153 | Transcending Tunnel Vision
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153 | Transcending Tunnel Vision
March 6, 2023
Minute of Transparency: Lost in a Good Book
Today's Topic: Transcending Tunnel Vision
Entering a tunnel
Exiting the tunnel
// CHAPTER 1: ENTERING A TUNNEL
So this topic is one I had added to my list of potentials a long time ago.
Every time I go to start a new episode - I see it in the list and think, "I'm not 100% sure why I added this one..."
So I skip it - and move on to another topic.
But every time - I see it and wonder...
So this weekend I pulled it from the list, dusted it off, and decided to figure it out in real time.
And what I found was something new. I mean - the concept of "tunnel vision" didn't change - but where I went with it even surprised me.
But before we get there - let's define "tunnel vision."
Interestingly enough - there is a medical condition called "tunnel vision."
A real, diagnosable condition.
According to MedicalNewsToday.com:
"Tunnel vision, or peripheral vision loss (PVL), is a result of the loss of peripheral sight, or side vision. A person with PVL can only see what is directly in front of them. This can occur due to conditions that affect the eye or other health conditions."
This condition can be caused by a variety of different things
And it can be temporary - or permanent
But this isn't the "tunnel vision" I'm interested in.
Dictionary.com has three definitions for "tunnel vision:"
The first is what we just learned - the medical definition. But the second and third are the ones I want to focus on:
Definition 2: "The tendency to look at things from only one point of view"
This would include things like prejudice or narrow-mindedness
Definition 3: "A fixation on only one objective or course of action"
That's more like it.
So the "tunnel vision" we're talking about today is when we start to look at things through only one lens. To become hyper-focused on something at the expense of everything else around us.
Kind of like being lost in a good book - right?
So Chapter 1 is called "ENTERING A TUNNEL" for a reason.
I used the word "a" instead of "the." Entering a tunnel vs. entering the tunnel.
Because it's important to understand that there isn't just one tunnel. There are a myriad of tunnels and at any point in time we can find ourselves in one of them.
Not the same tunnel as others around us - the tunnel(s) we choose to drive through.
Now - I'm not going to try and define every possible tunnel a person can get caught in.
But I think I can come up with a list of popular tunnels - tunnels that have thousands if not millions of people driving through them at any given point and time.
So let's start there. Here are a few of the tunnels that we get stuck in:
The "Me" Tunnel:
This one should be fairly obvious
We all know someone who thinks the world revolves around them
And - unfortunately - there are times we have thought the same thing
Getting caught in this tunnel shifts our entire focus inward
It's all about me
How do I feel?
What can I get?
How can people help me get where I want to go?
When we get caught in this frame of mind - we stop looking outward - or upward
Two things we'll talk a bit more about later
But for now - just understand that this is one of the most popular tunnels that exist
The "Faith" Tunnel:
Now - before I go any further - hear me say this:
"There is nothing wrong with faith"
"There is nothing wrong with religion"
"There is nothing wrong with spirituality"
In fact - without these things - who knows where we would be in society
But as with everything - even a good thing can become a bad thing
Why do you think deconstruction has become so popular these days?
Because people caught up in the faith tunnel can lose perspective
It can become all about the religion
All about the liturgy
All about that one unique "brand" of religion
At the expense of everything else
Mark Driscoll is a good example of this. Here's how he spoke about the people at Mars Hill Church:
“There is a pile of dead bodies behind the Mars Hill bus. By God's grace, it'll be a mountain by the time we're done. Either get on the bus or you get run over by the bus, those are the options. But the bus ain't gonna stop.”
If that isn't a verbal confession of "tunnel vision" I'm not sure what is...
