Digital Minimalism
Cal Newport is a Computer Science Professor at Georgetown university
Part 1: Foundations
Chapter 1: A lopsided arms race
After 2016, there were many questions raised about the role of technology on well-being, on more than just productivity. People were using technology more than they wanted to. Technology started taking away people’s autonomy. The people who are glued to their phones are not weak willed. When we think how we got to a place where we use tech so much, it's very deliberate. It was created by the social media companies. When Facebook was getting ready for its IPO, it had to get its revenues up. The like button became the transformational feature. They re-engineered their feed to be less about what you and your friends were posting and more about social rewards triggering you to check it all the time. Every time you logged in, you got a stream of cumulative social approval indicators. Instead of being a fun thing, it became a drug. Once we got trained for it, we got used to it.
After 2016, there were many questions raised about the role of technology on well-being, on more than just productivity. People were using technology more than they wanted to. Technology started taking away people’s autonomy. The people who are glued to their phones are not weak willed. When we think how we got to a place where we use tech so much, it's very deliberate. It was created by the social media companies. When Facebook was getting ready for its IPO, it had to get its revenues up. The like button became the transformational feature. They re-engineered their feed to be less about what you and your friends were posting and more about social rewards triggering you to check it all the time. Every time you logged in, you got a stream of cumulative social approval indicators. Instead of being a fun thing, it became a drug. Once we got trained for it, we got used to it.
When Facebook emerged it was the emergence of Web 2.0. Facebook is like a social media slot machine, which feeds you information which has been statistically proven to garner engagement.
As social animals , our brain is wired to still value social connections in the real world. Social media tries to emulate that but be more efficient at it by removing friction with things like,tagging people in pictures, wishing someone happy birthday etc. Using social media for being social gives an illusion of social connection but doesn’t really satisfy our brains of meaningful social connections. Instead, it does more harm by giving us an illusion of social connection, letting us off the hook, because of which we don’t socialize in the analog world.
What makes social media addicting is intermittent positive reinforcement, that is you’ll get the pleasure of likes etc. in an unpredictable way. Also, our desire for social approval makes it addicting.
“The tycoons of social media have to stop pretending that they’re friendly nerd gods building a better world and admit they’re just tobacco farmers in T-shirts selling an addictive product to children. Because, let’s face it, checking your “likes” is the new smoking.” – Bill Maher
Chapter 2: Digital minimalism
There are many fads in the market, like turn off notifications, turn your screen grayscale, don’t use your phone for one day every week, but they are not effective in the long run.
There are many fads in the market, like turn off notifications, turn your screen grayscale, don’t use your phone for one day every week, but they are not effective in the long run.
People who are more happy with their use of tech were doing something more drastic, they had a philosophy towards using tech, why they are using it etc.
Just like the rise of hyper-palatable food in the 50s led to a rise in obesity, we’re facing a similar crisis in attention spans because of technology. The super healthy people have a philosophy on food, like paleo, only eating when the sun’s out etc. to counter the rise of hyper palatable foods, similarly we need a philosophy with the use of technology.
This philosophy for technology is called Digital Minimalism. Minimalism is an ancient philosophy. Three principles of Digital Minimalism:
1. Clutter is costly: You should identify a small number of tools that give a large amount of benefit, instead of spreading your time and attention across a larger number of things. So if a tech does not provide you a substantial value to your life, you do not use it, because the cost of clutter counteracts the small positive benefits you might have been receiving from certain tools.
2. Optimization is important: Once you’ve identified the tool, think about how exactly you will use that tool, i.e. what value you are trying to derive from it. If you don’t do that, you might end up using it more than you intended.
3. Intentionality is satisfying: Satisfaction comes from being committed towards being intentional towards use of certain tools, instead of using something just because it’s there.
This philosophy for technology is called Digital Minimalism. Minimalism is an ancient philosophy. Three principles of Digital Minimalism:
1. Clutter is costly: You should identify a small number of tools that give a large amount of benefit, instead of spreading your time and attention across a larger number of things. So if a tech does not provide you a substantial value to your life, you do not use it, because the cost of clutter counteracts the small positive benefits you might have been receiving from certain tools.
2. Optimization is important: Once you’ve identified the tool, think about how exactly you will use that tool, i.e. what value you are trying to derive from it. If you don’t do that, you might end up using it more than you intended.
3. Intentionality is satisfying: Satisfaction comes from being committed towards being intentional towards use of certain tools, instead of using something just because it’s there.
