You Already Have What You Need: Using Your Curiosity to Handle Uncertainty in Today’s News
You already have what you need — truly. Let’s walk you through how to use your naturally occurring character strengths to feel, deal, and heal through this unique moment in history.
The VIA Character Institute identifies 24 character strengths — like curiosity, hope, gratitude, judgment, perspective and self-regulation. We all have all 24, uniquely arranged inside us. You can take their free survey online to discover your personal mix, but you don’t need to do that first. This article will guide you in using your strengths right now — to respond more calmly and confidently to the nonstop news cycle.
Step 1: Notice Your Initial Reaction
Before labeling your feelings, pause and notice your first reaction.
It might sound like:
“Did I just hear that right?”
“Is that really happening?”
“What is going on?”
“How can that be?”
Those questions are your curiosity at work. Curiosity is a character strength that helps you explore uncertainty and seek understanding, not just react. It gives you permission to ask questions and make sense of what’s unfolding, rather than getting pulled into fear or frustration.
Step 2: Examine the Meaning You’re Giving the Situation
Two people can hear the same headline and feel completely different — not because of the facts, but because of the story their mind tells about it.
Pause for a moment and listen to your inner commentary. You might notice thoughts like:
“This confirms what I already feared — things are just getting worse.”
“That’s not fair; people shouldn’t be treated like that.”
“Why doesn’t anyone ever tell the full story?”
“This reminds me of when that happened to my family.”
“I can’t handle hearing any more bad news.”
“Someone needs to do something — maybe I should.”
Each thought reveals your personal lens — your values, beliefs, and life experiences. The meaning you give the story reflects strengths such as fairness, kindness, judgment, honesty, or spirituality.
Ask yourself:
“What meaning am I giving this situation?”
“What am I perceiving to be true about myself or others here?”
By noticing these thoughts, you begin to separate fact from interpretation. You’re using perspective and honesty character strengths to recognize that your reaction is valid and influenced by how you frame the story.
Step 3: Name and Regulate Your Emotions — While Consuming the News
Now that you’ve noticed your thoughts, turn inward and name your emotions.
Maybe you feel outraged, helpless, sad, anxious, disappointed or even numb after scrolling through headlines. These reactions are natural — your nervous system is responding to perceived threat and uncertainty.
Use a feelings wheel (easy to find online) to pinpoint what’s there. Is it anger, fear, sadness, shock? Then rate each emotion as high, medium, or low intensity.
You can apply the “Four R’s” directly to your news-consumption habits:
Recognize – Pause mid-scroll to acknowledge what you’re feeling.
Retreat – Step away from screens, even briefly. Silence the news or close the tab.
Relax – Choose something grounding: stretch, take a walk, breathe deeply, cook, call a friend.
Return – Come back to the news only if you feel calmer and more centered.
This uses the character strengths of self-regulation, prudence, and perseverance. When emotions are high, the brain’s reasoning center dims. Calming your body first helps your curiosity and judgment character strengths return online — so you can read, listen, and think critically instead of reactively. You are taking control.
Step 4: Notice Your Nervous System — When the News Includes Real Human Tragedy
Some news is not just chaotic or incomplete — it is devastating.
When headlines include mass shootings, targeted hate-based violence, or deeply personal tragedies, your body often reacts before your mind can make sense of it. This is your nervous system responding to threat, loss, or danger — automatically and instinctively.
In these moments, curiosity does not mean detachment. It means slowing down enough to notice what your body is doing before moving into meaning, emotion, or action.
Before deciding what to do with the information, pause and ask yourself two curious questions:
“What is my nervous system experiencing in my body right now?”
You might notice tightness in your throat or chest, tension in your shoulders or jaw, a heaviness or hollowness in your stomach, clenched fists, shallow breathing, restlessness, or a pressure behind your eyes or in your head. These physical sensations are signals — not problems to fix.
Simply noticing them helps settle the nervous system and prevents overwhelm from taking over.
Once your body feels even slightly more grounded, you can gently bring your thinking mind back online with two guiding questions:
“What is not within my control here — and what must I accept?”
Acceptance does not mean approval or indifference. It means acknowledging that some events are irreversible, senseless, and profoundly painful.
You may choose to limit repeated exposure, step away from graphic details, or be intentional about when and how you consume updates.
Protecting your nervous system is an act of wisdom and self-respect.
“What is within my control — even in a small way?”
Control may not look like fixing the problem.
It might look like bearing witness without numbing, checking in on someone who feels vulnerable, supporting affected communities, speaking out against hate, donating, voting, or choosing not to amplify speculation or sensationalism.
Even one grounded action can restore a sense of agency and alignment with your values.
When tragedy dominates the news, the goal is not to rush into action — it is to regulate first, then respond with intention.
Each time you practice this step, you allow your body to settle enough for clarity, compassion, and values-based action to emerge — staying connected to your humanity without becoming consumed by despair.
Step 5: Balance Judgment with Compassion
When emotions settle, notice how quickly the mind judges — the reporter, the politician, the protesters, the commenters.
To stay balanced, lean into three character strengths:
Social intelligence – Try to understand what motivates others, even if you disagree.
Kindness – Extend compassion to people you’ll never meet; wish them safety.
Self-regulation – Resist the pull to argue or doom-scroll.
By using these, you realize that not every story needs your outrage — some simply need your witness and your steady heart.
Step 6: Expand Your Practice — Rebuild Hope and Perspective
After setting emotional boundaries, invite in strengths that rebuild resilience and optimism:
Gratitude – Notice stories of generosity and progress. They coexist with hardship.
Hope – Imagine small steps toward a better future; seek solution-focused journalism.
Love – Stay connected to the people who ground you in real life.
Teamwork – Engage in community efforts; belonging counters helplessness.
Honesty – Admit when you need a break from media.
Spirituality – Find meaning that transcends today’s headlines.
Together, these help you hold pain and possibility at the same time — the true mark of resilience.
Step 7: Close with Acceptance and Empowerment
Practicing these steps transforms how you relate to the world around you.
You become an observer, not an absorber.
The Serenity Prayer offers timeless wisdom:
Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
Acceptance doesn’t mean withdrawal; it’s an empowered calm that frees your energy for what matters.
Now, when you encounter today’s news, you have a strengths-based roadmap to feel, deal, and heal. You can stay informed without losing your center — holding space for truth, compassion, and hope.
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