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Activism

Activism is the effort to bring about social or political change, and most of us feel the pull to fix what looks wrong in the world. The question is how to spend that pull without wasting it. My presumptuous rules for making a difference:

1. Pick your fights. You cannot fix everything, and not everything that looks wrong is. Check twice that an issue is worth solving before you take it on.
2. Match effort to influence. Spend on an issue in proportion to the control you actually have over it. Bite off more than that and you choke.
3. Act where you have real control. If you can truly change something, there is no excuse for not trying: study it, take a clear stance, and work out practical fixes.
4. Let the rest go. Most issues are outside your control. Stay somewhat informed, hold at least a minimal stance, and do not carry the world on your shoulders.

It is often more productive to work with the motivated and influential few to change institutions, and let the average person be.