61–70 of 203 posts
What do you guys do if you need a short break from work? Between tasks or if I have finished something mentally demanding, I will often skim some news sites or hacker news. Any recommendation what else to do as a quick break between programming tasks?
Take a 5 mins walk.
It's not just news. I cut out mainstream media several years ago, and noted a definite improvement in my psychological well-being. As of the end of last year, I stopped engaging in mainstream social media. So much better. I still keep a Facebook account for Messenger and Events, but don't post, read timelines, or participate. Not only do I have more time to read books and learn new things -- made pita bread from scra…
What a coincidence.
Seeking happiness is a trap in itself though. This has been extensively discussed by centuries of philosophers. Happiness is transitory and can never be sustained.
It's not just news. I cut out mainstream media several years ago, and noted a definite improvement in my psychological well-being. As of the end of last year, I stopped engaging in mainstream social media. So much better. I still keep a Facebook account for Messenger and Events, but don't post, read timelines, or participate. Not only do I have more time to read books and learn new things -- made pita bread from scra…
I feel like the signal to noise ratio has suffered in recent weeks because of the mainstream media attack on tech companies
Giving up political news didn't make me happier, but it certainly reduced that niggling feeling that everything is headed towards doom. It's said that "an informed citizenry is the bulwark of democracy", and that's probably why many of us consume so much political news. However, I feel seeing the news and expressing outrage privately or on social media have become low-effort excuses for not doing things that can actu…
The average citizen (not organizing protests and keeping away from fruitless online outrage) can probably catch up with all relevant political news in 1-2 hours/month of concentrated effort. I've started doing just that and it has had great impact on my mental health. I don't feel any less prepared to make an impact when the time comes (elections, sporadic talks with friends and family). Should I be more engaged? Sur…
Haven't watched the news in at least 5 years. Actually I haven't watched TV in the last 5 years even. So I don't have ads bombarding me, or fear and propaganda coming in every day. Highly recommended. You have one life. Make sure it counts as a happy one.
How do you stay up to day? Ideally Id like a weekly review or something where I can spend 30min. I recongnise it would be beneficial to give up news, but I need to know a bit about whats going on to be social.
I've found that I don't, nearly as much as I would have thought.
If people really want to talk about a current event, you can usually get a lot of mileage out of asking them to explain what's going on.
"oh yeah? I didn't hear about that, what happened?"
people like getting to be the expert, they usually don't care about our hot take nearly as much as we like to imagine them caring
Of course you need to read the news. Select your news sources carefully and limit or eliminate your exposure to social media discussions of the news. I understand the sentiment that news can make you depressed, but reading the news can also spur people to act positively in a multitude of ways. When a natural disaster strikes and the news is filled with stories of anguish and despair in the aftermath, people donate to…
It's not just news. I cut out mainstream media several years ago, and noted a definite improvement in my psychological well-being. As of the end of last year, I stopped engaging in mainstream social media. So much better. I still keep a Facebook account for Messenger and Events, but don't post, read timelines, or participate. Not only do I have more time to read books and learn new things -- made pita bread from scra…