Chapter 3: Digital Declutter
A rapid declutter is more effective to making the habit/ lifestyle change stick.
There are 3 steps in the digital declutter process and it happens over 30 days.
Step 1: Define your technology rules: Define all the ‘optional’ Web 2.0 type technologies, like social media, streaming etc. Sometimes, you might have to use them, but in such cases, set up rules around them.
Step 2: Take a 30 day break: Don’t use the tech and tools you defined in step 1 for 30 days. As the days pass by, you’ll realize that the detox gets easier. Also, you can re-discover things you can do to fill the time that you now have as you’re using less of this technology, like playing guitar, reading books etc.
Step 3: Come back to the tools that are really valuable to you. For moderately useful tech, you put some boundaries around it. List the banned tech and the controlled tech (the one with rules) and showcase it somewhere where you can see it regularly.
Step 2: Take a 30 day break: Don’t use the tech and tools you defined in step 1 for 30 days. As the days pass by, you’ll realize that the detox gets easier. Also, you can re-discover things you can do to fill the time that you now have as you’re using less of this technology, like playing guitar, reading books etc.
Step 3: Come back to the tools that are really valuable to you. For moderately useful tech, you put some boundaries around it. List the banned tech and the controlled tech (the one with rules) and showcase it somewhere where you can see it regularly.
Part 2: Practices
Chapter 4: Spend Time Alone
Solitude is about what’s happening inside your mind, and not what is happening around you or inside someone else’s mind. Try not to gather information and instead focus on your own thoughts. In the culture created by new technologies, spending time with your thoughts is discouraged. There are 3 clear benefits of solitude: new ideas, understanding of self and closeness to others.
This way, when you do engage in social interactions, you value them more and are able to derive more value from them.
This way, when you do engage in social interactions, you value them more and are able to derive more value from them.
For the first time in human history, solitude has disappeared, as human beings spend on an average more than 4 hours glued to their smartphones everyday.
Teenagers used social media for more than 9 hours everyday and a sharp correlation was found between social media use and prevalence of anxiety and depression, which has been proven to have been caused by social media consumption. When you take away solitude, it leads to anxiety and depression.
Leave your phone at home: Spend some time without your phone everyday. Also, convince yourself that it’s completely reasonable to leave your phone at home when you go out sometimes.
Take long walks: Walking is conducive to thinking and was practiced by many thinkers. Go for long walks alone, and also without your phone. If you do take your phone, do not use it. Most difficult part about this is finding time for it regularly.
Take long walks: Walking is conducive to thinking and was practiced by many thinkers. Go for long walks alone, and also without your phone. If you do take your phone, do not use it. Most difficult part about this is finding time for it regularly.
Write letters to yourself: Writing forces you to think. When you write, you are forced to organize your jumbled up thoughts and ideas and come up with something coherent. Writing helps you come up with new ideas, gain a surge of inspiration, get a fresh perspective on a problem you’re struggling with etc. It's the act of writing itself that provides you the main benefit, though you also refer back to your journals time to time.
Chapter 5: Don’t click ‘Like’
Social media Paradox: If you receive long targeted composed information (e.g. comment) from someone you know well, you feel better. Whereas, if you receive long targeted text messages from someone you didn’t know, it does not help you at all. Research has shown that the more a person uses social media, the lonelier they are in real life.
Social media Paradox: If you receive long targeted composed information (e.g. comment) from someone you know well, you feel better. Whereas, if you receive long targeted text messages from someone you didn’t know, it does not help you at all. Research has shown that the more a person uses social media, the lonelier they are in real life.
Reclaiming Conversation: MIT professor Sherry Turkle, in her book Reclaiming Conversation says that the analog ‘conversation’ is high bandwidth, slow, richer than the superficial ‘connection’, which is low bandwidth and defines our online social lives. Texting and non-interactive connection does not count as conversation. If you adopt this, you’ll be losing touch with some people, but that will be more than compensated by the richness in conversations you’ll have with a smaller number of people.
Don’t click Like: Don’t engage with content on social media at all. Don’t click like or comment on posts, photos etc. as that gives you an illusion of conversation. Instead, carve out time for analog conversations.
Consolidate texting: By default, keep your phone on focus mode/ do not disturb mode. Set up certain times of the day for texting. If your friends and family can start meaningless pseudo conversations with you anytime they want, they might become complacent about your relationship. Stopping texting can actually strengthen your relationship.
