Interesting topic but is this not just an advert for this guys book?
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On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
61–70 of 91 posts
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#62The article is quite optimistic about peoples' abilities to transform their newfound boredom into something creative, but as in the example with books, this digital minimalist "healthy" boredom also has its prerequisites to make it work. By likening social media use to addiction, only the negative effects are highlighted. For example, the waiting line in the supermarket used to be full of aggression, it has become mu…
I have found that novel novelty is the key to feeling good.
Too much novelty too often becomes hard to cope with, too little is too drab.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#63Earlier quoted context omitted.
> But I feel sorry to see them suffer while they might have not if they were able to use smartphone for entertainment. Well, they also might have not if they have gotten a hobby, learned to read books, and so on. Why feel sorry that they're not accustomed with one of the worse options? And one that everybody and their dog seems to want to cut down these days?
Smartphone is not one of the worse options. It's one of the best options. Thanks to it I'm just discusing ideas with you while lying in a garden. Which is at the moment my preferred way of wasting my time. No other tool would allow me to waste my time this way. If I couldn't do it I'd read fantasy book I got for my recent birthday but it wouldn't be nearly as intelectually stimulating.
>It's one of the best options. Thanks to it I'm just discusing ideas with you while lying in a garden.
Which seems like a totally detrimental use of one's time!
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#64Earlier quoted context omitted.
True boredom seems to be something that we learn over the years. Watching my 3y old daughter she never seems to get bored. If shes not entertained and realizes she won't get entertained anytime soon she starts singing (improving songs with her own text ;), telling herself stories that evolve while shes talking, exploring things that are around her. She grabs everyday things and looks what she is able to do with them…
> exploring things that are around her. That works for first few years of life. > She does that to not be bored. Exactly. But at age 7 or 9 she'll have most of the things figured out and when you place hear in novelty lacking, restricted environment like at or near the table adults are eating and talking about same things seemingly forever you'll see her suffer. I hope you'll notice and help her find entertainment.
I sometimes go on 8 hour car rides and don't require entertainment. Maybe it's just my personality, but the key is to foster interests that can live in your head. It's possible to spend 8 hours thinking about musical temperament, or lapsteel tunings, or word etymology, or writing song lyrics. Boredom just means you are used to low-effort stimuli being readily available.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#65Digital Minimalism was probably my least favorite Cal Newport book, not for the subject matter but because of the reliance on third party stories. I like to hear peoples’ stories first hand. Even though I ended up being a partially failed case for using this book, I still got value from it. I mostly did the thirty day digital detox but ended up going back almost to my old routine. The difference is that I have perhap…
Having read a couple of Newport's books, I've discovered how he manages to teach university classes, conduct academic research AND write these general-audience books. No, it's not "having a 6PM work shutdown schedule" as he writes (although it's not a bad idea for some work styles): His formula is to take 50 paperback-size pages worth of good material from his blog posts, and then assemble 250 additional pages of flu…
I don't agree. I've not read the new one yet, but So Good They Can't Ignore You was brilliant.
The 'fluff' was all the examples, and unlike many other writers (Ryan Holiday and Robert Greene are particularly bad for this) he goes in-depth in his examples and references them going forward too. They're well thought out examples and not throw away anecdotes. Sure you could get the basic content from his blog but I genuinely think the books are better as they highlight the theory through good use cases. I also enjoy his deliberately provocative style, it's like a toned down MMM. That might not be for everyone but I find it entertaining.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#66If you want to distract yourself while not doing anything you will find a way to do it. Before smart phones there were computers and video games. Before that there was television. Before that there was printed fiction of many sorts, most of it of no personal or social value at all. It is good to strive to do worthwhile things. The worthless things you do to fill your time are not preventing you from doing anything el…
Good point. I would say that modern day distractions have an extra oomph however. I've never developed an addiction to books, crossword puzzles, or television whereas I've come to the point where I can't have a healthy relationship with video games.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#67I am a good dancer, well only Lindy and East coast swing. Not much weight for me to lose. I have a black belt in Kenpo. But I am also a systems administrator, enjoy my Switch, and generally spend at least a few hours looking at a screen each day, more than 12 hours on a work day. So I fail to see the correlation... Seems like less about tech minimalism being the key and more, learning how to have self control. I am n…
I think the value of his work is in helping folk become aware of how much time they waste. You sound like you have a good grip on that already, so probably aren't the target audience.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
> exploring things that are around her. That works for first few years of life. > She does that to not be bored. Exactly. But at age 7 or 9 she'll have most of the things figured out and when you place hear in novelty lacking, restricted environment like at or near the table adults are eating and talking about same things seemingly forever you'll see her suffer. I hope you'll notice and help her find entertainment.
I sometimes go on 8 hour car rides and don't require entertainment. Maybe it's just my personality, but the key is to foster interests that can live in your head. It's possible to spend 8 hours thinking about musical temperament, or lapsteel tunings, or word etymology, or writing song lyrics. Boredom just means you are used to low-effort stimuli being readily available.
I got asked on a 2.5 hour flight recently why I wasn't reading or looking at my phone/laptop. I like just zoning out and thinking about things. It's almost meditative, and being on a plane without internet access gives me a good reason not to be staring a screen for a change.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#69I read Digital Minimalism back in February, and did a cleanse in March per his recommendations. One thing I noticed... I normally keep track of books I've read. I jumped from reading two books a month to reading six. Was I seriously reading four books a month in bullshit screen scrolling and arguing with people who are wrong on the Internet? Apparently.
I still use the phone as distraction, but now I do it with the Kindle app. I keep my phone Kindle loaded with books I can read in short bursts without extended concentration (currently about to finish the financial planning book I Will Teach You to Be Rich, by Ramit Sethi), and carry my regular Kindle around for books that require more engagement.
I already avoided video games; I've done so for years, because I recognized that I have an addiction problem. When it comes to videogames, I'm like an alcoholic that doesn't drink for fear of the consequences. What I didn't realize is how carefully crafted the addictions of Facebook and Twitter are, how they sucked me in worse than video games ever did.
I have a long ways to go to fully engage with the world again, but I'm getting better.
Re: On the Pleasures and Sorrows of Life Without Screens
#70Whatever you want to call it, I'm all for digital minimalism these days.
I find modern computing to be filled with stress and anxiety. Computers, at one time, used to sit idle until used. Using a computer was to use a tool to help you get some task done that was previously menial and boring. These days as soon as I sit down at a computer I start getting messages, advertisements, pleas, bargains, warnings, requests... it seems like it never ends. I sit down to get some work done and an hour later I've finally managed to get enough of the messages down and distractions over with that I've nearly forgotten what it was I intended to do in the first place.
And this experience has been following me in my pocket for more than a decade. Since 2008 or so it has been getting louder, more obnoxious, and demanding. Offers for new phones and data plans when I'm trying to bathe my kids vibrate in my pocket waiting to be heard. Advertisements tailored to my interests and desires follow me everywhere. Messages from people trying to contact me whenever the whim comes to them. There is little room for silence in my days anymore.
I have a dream inspired by the folks behind http://screenl.es/ -- a version of computing where there screens are not the primary interface for computing. One that is diverse, invisible, and intentional. I'd like a version of computing that is controlled by me and bends around my needs and not the needs of product designers, advertisers, and whims of others.
Until I can realize that dream or someone else gets it done I think I'm going to continue my trend of cutting out as much technology from my life as possible. I need more silence, solitude, and intentional, meaningful interactions. I don't want a deluge of social opinion on every happening in the world aimed right at my brain.