Doing something typically feels better than doing nothing.
—Ellen Langer, Harvard Psychologist quoted in “Illusion of Control: Why the world is full of buttons that don’t work,” CNN
The world is full of buttons
that do nothing—buttons
at crosswalks, in elevators,
in hotel rooms—buttons
that can be pushed, but in
fact have no functionality.
The Harvard psychologist
suggests that these buttons
serve a purpose: they help
people feel as if they have
some control: she says
it feels good to have
something to do.
We could, I suppose, make
buttons to press for these
careening days when we
realize just how little control
we have. Not over death.
Not over weather. Not
over anyone’s heart—not
even our own.
Or we could press
our own belly buttons—
a reminder there are
a few things we can do:
Write letters. Walk. Say
thank you. Practice peace.
Protest. Wear a raincoat.
Take Vitamin B.
And, of course, the most
difficult thing of all—
to say yes to not being in control,
to dance in that uncomfortable
place, laughing like a stream.
*
read the full article here: http://edition.cnn.com/style/article/placebo-buttons-design/index.html