate much better, we have seen decreases in our productivity and increases in our stress levels.

The cost here, is not being paid in the development of our technologies. Instead, it is being paid with our health. The balance must be struck for individuals, but also at a societal level.

How much data do we need to share and how much content do we need to consume? It is clear, that after a certain point, our increased connectivity leads to unclarity and anxiety.

Nevertheless, it appears our freedom to have access to it all has only led to the desire for more. As a result, leading to more stress and unproductivity in our lives.

The Creation of New Gaps and Financial Pressures

Our technological enlightenment has brought with it the promise that we would see a more sustainable world and not need to work as much. However, we have seen the exact opposite in many fields.

“We are working too hard and getting paid too little”

Overall, we are still seeing a steady increase in our global CO2 emissions. Also, despite a great drop off in working hours between the 1800s and 1900s, we are still working similar hours per week to those in 1970.

What is interesting about all of this is that our technology is creating both efficiencies and inefficiencies in our global markets. Not only is this causing more difficult problems to solve, but it is also squeezing our finances.

Recently, we have seen record high inflation and our incomes have not been able to keep up with the increasing demands on the economy. All of this is leading to a reduction in real wealth and income for the working class.

To make matters worse, this only leads to more income inequality and generational wealth discrepancies as the rich get richer. Whilst technology continues to replace jobs and make us more productive, it creates new gaps in industries that are being replaced and puts more demand on our economy.

“The negative impact of large organisations is starting to emerge”

What we have also seen is a shift in market power. We now have massive firms that own a huge amount of expertise and resources which leaves limited market share for the creation of new initiatives.

Due to this, we have seen higher prices for consumers and lower wages for workers that are engulfed by these huge players. Unfortunately, this leads to further wealth inequality.

Finally, due to these market players, we are seeing less technology utilised to create new markets and develop revolutionary solutions. Most of the innovation large organisations participate in is incremental.

It is less risky and cheaper because it improves on the already existing product. But it does lead to waste in the market. An example of this is iPhone bringing out a new phone such that individuals upgrade and do not use the last version.

Incremental development allows for companies to keep the balance sheets healthy to impress their investors whilst remaining competitive. However, what our world needs is radical innovation that can transform markets and form new industries to create more wealth in society.

We are not void of ideas or new applications of technology, but we have created a world that is leading to higher levels of wealth inequality which limits growth.

“The cost we pay for our speed and productivity is passed on to the people who help create it”

Despite us having more wealth today than ever before, families are still struggling to afford basic needs. We have created large organisations with talented individuals yet are still behind in distributing wealth in a way that improves our overall economies.

Our ability to create and build with new knowledge has led to great outcomes for our world, but it comes at the cost to those who make it happen. And that is you and me.

Our Liberation Has Come at a Costs

There are implications to all the actions we take. We have built a world that has overcome many of the challenges of the past. Using technology along with changes in ideology have allowed us to advance far.

However, if we are to go further, we must acknowledge the cost we have incurred from our liberation. As we move further away from centric values that have held us together for hundreds of years, we must now reconstruct ourselves to meet the challenges that are ahead of us.

Although no individual can tackle these costs on their own, we can all start by holding ourselves as accountable individuals that are active players in the progress of our world.

It is only with this mindset can we use our liberation for the good of our world rather than the destruction of it.

Why We Are More Stressed Now Than Ever Before