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My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

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Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#161

Post by thenerdhead »

TechBro8615 wrote: post #98
thenerdhead wrote: post #2

I had a similar awakening moment about 5 years ago. Felt like I wasted my 20s on consuming content and only playing video games outside of work. I had a similar journey. I’m even writing a book on it. I have found that the one thing that has helped bring enlightenment to this problem is reading books and thinking each day on how to apply them or just simply observing those around me instead of being glued on a device…

> outside of work Why did you feel this pressure to meet some self-defined obligation outside of work? Were you missing something in the work itself that you felt you had to recover in the time outside of it? In my experience, if I feel the value of my work output itself is meaningful, then I don’t need to worry about what I’m doing outside of it. If you start a business or work for yourself, then your career goals “…

I don’t quite understand your comment, but my comment was just talking about how empty I found myself just stuck in a loop of attention grabbing activities outside of work.

I believe all lives require work, but not all lives are fulfilled by certain kinds of work. Hitting OKRs or KPIs at work can be satisfying but ultimately mean nothing when you approach retirement age/wealth.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#162

Post by thenerdhead »

nonrandomstring wrote: post #115
thenerdhead wrote: post #2

I had a similar awakening moment about 5 years ago. Felt like I wasted my 20s on consuming content and only playing video games outside of work. I had a similar journey. I’m even writing a book on it. I have found that the one thing that has helped bring enlightenment to this problem is reading books and thinking each day on how to apply them or just simply observing those around me instead of being glued on a device…

> I had a similar journey. I’m even writing a book on it. I'd be interested to hear more. Do ping me if you have time. > While there’s a number of titles talking about internet or tech addiction, all we're doing is pointing out a problem rather than taking actual steps to improve our character to rid ourselves of these things to begin with. This problem is only going to get harder for the individual, and it’s up to e…

I love the metaphor. I especially love using the Michael Pollan quote of “If it’s a plant eat it, if it’s made in a plant, don’t” or similar. I think that can be applied to our use of technology and especially content/digital consumption.

I’ll have to send you an email when I get back from vacation. Thanks for the kindness.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#163

Post by bigmealbigmeal »

Waterluvian wrote: post #116

I’m developing a personal opinion that being on a phone all the time is like being high all the time. Eventually you look back and see thousands of hours you could have spent building something or learning an instrument or whatnot. Instead you just kinda pissed it away on gossip and getting anxious about events you have no control of. My most productive time on this phone is when I’m learning new stuff here on HN. Bu…

Perhaps just to shatter the illusion that one will instantly become an enlightened productive person, this is what I did when I got rid of screens and books[^]:

  * Sat around philosophising about what to do with my life
  * Walked around philosophising about what to do with my life
  * Walked around discovering abandoned places in the city
  * Played instruments (which I already did when I had screens)
That's about it. It's not a bad way to live, but I didn't get any great projects done, or create anything, or build anything.

Instead, I've made the most progress in life by setting myself up with social environments that force me to get things done. Joining bands and sketch comedy groups has essentially peer pressured me into writing and producing a shitload of songs and screenplays. I've played more times live than I can count.

I achieved not through ridding myself of the drug of the internet, but by supplementing it with the drug of social belonging.

Hypothetically, most of our motivation for creating or building things comes from wanting to be valuable to our tribe. If we have weak social ties, or our tribe doesn't really value what we want to do, then motivation will be very difficult to find. (I think some people are exceptions to this, where they create endlessly in their splendid isolation, but it may be worth being honest and asking whether you are one of these exceptions, or whether you fit the rule like most of us.)

[^]: Failing to get rid of books meant I just sat around reading books all day

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#164

Post by baby »

xerox13ster wrote: post #4

I did a digital detox in July of 2020, I had become overwhelmed with Discord and Reddit moderation and trying to Keep Up. I burned out hard. I turned off all electronics for a month and uninstalled the apps and restricted my phone use to calls and responding to 3 close friend's texts at a set time each day--I didn't keep it on me at all. No video games, no TV, no watch or music streaming. I had my library of local mu…

I've been working on an app (for myself, but I guess I'll share it if it ends up working for me) that pretty much asks me every two weeks to fill two lists: 1) things in my life that I want to accomplish (in the next two weeks) and 2) things that I want to do more of, or less of. Every two weeks it asks me to summarize how I did for every item I had listed, and if I want to keep/remove/add more to list 1, and what I want my new list 2 to be.

