Mass influence ?

[agni]

I've been observing people and it seems that many people around started to be health conscious all out of the sudden. Many folks who unrelated (not in the same environment) started to talk about working out & eating healthy.

First thought was that it was New Years resolution for some, but when I ask people they deny it is. Most say it's not a resolution, it's a matter of health.

Not that I see anything wrong with that, but could not help to notice the oddity that it has happened more or less simultaneously. And it's not the first time I notice how some start to behave in more or less syncronized manner.

That makes me wonder if that's one of the influences Gurdjieff is talking about where people starting to act in a group manner ?

 

[Buddy]

Hi agni,

With no more information than you've provided, I would say you are just experiencing the difference between what IS and what APPEARS to be.
Interest in (and discussions of) health and fitness constitute an open-ended cycle-like activity.
It goes way back in time and will extend into the future as long as human beings want to have health and energy.
It seems like new information is constantly coming out in these fields doesn't it? And people simply begin discussing new ideas and trying new products, etc... on a regular basis...or so I think.

 

[agni]

Hi Buddy,

I do not think I was clear enough (surprise ). I do understand concern for health issues are cycle-like activity as you mention. However situation is little bit more specific. Let me elaborate.

At work in past week I have noticed many people started talking about dieting, doing exercise & eating healthy. Next thing, I see good majority people at work started eating oatmeal for breakfast. Oh well, people could be discussing these things at work, and perhaps came up with identical solution. No eyebrow raising here.

I have 2 friends, who are unrelated to each other & immediate environment that also did resume exercising roughly on the same week.(after approximately 6 month break).

When I joke with one of them, saying: "What's going on ? Everyone at work decided to exercise at the same time, and eating oatmeal in the morning, now you... ". He starts to laugh & tells me that he was eating oatmeal recently too. Later this week he tells me his co-worker is doing same thing (exercise + oatmeal)

I understand that exercising & oatmeal is quite common activity, but almost identical timing ? That makes me raise an eyebrow.

It's almost seems that people got exposed to similar source of information that resulted in identical actions, but more or less independently from each other ??

At the same time, I understand it could be just me trying to see synchronicities, where there are none.

 

[Laura]

Maybe a lot more people are feeling bad because of the poisons in the environment and they are thinking it is only diet. So, they will cut out smoking, fast food, etc, and will feel a little better. Some of them may go further and figure out that they need to detox and also detox their lives. And it could also be that the ideas are simply spreading.

 

[FireShadow]

It is also possible this dieting and exercise is part of the "New Year" resolution syndrome. Many people suddenly begin to make changes at the New Year (they don't always continue with the new habits, but they start them).