Book review - Scarcity Brain by Michael Easter
Scarcity Brain by Michael Easter is in the “people who viewed this also viewed” bar that showcase just how potentially screwed we are as a species. Even those of us who are self-aware of the potential dangers of social media and our desire to move up the status rankings, it still often undermines our daily lives. So there are myriad books about the psychology of contemporary problems and how we got here. There are even more books that provide steps to safely rescue ourselves from a dangerously dull life.
The problem is, no one book works universally. If there was a single book that not only succinctly articulated our issue then provided a surgically precise method for addressing it, the genre would not be ever-expanding. However, not all books in the self-help or the personal growth section are revolutionary. Some books seem crafted by opportunists speaking more abstractly than from experience, relying on titles or research in place of experience. Easter splices experience with research and doesn’t write with the arrogance of some academics who speak down to the undisciplined masses for being unable to keep their lives productive. That is why this book (along with The Comfort Crisis) stand out.
There is a difference between having knowledge of the subject matter and being able to articulate it in a way that is resonates with the reader. I have read books about the pending doom that comes with naive/manipulative social media usage and creation, contemporary despair caused by lack of purpose etc. but Scarcity Brain wasn’t redundant. One of the points that resonated most was the idea of authentic pride (which comes from accomplishment and inspires additional creative growth) vs. hubristic pride (driven by the need to be noticed). Easter didn’t coin these terms, but he successfully presented them, and other psychology research, in a meaningful way.
When Easter writes about going through an experience looking for angles that will best play on social media, I know exactly what he means. Listening to that chapter (my wife and I were killing a six-hour layover in Seattle by listening to the book and walking around the airport) cued up thoughts of standing out in the hunting or fishing industries which is often an exercise in hubristic pride. Take the trophy shot, attach the appropriate hashtags, tag a couple companies and wait for the Likes to roll in, then assign self-worth accordingly.
I found Scarcity Brain relevant from a professional standpoint as well. As a high school teacher, there is an endless need to relate content to students. While we do read contemporary texts, much of the syllabus comes from the literary canon - seemingly antiquated stories about people leaning obsolete lessons. I rarely, if ever, read books about education or educational theory. I read books that educate about life, because books such as Easter’s remind readers that modern society simply provides modern tools (social media) to be weaponized in the ancient battle with ourselves: craving more, influence, reputation, status. The more exposure I have to these concepts, the better I will be at providing meaningful answers to contemporary questions or facilitate valuable discussions stemming from our reading list. Using Google or AI to conjure up theoretically riveting lesson plans will do no good when a student asks why it matters and I only have a canned response or I come up with nothing. Being an effective teacher comes from having fleshed out and applied concepts, enabling a deeper more thoughtful response.
Easter does this with his books, which is why they are smart buys.
