Strength in numbers

The Gentle Rebel Podcast

The randomiser wheel picked “Strength in numbers”. I’m currently using a tool to select phrases for my daily journal practice. They are all associated with the theme of Strength.

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Martin Luther King Jr. said, “There is power in unity, and there is power in numbers.” Power is contagious, building strength in numbers—a force for creation and destruction. Numbers can topple buildings and spark change but can also reduce individuals to statistical fodder, data on a spreadsheet, and reinforcement where more numbers are required.

A crowd develops a mind, not as a reflection of individual expression but as a loss of subjectivity. Social influence, de-individuation, emotional contagion, scapegoating, compliance, anonymity, and desensitisation transform people, creating powerful, unpredictable surges and movements. It becomes bigger than any individual’s ability to stop it.

Like a pitch invasion or riot, a surge of emotion can breach the order. This was seen during the 2020 European Cup Final, when 6,000 ticketless fans stormed Wembley Stadium. Interviews with participants revealed psychological factors that led (some of) them to act out of character, behaviour they later barely recognised. Similar dynamics played out during the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6th, 2021, and the UK summer riots of 2024. In these moments, people feel invincible and unstoppable—and literally lose themselves in the numbers.

Safety in Numbers

This doesn’t just happen in chaos; we all drift toward groupthink over time, allowing political or social alignment to shape our opinions. We stop thinking critically and cling to our “tribe” for safety. Extreme shifts and once-fringe ideas find their way to the mainstream. The pull is stronger when we embrace totalising philosophies, grand theories that simplify the world at the expense of nuance. In doing so, we retreat into the safety of numbers, avoiding challenges to our beliefs.

“There is power in unity, and there is power in numbers.” But unity is more than a mindless mass; it’s about shaping abstraction into reality. Mother Teresa said, “None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things with great love, and together, we can do something wonderful.”

Strength in Unity

Unity is each playing a small part in something greater, creating a body stronger than its parts.

Contrast this with the chaotic crowd, competing for limited resources in a frenzy of rivalry and animosity. Numbers, when disunited, become formidable. Grabbing, reaching, and striving for something there isn’t enough of for everyone.

Power, contagious as it is, can be a force for better—or worse.

https://youtu.be/WY-jlVKf3p4