The idea is to make it a browser plugin, that forces me to fill that form every two weeks by making every new tab that form until I fill it.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#165

Post by baby »

fassssst wrote: post #155
rubicon33 wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know of someone who has undergone a similar detox. From what I've heard it's been somewhat life changing (in a positive way). I don't necessarily think it's lead to more _material_ success, but they seem happier and more positive generally. I'm trying to do a light version of this. I'm not sure I can ever completely give up the internet and video games. They're a big source of enjoyment for me. How much of that enj…

I replaced video games with making music. Scratches the same itch and is much more rewarding.

Interestingly I've been trying to reintroduce video games in my life, in moderation, because video games are fucking great and I'm sad that I'm not playing anymore.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#166

Post by baby »

codemonkey-zeta wrote: post #59

> When I pulled up at a stoplight waiting for the light to change, I would instinctively reached for my phone (mounted on my dash) to check my email (personal + work), check ESPN, look up something on Amazon, etc. While pumping gas in the car, I’d whip out my phone while waiting. Stuck in line somewhere? Time for my phone. Waiting in an elevator? The phone. Riding the train? The phone. Going to the bathroom? Make sur…

> The crazy part is, not one single person I know thinks of it as a bad thing

That's what gets me the most. We all have an insane addiction, yet nobody seems to be talking about it. It's completely socially accepted.

Interestingly, a lot of weird things are totally socially accepted. Religion, alcohol, coffee, etc. (I'm a sinner who drinks but still, it's weird)

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#167

Post by landemva »

kzrdude wrote: post #123
oifjsidjf wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never developed phone addiction in this way because I always had mobile data disabled. I only enable mobile data when I need to sync calendars. That being said: on PC and too often check hacker news and similar sites: I'm trying out Krishnamurti's "observation": Can you catch yourself the VERY MOMENT you wish to go to some website (NOT after you already did: but when you wish to go: what kind of pressure/frustratio…

I'm wanting to do a phone & computer distraction free day per week. I just haven't gotten started.. of course. Maybe disabling data on the phone will be a good way to do it! (I still need to keep it around at work hours for calls.)

A friend of mine just got a new model candybar phone. Calls and texts (w/o pictures).

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#168

Post by dieselgate »

fassssst wrote: post #155
rubicon33 wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know of someone who has undergone a similar detox. From what I've heard it's been somewhat life changing (in a positive way). I don't necessarily think it's lead to more _material_ success, but they seem happier and more positive generally. I'm trying to do a light version of this. I'm not sure I can ever completely give up the internet and video games. They're a big source of enjoyment for me. How much of that enj…

I replaced video games with making music. Scratches the same itch and is much more rewarding.

I agree with making music scratching the same itch. Honestly working as a remote dev sometimes feels like playing a video game.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#169

Post by fsiefken »

rubicon33 wrote: post #95
xerox13ster wrote: post #4

I did a digital detox in July of 2020, I had become overwhelmed with Discord and Reddit moderation and trying to Keep Up. I burned out hard. I turned off all electronics for a month and uninstalled the apps and restricted my phone use to calls and responding to 3 close friend's texts at a set time each day--I didn't keep it on me at all. No video games, no TV, no watch or music streaming. I had my library of local mu…

I know of someone who has undergone a similar detox. From what I've heard it's been somewhat life changing (in a positive way). I don't necessarily think it's lead to more _material_ success, but they seem happier and more positive generally. I'm trying to do a light version of this. I'm not sure I can ever completely give up the internet and video games. They're a big source of enjoyment for me. How much of that enj…

Due to RSI long ago I replaced video games with board games. I do play some video games now on occasion, for example interactive fiction and VR dance games and The Forest VR.

Re: My awakening moment about how smartphones fragment our attention span

#170

Post by bigmealbigmeal »

drewcoo wrote: post #45

Tom Johnson appears to be the poster child for ADHD. He's been so busy noticing everything else that he didn't bother to pay attention to the hugely disruptive distraction everyone's been talking about for over a decade now. And then he blames his inability to focus on some externality instead of realizing it's his condition.

I would argue that people with ADHD noticed this problem before anyone else, simply because they were the first to suffer from it.
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