The World In Flux: Other People As Data Points

When we access the lives of people around us, we are essentially comparing ourselves with them, using them as a benchmark to how our lives are going. If they are suffering, we feel secure and happy. If the people we watch are having a gala time, we get envious or motivated but learn new things we didn’t know before. We are basically picking up the cues and learning the rules of life.

It is a way of coping with the unique challenges and constraints of the current times, making sense of the world in flux.