When Life Becomes Too Much

Managing the Madness of Multiplicity Through Eastern Philosophy

There was a time, long ago, when making a phone call meant one number and a rotary dial. A conversation required presence.

Now?

I’m invited to Zoom with someone at 2:00 pm, FaceTime at 3:00 pm and Google Meet at 4:30 pm. I then may WhatsApp a friend five time zones away later that evening.

This world has become a buffet of sameness with too many sauces. The more options we’re given, the more empty we become. Want to connect? Which app would you like to perform human intimacy on today?

I Call It The “Subway Sandwich Syndrome”

You’ve seen it. Or maybe you are it. Standing in line at Subway, twenty-five toppings deep, trying to make a decision while the guy behind you mutters “Just the turkey…”

Olives? Jalapeños? Honey mustard or sriracha aioli?

Their eyes go glassy. Their soul leaves the body.

This is not freedom. This is fatigue dressed as choice.

And just like that, you order a footlong existential crisis with a side of confusion.

A World of Too Many Logins

I have five email addresses. Multiple business email addresses, including a Hotmail account I haven’t used since President Clinton was in office. Each one a digital fragment of me—none are the whole.

I’ve met folks who carry three phones like modern-day oracles. One for business. One for friends. One for their “creative side.”

What?

And don’t get me started old social media accounts that are still spewing exhaust

It’s not multitasking—it’s spiritual fragmentation.

There’s no Tao in toggling.

The Science of Split Minds

Cognitive psychologists have been sounding the gong for years. A study from Stanford University found that people who multitask between digital platforms are less productive, more anxious, and actually slower to switch tasks.

Another study from the University of Sussex revealed that heavy media multitasking is associated with reduced grey matter density in the anterior cingulate cortex—the part of the brain involved in decision-making, empathy, and emotional regulation.

Translation: Too many tabs fry your essence.

Lao Tzu Would Laugh

Lao Tzu didn’t have Wi-Fi. Or a backup phone. Or a Dropbox folder full of “final_final_final.docx” documents. What he did have was clarity.

“To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, remove things every day.”

If he walked into a Subway today, he’d skip the line, bow to the bread oven, and walk out with nothing but silence in his hands. Because sometimes, choosing nothing is choosing peace.

What the I Ching Whispers

In the I Ching, Hexagram 23 is called Splitting Apart. It teaches us that when things become too complex, too bloated, too heavy with attachments, it is time to strip down. To simplify. To let go.

One translation reads: “Erosion by excess. It is not evil, but it must be pruned.”

So what do we prune?

The inbox that bleeds into our dreams.

The compulsive need to say yes to every link, like, and livestream.

The belief that being reachable equals being valuable.

Returning to the Tao of Enough

The Tao doesn’t ask us to keep up. It invites us to return. To step off the information treadmill. To realize that “all-in-one” is often just code for “never fully here.”

Return to one phone. One email. One moment.

If you’re on a video call, don’t check your texts.

If you’re writing an essay, don’t check your Slack.

If you’re in line at Subway, just order the turkey sandwich.

And if you must multitask, then do it the Taoist way:

Do one thing deeply. And then nothing.

Closing with a Wu Wei Wink

Wu Wei is the art of effortless action. The water flowing around the rock. The bird that glides without flapping.

It’s not about doing less—it’s about doing naturally.

So when you feel your brain start to flicker from too many options, remember this:

Your life is not a salad bar.

Your spirit is not a smartphone.

And your peace… is not in the toppings.

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Diamond Michael Scott

aka The Chocolate Taoist