Is there a cure for indifference?

Passion

compassion

great question btw

Eh. Who cares?

Directly involving the life of the apathetic into the problem(s) at hand.

@jonsblond I really should’ve have said what you did. Now I’m embarrassed.

What seems to be indifference could be depression.

@The_Compassionate_Heretic You gave me inspiration. :)

Are you speaking of your own or someone else’s?

You can’t cure someone else’s.

With the massive bombardment of information on the internet, it becomes all too easy to become generally complacent and specifically indifferent to issues. If one takes the time to understand the issue at hand and reflect on it, you’ll find you are seldom, if ever, truly indifferent. See ya…..wtf (my initials)

PUPPIES!

@Sarcasm So true!

1) a strong and healthy feedback culture
2) appreciation and respect for people

@Jeruba you beat me to it

If you want to cure it in yourself, find some good “positive thinking” sites online. If you want to cure it in someone else, you’re out of luck.

@Jeruba, @YARNLADY It’s purely theoretical, at this point. I just didn’t see any practical way around indifference in general.

@jonsblond omg

who cares?

edit:
dang @astrochuck beat me to it by a long shot

Ahhhh, I thought the new guidelines discouraged ‘hypothetical’ type questions.

Societal indifference is usually just an illusion. In any group of people, there will be interest shown in several different areas, but when applied overall, it appears nonexistant. At work, some will be enthusiastic about sports, some about their favorite TV show, some about family events, and such. When you see that nobody seems to care about the economy, or the big ticket issues, you are left with the wrong impression.

I don’t think this is a hypothetical question

People are indifferent because they don’t want to take risks. They don’t want to invest themselves in something that might fail, so they don’t really invest themselves in anything, at all. Therefore, the cure for indifference is to brave, and perhaps embrace the lessons that come from being wrong.

@Pol_is_aware – I agree.

At least for myself, indifference is a mask I’ve used at times to protect myself from “failure”. But while it hasn’t reached that gut-level, automatic understanding yet, I’m learning that there is no such thing as “failure”, there are only outcomes and information. Indifference comes for me when I anticipate that I will be overwhelmed by feelings that I don’t like having or when I believe that my expectations will not be met. That’s not to say that there aren’t some things I’m truly indifferent about and it’s OK, like, say, what show is on TV tonight. That’s not what I mean here.

I’ve had a sit with myself recently and wrote out what it is I’ve talked about or have done for hours without being self-conscious or worried about the outcome of my actions even once. There are a few things that I haven’t pursued further because of fear of the risk of “failing” or “rejection”. I’m working on it, though it’s early days yet. And yes, compassion and self-compassion are very important. Long-standing patterns of behavior aren’t going to change if you beat yourself up and judge yourself or otherwise show yourself anything less than the love you would show your dearest friend. If you have your own back and know it, then it’s OK to take a risk and you don’t have to create indifference inside yourself

Yes, there are many cures for indifference:

Charm, friendliness, caring, compassion, concern, feelings, interest, involvement, regard, and sympathy.

@Pol_is_aware : I agree to an extent. I think my indifference many times comes from the fact that I truly just don’t care.

@lilgiraffe, so do you mean societal indifference? indifference in the world at large? That’s real and not hypothetical. It’s still hard to answer without knowing whose and what kind you are talking about.

If you mean all indifference everywhere, there is no such thing as a single cure, and it is not a condition needing a cure. It is perfectly fine for some people to be indifferent to some things. Everybody can’t care about everything, and I think we would all go crazy if they (we) did.

@Jeruba I was thinking along the lines of an individual’s indifference to someone or something. For example, if someone does not care enough for his/her future to study hard at school, or a guy who does not care about a girl’s attentions for him.

@lilgiraffe Oh, I see now, like when my teen sons and grandsons didn’t want to do their homework, or attend college even though I offered to pay for it. Sometimes what appears to be indifference is really rebellion. The only way I know to counter that is to try to help them determine what they are interested in, and perhaps find a way to build on that.

As for the guy and girl thing, indifference in a relationship has a natural consequence, and that is the failure of the relationship.

@critter1982 DENIAL!!!

I’m kidding. I, too, feel indifferent toward many things that are commonly loved and loathed by people around me. I just don’t think those things are important. But that is because I see other things as more important—the bigger picture, I guess you could say.

However, If you’re indifferent about everything, you’re missing out.

Suffering. Feeling indifference towards people is fine until you’re lonely. Feeling indifference towards the pain of another is fine until you feel that pain. Feeling indifference towards learning is fine until you find yourself incapable of sustaining your comfort or the comfort of loved ones. Suffering breeds feeling, thought and (accordingly) understanding.

Mark, Matthew, John, Luke, Acts… getting the picture. Each of us has a purpose and everyone is gifted at something. Fulfill that purpose and think of someone else besides yourself. Apathy or indifference are very very selfish states of mind. Yes, we will all pass away and the earthly things done or accumulated in this life will be left behind. But, we are to be fishers of men and build our treasures in heaven. If you can’t find anything worth wild in this life; look to the next. God has given you something special or you may be the only person that one might talk to. Don’t be selfish when you could be a tool that God would use. The more you do, the more opportunities are presented. You are important whether you know that or not!

Repentance and turn from your sins and follow Jesus