06/09/25
One of my favorite comics, Louis C.K., told this joke in one of his specials that I’ll never forget.
He was on a plane in the early 2000s, and the flight crew announced that it was one of the first flights ever to offer WiFi on the plane.
After they took off, he was able to go online, he was watching YouTube videos; it was incredible.
Then, after 30 minutes or so, they made an announcement that the WiFi stopped working.
The man sitting next to Louis turned to him and said…
“This is bullshit!”
And Louis thought…
“How does the world owe you something that you didn’t know existed 30 minutes ago???”
The joke points to an unfortunate truth, which is that we immediately normalize anything great in our lives.
We so quickly take things for granted.
As soon as we upgrade our lives in some way…
That becomes the new standard…
And if we lose it, we get frustrated, disappointed, or discouraged.
This is unhealthy because we fall into the pattern of constantly wanting more and never being satisfied with what we have.
This pattern leads us down a path of unhappiness and affects our ability to respond to adversity.
The solution is to recognize that tendency when it arises.
Notice how your mind normalizes something incredible (like being able to access the internet when flying 30,000 feet in the air!).
Then, shift into a mindset of gratitude for what it is you do have, rather than a hyperfocus on all of the things you don’t have.
From this perspective, you’ll be more at peace, happier, and able to respond with more clarity and skill.
Louis was right, the world doesn’t owe us anything.
Let’s be better at appreciating all of the great things this world has to offer.
Rooting for you,
Jay (encouraging you to appreciate the good)
