How to avoid bankrupting your ‘hope budget’ From doomscrolling to relentless negative headlines, the 21st century is mentally tough. But hope isn’t just a feeling. It’s a resource. And like any resource, it needs budgeting.
Turn on the news. Another war. Another environmental disaster. Another political scandal. The digital age delivers an unrelenting cycle of crisis, driven by the fact that many publishers know that negativity does drive online consumption.
The result is that many feel like they’re drowning in bad news and hope feels in short supply. The digital age delivers an unrelenting cycle of crisis. But here’s the thing: hope isn’t just a feeling. It’s a resource. And like any resource, it needs budgeting.
If you overspend on despair, you risk emotional bankruptcy. Research shows that our 24-hour news cycle and social media can amplify negative content and impact on your mental health through stress and anxiety. But if you cut out all bad news, put your head in the sand, how do you stay in touch with reality and engage with the world? Getting the balance right depends on how you manage your hope budget.
What is a hope budget?
A hope budget is the amount of bad news and stress you can process before it starts harming your mental health. It’s about curating your exposure to the world’s problems while ensuring you stay engaged enough to act.
Think of it like money management: if you blow all your money in the first few days, what are you going do for the rest of the week?
Likewise, consuming endless negativity without counterbalancing it with hope and solutions leads to despair and inaction.
For some, the solution seems to be to stick your head in the sand.
Hope is contagious – being around engaged people boosts motivation.
A Reuters Institute’s global news survey reported that 36 per cent of people actively avoid the news because it negatively affects their mood, and 16 per cent avoid it because they felt powerless to do anything with that information.
The sweet spot is to maintain an intentional awareness without feeling overwhelmed – choosing what you engage with and how, so you remain informed, resilient and motivated to contribute to solutions.
The crisis of cognitive overload
Humans aren’t wired to process an infinite amount of global suffering. Our ancestors dealt with immediate, local threats.
Now, we’re bombarded with crises happening everywhere, all the time. This relentless exposure fuels anxiety, stress and feelings of helplessness. Research confirms it.
Why are we so vulnerable to bad information?
Studies show that excessive exposure to distressing news can triggers ‘headline stress disorder’, where people feel constantly on edge, pessimistic and powerless. Doomscrolling reinforces this – keeping our nervous system in a state of chronic alert.
The solution? Set boundaries. Limit news exposure. Follow constructive journalism that focuses on solutions. Replace passive doomscrolling with active engagement and find ways to contribute rather than just consume.
Why perspective matters
Yes, the world faces enormous challenges. But context is key. If we only see catastrophe, we miss the bigger picture – the trajectory of human progress.
A century ago, most women couldn’t vote. Now, they lead nations.
Diseases like smallpox, once devastating, have been eradicated. Extreme poverty has plummeted from 36 per cent in 1990 to under 10 per cent today. Literacy rates, life expectancy and technological advancements continue to rise globally.
Replace passive doomscrolling with active engagement.
Framing matters. If you only see problems, you reinforce a sense of doom. If you also acknowledge solutions and progress, you strengthen your ability to hope and act.
Hope isn’t naïve – it’s evidence-based.
Why despair is dangerous
When faced with overwhelming news, people typically fall into two maladaptive traps:
• Disengagement: Tuning out completely. Ignoring problems because they feel too big. This creates apathy and erodes civic participation.
• Despair Spiral: Consuming so much negativity that hopelessness sets in. When people believe nothing can change, they stop trying – exactly the outcome bad actors and harmful systems rely on.
Politics & Society
Your social media feed is changing democracy.
Social media algorithms exacerbate this. They prioritise outrage and fear, trapping users in negative feedback loops.
The more hopeless content you engage with, the more you’re fed. This fuels learned helplessness – the psychological state where people believe their actions don’t matter.
The antidote? Action.
Even small steps – volunteering, donating, community engagement – can help to rebuild a sense of agency. Studies show that active participation and volunteering can improve mental and physical health.
If we only see catastrophe, we miss the bigger picture – the trajectory of human progress.
Practical steps for your own hope budget
1. Curate your news intake:
• Set time limits for consuming news. Avoid doomscrolling before bed.
• Follow solutions journalism – outlets that report on how problems are being tackled, not just the problems themselves.
• Diversify your sources to get a well-rounded picture.
2. Balance negative and positive news:
• For every piece of bad news, seek out a positive counterbalance – scientific breakthroughs, social progress, environmental wins.
• Keep a ‘good news’ list. Reflecting on progress builds psychological resilience.
Your phone, your emotions and everyday life
3. Take action, no matter how small:
• Get involved in causes you care about. Action fosters hope.
• Join community initiatives. Hope is contagious – being around engaged people boosts motivation.
• Focus on your piece of the puzzle – no one can fix everything, but everyone can contribute to something.
4. Protect your mental bandwidth:
• Take social media breaks. Curate your feed to reduce toxic content.
• Prioritise real-world connections. Conversations with engaged, hopeful people recharge your hope reserves.
• Practice gratitude and kindness – document progress, even in small ways.
The sweet spot is to maintain an intentional awareness without feeling overwhelmed.
Investing in hope
Maintaining hope isn’t about ignoring reality – it’s about facing it strategically.
A well-managed hope budget ensures you stay engaged without drowning, informed without despairing, and inspired to be part of solutions.
Hope isn’t passive. It’s an investment. Make sure you’re spending wisely.
This article first appeared in Pursuit.
- How to avoid bankrupting your ‘hope budget’ - 13th March 2025