I wouldn't even call myself an amateur photographer, I've never really had the obsessive "Move out of the way!" or "Hold that thread of conversation, let me take this shot" thoughts that the article describes. I don't take my photos that seriously. Still, I've gotten more into it as a light hobby in the last few years. The thing that really changed my perspective was using a friend's fancy Canon camera and nice lenses. (I later got my own somewhat fancy camera but apart from a small 50mm I still bum off his nice lenses.) What I noticed is that I sometimes can cultivate memories
more if I have a goal to take some photos at some place in addition to just walking around. And of course going through them much later lets me remember and reminisce a lot more than otherwise. With nicer lenses taking photos kind of does have to be a goal, too, I largely agree with the article about not doing two things at once. Only with my little 50mm can I manage to stuff the camera into a hoodie pocket for opportunistic snaps, otherwise it's a whole backpack and shoulder strap affair. Especially with the nice high zoom lenses, but with those it's quite nice how in many instances I can see details well beyond what I can make out with my own eyes. Or with fast action, I'll capture things in a spray-and-pray burst that are fun to look back on and I didn't notice happen in front of me. (And not just because of focusing more on the photo taking than the scene -- have someone else take photos next to you instead and compare. I find the same phenomenon, moments that passed by too quickly for me to really register and remember on my own, but the camera caught them.)
The skill aspect of photography is also kind of fun, like if you have time or repetition to fiddle with shutter speed and aperture/depth of field and lighting compensation and so on, trying to get something you like yourself despite a challenging environment adds a bit of spice. (Idol concerts in Japan are a pretty fun challenge.) And honestly some places or moments aren't the most exciting on their own, without a camera I'd pass through more quickly, but with a camera I might slow down and take my time more. Like a little nature park with colorful trees is nice and relaxing on its own even if not particularly exciting, but if I decide to bring a camera along, I'm probably going to spend more time there and in the end enjoy things a little bit more. Then there are places like museums or zoos or aquariums, which are also all fine on their own and I've probably gone through more without taking photos than with. But if an animal is just chilling there, without a camera I might just look at it for a bit and move on, but with a camera I might instead spend more time. More time also ups the odds for something surprising to happen.
When it comes to cellphone camera shots, I continue to rarely take them. My first phone wasn't even until 2013, when I was ~halfway done with college.