An Insatiable Desire for Nothing

“I don’t care.”

I hear this said so often that I can’t help but consider what lies beneath such apathy.

In some cases, it seems that people really don’t care. They don’t care if the customer is satisfied. They don’t care if a colleague, or supervisor is disappointed. They don’t care if a friend or loved one is hurt. They don’t care if they personally fail.

Seemingly, they are not impacted by potential consequences. They may have discovered that they will not be held accountable, there are no consequences or the potential consequences are of no concern. But it can also have an impact on their feelings. They feel no pain, grief or discontent when things go wrong or end badly. They have no fear of the future. Such apathy can offer a safe and comfortable euphoria.

Then there are those who say it in an effort to try to convince themselves that it’s true. This is sometimes used when things have gone wrong and they are trying not to feel the consequential sting. It can also be used in advance of outcomes to reduce the fear of facing negative consequences or feelings.

Apathy is like a drug - an insatiable desire for nothing. It numbs us to the potentially negative feelings associated with outcomes. If we don’t care then the outcomes don’t matter.

But outcomes should matter. They are a part of our life and numbing ourselves to outcomes is like disconnecting from life. We then also become numb to potential joy, pride and triumph.

Pain is a frequent, normal and natural consequence of caring. So is ecstasy.