Religion has always been one of the most traveled tunnels
From mainstream religions all the way up to cults with high levels of authoritarian control
And it can be very difficult to get out of - both literally and cognitively
The "Deconstruction" Tunnel:
Now - I threw this one in because it's the yin to the yang we just talked about
Just as there can be tunnel vision in our religious or spiritual beliefs
So too, can there be tunnel vision around deconstructing it
On some level - deconstruction can become the next religion we join
It's just the next tunnel we choose to live in
And if we aren't careful - we start viewing the world through that lens - and only that lens
Many people go all the way - throwing the baby out with the bath water
Moving to the other end of the spectrum - becoming agnostic or atheist - and making that their religion in some form or fashion
Now - I don't want to paint deconstruction in and of itself as a tunnel
I see deconstruction as a process - a phase people go through in order to make sense of the things they were brainwashed to believe growing up
A healthy process that should move them to a more healthy place in their life
But it can also become a tunnel
We can get stuck in the process and begin to view it as what defines us:
I'm a deconstructionist
I'm deconstructing
And if we get too far down this tunnel - we can close ourselves off to all sorts of things that would help us grow and mature into the person we could be
The "Political" Tunnel:
Again - this should be an obvious one
Since 2020 - it has played out right in front of us - on a national scale
People digging their heels in - creating an "us vs. them" atmosphere
Political polarization - that's the buzzword
And if you watch the news - or spend any time on social media - it's one of the main topics of conversation
Conservatives vs. Liberals
You don't even hear the word "Moderates" used - because people are either far right fascists - or left leaning socialists
And both are out to destroy the fabric of everything we hold dear in this country
At least that's what we're told…
Each side has the truth
And the opposing side is the epitome of evil
But remember - we're in a tunnel...
When you dive too far into this world - you enter a tunnel - and your vision becomes impaired
Like a laser - your vision goes from wide to narrow - a thin, focused beam of light - only seeing the rigid set of beliefs right in front of you - the ones your party holds to be true
And every other train of thought is wrong - deadly wrong - life ending wrong - world ending wrong
See how that could impact your life?
See how that could influence the way you treat people?
See how that could influence the way you experience the world around you? If you experience joy, peace, happiness or contentment on any level?
It's a slippery slope for sure
The "Environmental" Tunnel:
I'm throwing this one in there simply because our world feels like it's on fire
Not just religiously and politically
But naturally
The Earth itself feels like it's going through an identity crisis
Our natural world - largely because of the way we're treated it
From the environmental disasters like oil spills, train derailments, gas trucks crashing and exploding
To the big ones like the nuclear power plants in the Ukraine being bombed by Russia
I mean - do we need another Chalk River? Another Chernobyl?
And think of all the atomic and nuclear testing we've done in the past? Setting these bombs off in rural areas of out country, and over the ocean - or under water - just to see what they can do?
Then you have CERN - and the large hadron collider experiments
Who knows what that is doing to the environment?
I'm all for science - but there is an envelope - and when we start to push the envelope like this - we're gambling a bit
Throwing knowledge up against potential danger we can't even quantify
All that to say - the Earth seems to be groaning
When you look at the changes in the weather - and the severity of the storms we're seeing
The droughts, the fires, the earthquakes, the record breaking winter storms
I mean - we've had seasons like this in the past
The Earth seems to ebb and flow
But it just feels like we're trending toward the severe
And less a trend - more a new normal of weather extremes
So why did I pull this out as a tunnel?
Because there are people stuck in it
There are people who are paralyzed with fear because of the things we just talked about
Some come by it honestly - because they were on the receiving end of mother nature
Others - because they get caught up in it from the outside looking in
They develop anxieties and fears that it's just a matter of time before it happens to them
It becomes the lens they're looking through day in and day out
Yet another tunnel we can find ourselves in these days
The "Misinformation" Tunnel:
Friends - this could be the biggest and most dangerous tunnel to date
Technology is no longer advancing in a straight line
It is growing exponentially
Not a line that is moving up and to the right
But a curved line that is moving to the right - but moving upward a much faster rate
Every year new things are released that blow last years stuff out of the water
We always talked about AI as future stuff - the stuff Sci-fi movies were made out of
Until Google created an AI ChatBot called LaMDA - a digital personality that one developer believed had actually become sentient - or capable of having thoughts and feelings
Then AI image creators started popping up - platforms like:
Even Canva - A utilitarian platform allowing non-creative people to create graphics has incorporated AI into their service
Then - more recently ChatGBT launched:
This was a game changer in and of itself
The ability of the AI chat platform to respond to user prompts and deliver content and information based on it's vast neural network and data resources
Opening a door that may never get closed
As a writer - this is scary...
If a person can tell ChatGBT, "Write me a 2000 word blog post. Make it read at the 12th grade level. Topic: The Denver Broncos 2022 season. Define areas where they succeeded. Define areas where they failed. And draw conclusions about next year's successes and failures."
And they get back a full article in 2 minutes...
Where does that leave good, hard working sports journalists?
It's similar to the digital camera revolution
One day - you had to be a photography expert to take pictures, develop film and make money
The next - everyone could afford a DSL-R camera and use Photoshop to fix the things they didn't know about photography
Okay - back to the tunnel of misinformation...
