To the people who filled out my survey, it mattered a huge amount. For 86%, it mattered a lot.
What were the top challenges? Political corruption, then the inability to reach people with facts, then loss of freedoms. Those were followed by difficulty getting information due to misinformation, family conflicts, threat to employment, difficulty knowing what to believe, and loss of friendships.
As for inner challenges, the top one was frustration, followed by ongoing anger. Next: feeling a lack of community and not knowing what to do. Then, frequent despair, a sense of isolation, feeling stuck.
As for, what would it mean to be better able to deal with the challenges? For over half of the people, it would mattered a lot. For another 23%, quite a lot.
What would people might find most helpful? #1: better strategies for reaching people on the fence. #2: strategies for reaching people in general. #3: strategies for political activism. Living with less stress and dealing with family conflict also mattered considerably.
How much did people want to learn effective strategies? More than half answered: a lot. Another third answered: quite a lot. Only 12% said: some. And no one said: not very much, or not at all.
The next question was:
The final question, #8, is very close to #6. But there is more of an emphasis on: how motivated are they to TAKE ACTION to learn the strategies. The results?
People had a lot of motivation.
A question remains. How do we learn what we are motivated to learn?
I gave one answer in my previous post, on this secret that’s been kept from most of us: that we, the AWAKE, don’t have what just about everyone else has - support groups.
I’m going to give the last word to a reader who responded to that post.
Patricia Velden (name shared with permission):
Elsa’s absolutely right about Support Groups. Canadian Mental Health Assoc., Hamilton, Ontario, is one of the best agencies I’ve ever worked with. We had a huge list of Support Groups that I saw were part of helping people feel comfortable and able to function well again.
She sent out to her list, ending with:
This is Elsa’s invitation to join “Awake in a World Gone Woke.”
Here is the link:
https://AwakeWorld.net
If this appeals to you, you can reach me at: elsa@fullflourishing.com
Posted January 6, 2023
I really hear that history teacher who told the anecdote about subtly-implanted hate propaganda. I know that anecdote is slightly off-topic but it's part of the whole ecosystem in which we now 'live and move and have our being'. It's exhausting to the soul if we're not careful to keep a perspective and defend ourselves. And of course that's why your Support Group can be so valuable, Elsa.
(Btw, I had misunderstood you - I thought you were merely contemplating setting up a potential support group and exploring different options, hence my comment about only communicating through writing. I didn't at first realise you already had everything in place and already up and running. 😁)