When you play to emotions, the facts get lost. When someone screams “Fire” in a crowded theater people don’t ask for proof; they just run. Emotions are powerful controls on our minds, and fear is one of the most powerful emotions.
Which is why initiating a false panic in a public place, such as yelling, “Fire” where none existed in a public place like a theater, is a felony in many states.
But isn’t false panic becoming a daily occurrence on news channels? In board rooms? In weather reports?
What emotion clears out grocery store shelves when weather forecasters (weather terrorists) predict heavy snow storms in North Carolina? Collective fear.
What emotion drives people to line up at gas stations when newscasters (news terrorists) tell us the national reserve is down and there could be gasoline rationing? Collective fear.
What happens when the boss announces sales are significantly off and potentially a number of people will be laid off? The workforce becomes fearful of who will get the ax.
“Collective fear stimulates herd instinct, and tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd.” Bertrand Russell
We seem to be using fear as a way to get people to listen to what we are saying, without checking the facts behind our messages. Headlines sell newspapers and in a dying industry, the louder your scream hopefully the more you sell. Case in point: The USA Today Monday edition September 14, 2009 front page center article headline reads: Testing for toxics at schools sparks questions, lawsuits.
If you want to go for the jugular vein of fear – scare a parent about the safety of their children. The article offered no conclusive evidence of impending danger.
Just like inflammatory newspaper headlines, leaders are creating herd mentalities for their own gain by playing up the fears of people. The Democrats, the Republicans, the pro-life people, the pro-choice people, corporate leaders and labor leaders, media outlets and on and on are all using the emotion of fear to close ranks and create herd mentalities. Our fear buttons are being pushed everywhere! So how do we react? We look for a herd.
Too many leaders are creating a splintered society in this country by having fear buttons pressed over and over again and it has gotten out of hand. In fact, it is ruining our country. Because of this herd mentality there is no longer debate, concern with facts or finding collaborative ways to make our country a better place. Because we have become a country that is so caught up with the infighting, we no longer look for solutions; we only look to prove the opposing way of thinking wrong and completely meritless.
If you are a leader listen up.
Crushing the perceived adversary to your agenda is not going to make this a better country any more than poking out your left eye, just to make your right eye is the stronger eye: You still lose vision.
We have lost our vision as leaders in this country and it’s time we stop the fear mongering and get back to what makes this country a world leader: making the best use of our resources, which is the collaborative effort of our people.
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