I went down that rabbit hole - because it's the advances in technology that make misinformation so accessible to all of us
Whether it's a person putting misinformation out there
Or if it's AI curating misinformation and just regurgitating it
It's still misinformation...
And it will only get harder and harder in the future to determine what is true and what isn't
The "Social Media" Tunnel:
Now - technically - this one should live under the "Misinformation" Tunnel
But I split it out - simply because it's so big in and of itself
Social Media has become almost all-encompassing for many of us
People live on it all day long
Many find it's where they get their news
Many allow it to drive conversations with friends throughout the day
And many find themselves impacted emotionally by the things they read and see on these platforms
For me - I get more and more frustrated every day - and yet like you - I'm like a deer in the headlights
I can't look away
I keep coming back - expecting that it will get better - only it doesn't
It just keeps getting worse
Here's my abbreviated history of social media:
Starting with Facebook:
I may be naive - but I don't think Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook with an understanding of what it would become
I think it was fun, lighthearted and meant to serve a purpose for those using it
I visual, only platform for looking up and connecting with coeds on his college campus
Now - over the years it has obviously changed
But I believe it started with good intentions
Next we have Twitter:
No clue what the intent was originally
But when you allow people to post short hot takes - that's probably how it's going to be used
Twitter is simply a loudspeaker for people to sound off on topics they are passionate about
And call out other people they don't agree with
Then there is Instagram:
Another platform I believe started with the best of intentions
A way to share images, photos, art
It was so pure at the beginning - more about sharing interesting images and less about the other stuff
Then it was bought out by Facebook - and we know where that took the platform
Then came SnapChat:
A platform built 100% for inappropriate behavior
Send someone a picture that will disappear after they view it
When the world realized how shady that was - the company quickly pivoted - and made changes so it seemed less inappropriate
It's still around of course
But let's end with TikTok:
A platform that is built for misinformation
Now I'm going to rip on TikTok
But just know that it's the platform I'm on the most right now
Sad - but true...
TikTok is the only platform (that I know if) where the main feature isn't your feed - or the things you want to see
Instead - it's the FYP - the For You Page
Content that is curated just for you by AI
An algorithm based on your choices in content and how much of each piece of content you consume
Basically - we choose to ingest content that a computer tells us we will like
And - the conspiracy theory is that TikTok we have in the US is vastly different from the version they have in China:
That our FYPs are preprogrammed to create division, anger and hate
Whereas the FYPs in China are meant to teach, instruct and become more intelligent
Just a conspiracy theory...but based on the content I see on my FYP - the US piece sounds legit...
Can't speak for the FYPs in China...
So why did I refer to social media as a tunnel? Two reasons:
We can get tunnel vision by simply living in that world too much of the time. Research is beginning to show how strongly our mental health is tied to social media engagement
Social Media is quickly becoming a playground for misinformation. Not just people posting inaccurate information - but the very real possibility that specific types of information are being pushed by the algorithms in order to create a desired result in us
The "Apocalypse" Tunnel:
We'll end with this one - see what I did there?
"End" there...
Anyway - sorry about that...
It feels like there is a growing sense of uneasiness in the world
People making statements like:
"This world is falling apart."
"There is something happening in the world - something ominous."
"There is an awakening happening - which suggests a very big change in our existence."
All statements that suggest people aren't sure about the state of things
The future isn't clear:
We can see the world going on for hundreds of years
But if it ended 4 years from now - we wouldn't be shocked by that either
Because the world is unstable
The environment is unstable
Society feels a little unstable
Our government feels a little unstable
So we come by it honestly
But at the same time - it's a tunnel we can get stuck in
If we spend too much time focused on what's in that tunnel - we can miss out on life itself
We choose anxiety and fear over life, love and the things that are right in front of us each day
// CHAPTER 2: EXITING THE TUNNEL
So now that we've talked about common tunnels we can drive into. Let's shift gears and talk about getting out of those tunnels.
In my mind I have the perfect illustration for this - but unfortunately this is a podcast - so you won't be able to see what I'm describing.
But I'm going to tell you anyway.
https://youtu.be/oCPlJPk2nk4?t=120
Here's the long and short of it.
When we moved to California - we knew at some point we would be making a trip to Yosemite National Park.
We spent the first few years getting adjusted, doing the local sightseeing and getting the most out of our Disneyland Annual passes.
