what could one person possibly do to "change the world"?
the standard motivational answer is: look at any of the significant events in the world - inventors, leaders, entrepreneurs, they are the same as us, just human beings.
sure, but look around. how many of us look like we are secretly great leaders in the making? and here we don't mean managing directors, CEOs - are there people who might be doing things of significance to the human race?
in essence, we are insignificant, our efforts are insignificant, that much we know, even though it may not be hugely helpful to dwell too long on that concept on a day-to-day basis.
to view it from another angle, well, nothing the human race will do will really move the dial. the universe is 13.7 billion years old. the human race has been around for 100,000 years in total (if that, depending when you start counting. civilization started only 10,000 years ago).
to put it bluntly, the efforts of the human race are insignificant, let alone an individual.
is this reason for nihilism then? when nothing matters anymore, is there anything left? perhaps peace of mind, or perhaps minimal pain, during our time left on earth?
so then - individual effort is thus maximizing the peace of mind? if that involves a larger cause, so be it, but that's simply a by-product?
