Last Updated on September 11, 2025

How to be sane in a world gone mad

Yesterday, a right wing political commentator from the U.S. was assassinated.

I disagreed with this man on nearly everything, especially his consistently racist views.

But the thing is, I believe murdering someone is not good —

even if you strongly disagree with them.

I don’t even think we should murder murderers (I’m in favor of abolishing the death penalty).

I’ve learned that this is a controversial opinion in 2025.

But that’s OK, because I still believe in peace and love anyway. ❤️

And no one can stop me.

The first rule of ethics

This belief I have happens to be the basis for all ethical systems.

I should know, as I did take seven ethical philosophy classes in college.

But I’ll spare you the complicated philosophy.

It’s summed up in The Silver Rule:

Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want them to do to you.

(Unless of course, they specifically ask you to!)

I wouldn’t want someone to kill me against my wishes, so I also try to not murder other people.

So far I’ve been 100% successful at not committing homicide…despite getting really mad sometimes.

In fact it’s interesting that the word “mad” can mean both “angry” and “insane.”

Because when we get taken over by anger to the point of wanting to commit violence, we have truly lost touch with the reality that we are all connected.

In reality, we are all one.

Collective madness

The breakdown of The Silver Rule is a sign of a world gone mad.

Of course, this isn’t the first time.

Political violence has existed since politics has existed.

Often it has been directed towards minorities.

The assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. are two high-profile ones.

Not to mention the assassination or overthrow of many democratically-elected leaders by the CIA.

But I digress.

How do we remain sane in a world gone mad?

We choose to not be led by the insanity.

And instead lead towards love and joy…

Or at least choose to follow others who are leading in this direction!

The world does not lead me

Earlier this year, I wrote a poem encapsulating an insight I received around this topic.

I’ve shared it before, but here it is again:

The world does not lead me, I lead the world.
The world does not lead me into war, I lead the world into peace.
The world does not lead me into chaos, I lead the world into clarity.
The world does not lead me into fear, I lead the world into safety.
The world does not lead me into anger, I lead the world into love.
The world does not lead me into despair, I lead the world into hope.
I am not here to be led into darkness, but to lead the world into light.
And no one can stop me.

This doesn’t mean I am the savior of the world, quite the opposite.

I am just one person, but I can do my part to lead things in the direction I want to see the world go.

And everyone is invited to join me — us really, as there are millions of peace-lovers in the world.

Instead of murder, we have love and joy! And gluten-free cupcakes!

In fact, this is part poem, part hypnotic suggestion.

I often repeat this to myself over and over when I’m struggling with being led by the world into darkness and despair.

I also do pattern interrupt methods over and over.

I bring up the stress on purpose, then do anything else to interrupt the pattern of “think negative thought, feel stressful emotion.”

That’s what finally ended my own participation in “the trance of despair” this year.

I no longer suffer constantly about the latest terrible thing in the news.

I simply redirect my attention towards being the change I wish to see, both in terms of emotional state and peaceful direct action.

I even taught a whole class on how to do this in June.

(You can still buy the recording if you want, it’s 90 minutes for $47.)

Optimism is always possible

I’m now weirdly optimistic about what’s possible for humanity.

That’s because optimism is not dependent on what’s happening now.

It’s about imagining possible futures.

And when we do so, we not only describe reality but create reality.

We create a positive self-fulfilling prophecy.

I also often think about this:

Whenever things appear like they are getting worse in a system, there is also another part of the system that is getting better.

It’s just that when we’re stressed, we hyper-focus on the danger and minimize or don’t even see the good.

But they can be equally as strong, or the good might even be much stronger!

And you and I always have a choice to be a part of the system that is getting better.

Often in small ways, but every bit counts.

This is often true in our personal lives too.

If you’re going through a tough time right now, it’s possible that you’re also developing exactly the right abilities to get out of it.

How would you feel if this were true?

I find this point of view very comforting.

It’s a light in dark times.

Trance-formation

Once I’ve trance-ended the despair or other negative trance, then I trance-form a new positive trance.

Recently, that’s been working on solidifying confidence as an ongoing way of being.

The kind of confidence I’m developing is not about seeing myself as better than other people.

It’s remaining steadfastly committed to peace and love and joy, no matter what happens “out there.”

Because that’s just how I want to be as a person.

How do you want to live your life?

That’s the question to ask yourself this week.

Take care,

~Duff
(they/them)

P.S. If you want help ending your own negative trances and forming some new and better ones, you can book a free 30-minute consultation.