Change Your Algorithm
Recently, Oliver North facilitated a powerful speech at the University of California, Irvine's student body’s Reclaim Mental Health Conference. In order to facilitate a powerful message to a demographic that Oliver is passionate about, he took the time to craft a special talk that required thorough inner work. Oliver began extensively preparing by examining his personal life and experiences in relation to mental health, including examining current states of humanity, a six-hour accountant breakdown with our Project Director, Tahirih Vinson, and a thorough review of the Netflix documentary, The Social Dilemma. Through this preparation, Oliver produced Change Your Algorithm for the Reclaim Mental Health Conference and beyond. Change Your Algorithm. Usually, a term relegated to changing what you see on your social media feeds has become much bigger than that. An algorithm is “a process or set of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations, especially by a computer.” Humans, as intricate beings ourselves, have become subject to the many external and social media operations that constantly surround our lives. Oliver's message to students emphasizes the power that individuals have in creating and changing our personal algorithms. Ask ourselves what we see and how what we allow influences where we are now. Especially with the constant bombardment of advertisements, cyberbullying, violence, and, in some cases, disrespect for trends, for many, their identities can become wrapped in external things that aren't aligned with who they were meant to be.
Oliver‘s ultimate goal with Change Your Algorithm is to inform. While technology has influenced amazing things, it has also had some drawbacks. These drawbacks include how some external algorithms were created to target and influence what you can become. Change Your Algorithm really focuses on the intersectionality between ourselves and technology, how we use it and what it’s used for. For example, technology has given us access to so many things. At what point do we manage what we have access to and how it influences us? Oliver uses the term change your algorithm as a metaphor for us in our human reality to be intentional with what we allow in our mind, body, soul, and spirit because what goes in always comes out. Our mental health has a lot to do with what we retain. So if you don’t like what you’re producing, Oliver suggests using changing your algorithm as a self-audit. In the social media and overall technological space, the algorithm is constantly updating based on what YOU “like” or what YOU'RE interested in. If we can begin harnessing the love we need to update our personal lives and change our personal algorithms, we can “be still” enough to reconnect with ourselves and master the use of technology and its powerful influence. Oliver believes if we can grasp this concept, it can change our world personally and collectively.
How Should Purpose Influence Your Algorithm?
While Oliver was meant to do what he does, as with all things and takes its toll, Oliver's purpose is rooted in method activism. As you know, method acting is a technique that actors use to identify with the people they are going to portray completely emotionally. With method activism, Oliver continuously emotionally identifies With his childhood experience and essentially becomes the role of his inner child and inspires others to act through the evolution of his journey. That is his purpose. And what you find is that anything Oliver presents, he is more than willing to do the work himself. In order to facilitate from a solid foundation, Oliver deleted all social media and took a conscious detox of what he allowed in and around him. Through this self-reflection, he concluded that people do not have enough stillness to see the ways that humanity has disconnected from itself and the beautiful things around them. Oliver understands that his purpose is no greater than another’s, and if changing his own algorithm is a crucial step in elevating his goal, he can only imagine what it can do for others. So understand, changing your algorithm is not only important to yourself; it’s important to that purpose inside of you. Changing your algorithm in the way that it best serves you and your community will align you with the purpose you were meant for.
Oliver and OTO would like to send a special thank you to Megan Chang and the students at UCI for initiating an event like Reclaiming Mental Health Conference. We appreciate doing the work alongside young adults like you.