Cynicism - The Fatalistic Life Approach Often Masked as Pragmatism
Have you ever been faced with a circumstance and you quicky, without needing any more information, immediately think about a worst-case scenario? I believe this has happened to all of us – some more than others. There are so many things that happen to us on a subconscious level that we do not think to associate behavior or thoughts to actual terms. Well today we are going to bring forth the topic and byproducts of cynicism.
Cynicism is a guarded response that sets you up against disappointment. Its role within the system is to protect yourself from experiencing anything bad. You could call it a “preemptive strike” against a perceived threat.
A few examples you may relate to:
Example: If I convince myself I'm not good enough to succeed at my job, I won’t take on new challenges, and I'll avoid the fear of failure or being judged by others.
Example: If I tell myself that I’m too old to start something new, I won’t have to risk the discomfort of learning or the possibility of failure in a new field.
Example: If I believe that no one can be trusted, I won’t have to open up to others, and I can avoid the risk of being hurt or betrayed.
Example: If I keep telling myself that healthy relationships don't exist, I won’t have to put in the effort to maintain one and can avoid the vulnerability that comes with commitment.
Example: If I believe that I’ll never be financially successful, I won’t try to improve my situation, and I’ll avoid the potential stress of financial setbacks or hard work.
It is more comfortable to get fatalistic and call it pragmatism. The cope is framing hope as pathetic or embarrassing, and optimism as delusion. It’s sour grapes at an existential level.
If everything sucks and everyone is terrible and reality is disappointing, and you know that for a fact, then it’s the people that’s acting like things could be better that are dumb and delusional who are the problem.
The upside of never having to try, is never having to feel the pain of failure.
Understanding the cynical nature you inherently hold, and realizing where it shows up in your life is step one. Next, we must understand the less esoteric topic that brings this to reality, which is understanding the difference between worry and concern, which I consider to be byproducts of Cynicism.
Worry is one of the great distractions of life, and it is more than mere concern.
Concern involves controlling how much time and attention you give to an issue. Worry occurs when the issue controls you. When the issues in our lives are controlling us, then the important things go to the back of the line in terms of our priorities, because we've given our worries too much clout.
Legitimate concern is necessary. But we must control what we think about, how much we think about it, and how we allow it to influence us.
From a biblical perspective, when the kingdom is pushed to the background because an issue in your life has assumed control, then that issue has become an idol and a god, thus hindering the true God from meeting the need that is causing you to worry.
The beauty (and my hope) is that you can now identify where cynicism and its by-products may be showing up in your life and you can decide to be better.