Humanity’s Greatest Desire (2024)

Dear Reader,

“Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come… whose time is now.

Right now there are more people on Facebook than there were on the planet 200 years ago. Humanity’s greatest desire is to belong and connect. And now we see each other. We hear each other.

We share what we love, and it reminds us what we all have in common. And this connection is changing the way the world works. Governments are trying to keep up. Now we can taste the freedom. And older generations are concerned. The game has new rules.

The next 27 minutes are an experiment. But in order for it to work, you have to pay attention.”

Sound familiar?

That was copy from the introduction to Kony 2012, the viral film that took the Internet by storm in March of 2012. In the half-hour long video, Jason Russell shares the story of how the LRA led by Joseph Kony were enlisting child soldiers and wreaking havoc in Uganda.

But what made this video different from other activism campaigns?

It used social media to spread like wildfire. With shares from celebrities like Justin Bieber, it targeted the younger generation across every mainstream social platform. To date, the video has 102.5 million views and 1.3 million likes on Youtube, most of which were received within the first week of it going live. The message was so powerful, the story so convincing, that it swayed people into ‘action’ — i.e. hitting ‘like’ or ‘share’.

The social attention captured the hearts and minds of previously apathetic, self-absorbed teenagers, but likes, shares, and hallway chitchat don’t solve the problem of Kony.

Since 2012, controversy after controversy have been revealed, leaving question marks around the truth of the narrative. The Invisible Children campaign raised $30 million dollars, but in 2014, they had to withdraw help, not having enough funding to keep going. Today, it has been inducted into the meme hall of fame and lives in all our memories as mostly a sad joke.

Today’s newsletter is a continuation of our Power of Storytelling series and explores how stories help us connect with others. While the Kony 2012 campaign was, by nearly all accounts, a failure, it did successfully do one thing: cause millions of people to empathize with Ugandans and the “invisible children.” What previously was unknown to many Americans suddenly became common knowledge. It made us want to act.

Watching the video, you deeply feel for the families that lost children to Kony, and you empathize with the villages raided by the LRA. Your emotions for these people that you’ve never met and for a narrative that you’ve never before heard jolt you into action. You have to do something.

But why?

“Do you know the feeling when a good friend tells you a story and then two weeks later, you mention the same story to him, as if it was your idea? This is totally normal and at the same time, one of the most powerful ways to get people on board with your ideas and thoughts. According to Uri Hasson from Princeton, a story is the only way to activate parts in the brain so that a listener turns the story into their own idea and experience.” — The Science of Storytelling

Try watching Marley and Me without bawling by the end. That’s not you. That’s not your dog. Hell, maybe you’ve never even owned a pet, but there you are trying to hide the streaming tears. You are so connected to the story that you feel emotions you may never have actually experienced in real life.

Humans are naturally self-centered and the best stories draw the audience in so well that they put you — the listener, the watcher, the reader — at the center. You empathize so completely with the characters that you identify as them and experience their struggles/successes alongside them. Or in the words of Atticus Finch:

“If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”

Stories give us that opportunity to peer into the other side, to put on another’s skin, to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. Good stories create connections, not just between yourself and the characters, but also between yourself and other members of the audience. It is these connections that create unity among people that may otherwise have nothing in common.

To paraphrase Jason Russell, stories drive connection and “connection changes the way the world works.” The more we can identify with others — people we don’t know, people we don’t understand, people we don’t agree with — the more we can come together to address today’s problems and create a better future for us all.

This section features the best of what the team at The Mission HQ is reading, watching, listening to, playing, doing, and meditating on. 🤗

Reading 📚

🚲 How long will the Peloton craze last?

“As Peloton prepares to go public, the New York City-based company — which investors have privately valued at $4 billion — is facing questions about how long it can stay on top. Fitness is a historically faddish category. Exercise manias, from the Thighmaster to Tae Bo, have all come and gone. SoulCycle pulled its initial public offering entirely.

For Peloton, some troublesome signs have emerged. The company’s losses have more than quadrupled in the last year. It is embroiled in legal fights over music and patents. Competitors and copycats are moving in aggressively. And the boutique spinning craze has started to wane.”

🦇 We are also reading The Dark Knight Rises. Why? See below.👇

Watching 🎬

🤡 Prepare to be amazed… the Joker is back and with more backstory than ever. Watch the trailer here.

Listening 🎧

🧠 If you enjoy Netflix’s Mindhunter (or are a true crime fan, in general), try Man in the Window. It’s a new podcast that shares the real story of the Golden State Killer; what led up to his prominence, what cops missed, and what his capture means for his victims today.

Giveaway Time ⏰

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