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If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

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Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#71

Post by kamaal »

throw0101a wrote: post #5

My "problem" is more with Youtube: lots of quality (to me) content that I find educational (history, science) and entertaining.

>>lots of quality (to me) content that I find educational (history, science) and entertaining.

This seems to be a tug of war- that is- information vs distraction

I remember in the 1990s India it was quite common to view kids from homes that had TV/Cable TV as kids who were bad at academics, and distracted without focus.

OTOH, as time passed people realised those kids had better english speaking skills, vocabulary and general awareness of the world. So extreme focus didn't quite work out as well as people though it would.

In the modern context I know quite a few people with laser sharp productivity and get lots of work done. But here's what 'wasting' time on Twitter has led me down rabbit holes in the Stock market that has opened up newer earning opportunities. So its not as simple as saying social media is distracting.

Extreme focus does work when your work is individually measured and judged. And the pay off is immense. Other wise you are better off doing something to keep the wheels spinning while finding more things that can be rewarding.

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#72

Post by theshrike79 »

Aromasin wrote: post #39
ekjhgkejhgk wrote: post #11

To me, yes. Well, I've never been on "social media", but e.g. at night before bed some times I scroll on HN for a long time before falling asleep (30min-1hr). If I commit myself not to, I read instead. The thing we should be talking about is forms of entertainment, and social media is just one type of entertainment. We should be discussing pros and cons of different forms of entertainment. Instead the discussion is "…

My progression was something like: Video Games > Social Media > YouTube > TV > Reading I had to cut quite a few things out of my life before I defaulted to books, because all of the prior activities tapped into my brains inherent desire for stimulating, low effort consumption. Reading is quite often hard, boring, or difficult, but generally more rewarding in the end. I retain more useful information, explicitly becau…

What you read is also a big thing. There's no need to read that new pseudointellectual tome everyone is talking that could've been a blog post. It's a boring slog to read anyway.

You can just grab a book where a space-wizard stops an orbital bombardment with his willpower[0]. Or one that's Top Gun but Grimdark WH40k[1]. Whatever is fun for you specifically. Books can be fun, they don't need to have any "value" past entertainment.

And get an ebook reader. An actual one with an e-ink screen. It moves the barrier from going "I'm bored" to "I'm reading" to near zero. Just open the smart cover and the book is exactly where you left it. And if the book is 15 or 1500 pages, it weighs the same.

[0] https://www.goodreads.com/series/124536-starship-s-mage

[1] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58912.Double_Eagle

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#73

Post by theshrike79 »

5555624 wrote: post #46
dgb23 wrote: post #17

This might sound stupid or obvious to some, but I found a way to read books more frequently: Read multiple books at once. For some reason, I read more often and am more motivated when I can switch between books. When I tried to focus on just one, I always got the feeling that I sort of have to read it and that turned me off. Another issue is that I read very slowly and think a lot when reading books, but that's appar…

Since becoming disabled and not driving anymore, I use an app on my phone to read ebooks, rather than carry a book. I'm always reading two or three at a time; so, I can decide which to read depending on the time I am waiting (for a ride, for an appointment, etc.).

Get an actual e-ink reader like Kobo or Kindle, they're SO much better for your eyes than phone screens.

They also literally can't do anything but show you books, no notifications or anything. Just you and the book.

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#74

Post by tillcarlos »

patates wrote: post #8

I quit social media many years ago and to answer the question: No, I just watch Youtube. If I could stop watching Youtube, I'm totally sure I'd finally be able to read books again /s The problem is the award delay. In Youtube, I get my "award" in 10 minutes max. Starting to enjoy a book requires 1-2 hours investment, and the award can be anything between 1 and 10 in a scale of 10 (while median being more like 7), and…

The only thing I need to stick to a good sci-fi book is: - have it on my kindle - actually have read a bit. a page is enough. - phone out of the bedroom (the hardest)

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#75

Post by ekjhgkejhgk »

theshrike79 wrote: post #68
ekjhgkejhgk wrote: post #11

To me, yes. Well, I've never been on "social media", but e.g. at night before bed some times I scroll on HN for a long time before falling asleep (30min-1hr). If I commit myself not to, I read instead. The thing we should be talking about is forms of entertainment, and social media is just one type of entertainment. We should be discussing pros and cons of different forms of entertainment. Instead the discussion is "…

I think the issue with "social media" is that it doesn't end. If your entertainment is a movie or a book, there's definite progress to it. You can finish a movie in one or two sitting, the book has a beginning and an end (unless it's by GRRM or Rothfuss...) Even TV shows end, no matter what kind of reality dreck they are, giving you a natural point for slapping your knees, getting up and saying "yep, that's it" and m…

Phew. It's not every day that I see a genuinely new point. I hadn't considered that, thank you. Other things that don't end: some computer games (but some computer games do), tinkering with computers (but some thing you do with computers do have a definite end), tinkering with the physical world.

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#76

Post by broken-kebab »

patates wrote: post #8

I quit social media many years ago and to answer the question: No, I just watch Youtube. If I could stop watching Youtube, I'm totally sure I'd finally be able to read books again /s The problem is the award delay. In Youtube, I get my "award" in 10 minutes max. Starting to enjoy a book requires 1-2 hours investment, and the award can be anything between 1 and 10 in a scale of 10 (while median being more like 7), and…

Maybe you didn't quit really. "Social media" is a rather misleading term now. With TikTok success, almost all of them bet on short video format. So really Youtube is in the same group as Instagram, FB, TikTok, and Xwitter.

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#79

Post by shinycode »

theshrike79 wrote: post #73
5555624 wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since becoming disabled and not driving anymore, I use an app on my phone to read ebooks, rather than carry a book. I'm always reading two or three at a time; so, I can decide which to read depending on the time I am waiting (for a ride, for an appointment, etc.).

Get an actual e-ink reader like Kobo or Kindle, they're SO much better for your eyes than phone screens. They also literally can't do anything but show you books, no notifications or anything. Just you and the book.

I thought it was the same thing until I tried it myself, especially in dark rooms. Having the light from my phone hurt my eyes after reading with an ereader. It’s a really huge difference

Re: If You Quit Social Media, Will You Read More Books?

#80

Post by theshrike79 »

ekjhgkejhgk wrote: post #75
theshrike79 wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the issue with "social media" is that it doesn't end. If your entertainment is a movie or a book, there's definite progress to it. You can finish a movie in one or two sitting, the book has a beginning and an end (unless it's by GRRM or Rothfuss...) Even TV shows end, no matter what kind of reality dreck they are, giving you a natural point for slapping your knees, getting up and saying "yep, that's it" and m…

Phew. It's not every day that I see a genuinely new point. I hadn't considered that, thank you. Other things that don't end: some computer games (but some computer games do), tinkering with computers (but some thing you do with computers do have a definite end), tinkering with the physical world.

Re: Games

I literally can't play stuff like Civilization and the like. There's no natural point to stop, so I just keep playing until the sun comes up. "One more turn"

Young me was this close to getting fired due to Civ3 being released, I started dozing off at work and playing all evening and night :D

In other games there's usually a save point, you hit a difficult boss, or the round ends in multiplayer games - those give a natural point to stop playing.

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