But at last the time came - and we made the trek up to Yosemite.
There are a thousand things I would love to tell you about the park - but for this podcast - it's the tunnel that's important. A tunnel that you go through on your way into the valley. One minute you're driving on a windy road through dense forest. The next you're in a long tunnel. And when you exit the tunnel you see the entire valley stretched out before you. All of the major attractions right there to see. El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridalveil Falls. Of course everyone stops to take it in, and snap a picture or two.
The view is majestic - breathtaking - and something you'll never forget for the rest of your life.
And that's the feeling I want to have when it comes to my "tunnel vision."
I want to drive out of the tunnel and experience the life that's waiting for me - right outside my field of view. Hidden only because I took a detour down a dark tunnel - and I'm stuck in traffic waiting to come out the other side.
So how does this happen? How can we get out of the tunnel we're in and get back to living the life we were made to live?
Not easily - but maybe this will help keep things moving:
Step 1: Identify your tunnel (or tunnels):
You know what they say, "Knowing is half the battle."
In Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) - Step 1 is admitting you have a problem - and to admit there is a problem you have to know what it is...
Every time a person talks they say the same thing, "Hi, my name is so and so, and I'm an alcoholic."
You admit you have a problem and you can define what that problem is
Same goes for tunnel vision:
We need to get to the place where we understand we have a problem
And we need to be able to define that problem
For example, "Hello, my name is so and so and I'm stuck in The “Political” Tunnel:
It's all I think about
I spend all day surfing the internet about my political beliefs
I view everyone who doesn't believe as I do as the enemy
I feel angry all the time
And I know it isn't healthy
Step 2: Plan your escape:
Now I know - the obvious answer is to drive out of the tunnel - right?
But let's say the tunnel you're in is packed with cars during rush hour traffic
You're at a standstill and it doesn't look like you're going to be moving anytime soon
So it may not be a simple fix
If you can't drive out of the tunnel - you might need to become the action hero in your own movie
I'm picturing a Hollywood blockbuster where the hero is trapped in their car in a tunnel - and water is flooding the tunnel behind them
The hero gets out of the car and runs the rest of the way to the entrance of the tunnel just in time to save themselves from the rushing water behind them
In this case - the person had to think outside the box
They had to do something that isn't normal in order to remain safe
So what does that look like in your tunnel scenario?
Pretend you don't have the option to drive normally out of the tunnel
So what other options do you have?
How can you get out of your tunnel in the fastest and safest way possible?
Step 3: Avoid tunnels in the future:
They say making the same mistake a third time is the definition of stupidity
Because after the second time - it has become a pattern - making the third time all but a sure thing
So if this is true - that means we should be on the lookout for tunnels on the road ahead
Instead of finding ourselves in a tunnel
We should start to see the tunnels before we get to them
And - to stretch the analogy - if we're really good at it - we might be able to reroute far enough in advance so we never have to go through the tunnel
Ultimately - this step is best described (in my mind) by Spiral Dynamics - something we've talked about a few times on the podcast:
As we move through the colors (or spirals) we eventually come to green - the last of the 1st Tier values
A great place to be in and of itself - with characteristics like:
egalitarian
tolerance
caring
compassion
sharing knowledge
harmonious
relational
etc.
But after green comes an even more significant step
When we move from Tier 1 consciousness to Tier 2 consciousness. Ultimately this means:
Moving from a scarcity to an abundance mindset
And moving from subsisting to being
Yellow includes characteristics like:
The ability to view all levels from above
The ability to accept change and instability
The ability to move freely between all lower value systems (colors or spirals)
Living in freedom without harming others or nature
And thinks and acts from an inner-directed core
Now I know - the Spiral Dynamics stuff starts to get a bit heavy
But in very high level terms:
Reaching the yellow spiral is like being able to see tunnels coming
You accept that there are people in every tunnel
You understand why they are there, and you don't judge them for being there
But at the same time you're able to avoid the tunnels along the way
There's a lot more there to unpack - but maybe for another day.
Let's Land the Plane:
This week the questions are pretty simple:
Are you in a tunnel?
If so - name the tunnel and begin working on your evacuation route
What would it look like for you to avoid tunnels in the future?
Is there something you could do this week to help you avoid them?
Well friends - that's it for now.
Hope you've doing well. Thanks again for joining me on the journey.
Have a great week, and s always, keep Transcending Human!
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