Hold Conversation Office hours: Set up specific times every week when you’re available for conversations with friends and family you care about. Keep these times free and notify your friends and family about them. If they try to reach out during work hours etc. politely redirect them to these times. The conversations could be in person or on the phone.
Hold Conversation Office hours: Set up specific times every week when you’re available for conversations with friends and family you care about. Keep these times free and notify your friends and family about them. If they try to reach out during work hours etc. politely redirect them to these times. The conversations could be in person or on the phone.
Chapter 6: Reclaim leisure
Contemplation is an “activity that is appreciated for its own sake” – Aristotle
While all other body parts may get tired with work, the brain does not get tired, it just needs change. Since a lot of people fail to engage in high quality leisure, they try to fill it up with social media etc.
Lesson 1: Prioritize demanding activity over passive consumption
Young financially independent people, who have a lot of leisure time don’t just while it away playing video games or watching Netflix. Instead they do projects and activities which require active problem solving.
Lesson 2: Use skills to produce valuable things in the physical world.
Craft, where you apply skills to make something valuable, is a great form of high quality leisure. Using your hands helps you think, not the other way round.
While all other body parts may get tired with work, the brain does not get tired, it just needs change. Since a lot of people fail to engage in high quality leisure, they try to fill it up with social media etc.
Lesson 1: Prioritize demanding activity over passive consumption
Young financially independent people, who have a lot of leisure time don’t just while it away playing video games or watching Netflix. Instead they do projects and activities which require active problem solving.
Lesson 2: Use skills to produce valuable things in the physical world.
Craft, where you apply skills to make something valuable, is a great form of high quality leisure. Using your hands helps you think, not the other way round.
Lesson 3: Seek activities that require real-world structured social interactions
When we play games, the social rules are more intense than what is allowed in society generally. Games and sports allow supercharged socializing–interactions. This includes board games, recreational sports leagues, volunteer activities etc.
When we play games, the social rules are more intense than what is allowed in society generally. Games and sports allow supercharged socializing–interactions. This includes board games, recreational sports leagues, volunteer activities etc.
These activities can be fuelled by the internet as they help us connect with like-minded communities. Using technology intentionally is better than not using at all or using it discriminately.
Practice: Fix or build something every week.
Take up a woodworking project, fix a broken household equipment, repair or maintain your car, learn a new instrument
Take up a woodworking project, fix a broken household equipment, repair or maintain your car, learn a new instrument
Practice: Schedule low quality leisure
You don’t need to dedicate a large amount of time to low quality leisure. Research has shown that most people derive most of their value from social media by just 20-40 minutes of weekly usage.
Practice: Join a group that regularly meets in person
You don’t need to dedicate a large amount of time to low quality leisure. Research has shown that most people derive most of their value from social media by just 20-40 minutes of weekly usage.
Practice: Join a group that regularly meets in person
Practice: Follow leisure plans.
Preplan your high quality leisure activities. These plans could be seasonal (quarterly) and weekly. Have specific and measurable objectives associated with these plans and adopt habits which help you achieve those objectives.
Preplan your high quality leisure activities. These plans could be seasonal (quarterly) and weekly. Have specific and measurable objectives associated with these plans and adopt habits which help you achieve those objectives.
Planning does not take away the fun of these activities associated with spontaneity, instead it makes them more fun. Once someone becomes more intentional about leisure in their life, they start finding more opportunities for it in their life.
Chapter 7: Join the attention resistance
Catching the attention span of users is significantly more valuable today than petroleum.
The Attention Resistance Movement includes people who know what they need from social media. They go in, quickly derive all the value they need to derive and leave before they get hooked into the attention grabbing mechanisms of these social media sites.
Catching the attention span of users is significantly more valuable today than petroleum.
The Attention Resistance Movement includes people who know what they need from social media. They go in, quickly derive all the value they need to derive and leave before they get hooked into the attention grabbing mechanisms of these social media sites.
Practice: Delete Social Media from your phones
Since phones are always available to you, social media apps pose a significantly greater threat to you on mobile, than they do on a computer. Hence, it’s best to never use them on mobile.
Practice: Turn your devices into single purpose computers.
Just because you can do multiple things on a computer at the same time, doesn’t mean that you should, because you can only focus on one thing at a time. Block all attention economy services from your computer by default and use them only during the times when you’re allowed to use them as per your schedule for low quality leisure.
Just because you can do multiple things on a computer at the same time, doesn’t mean that you should, because you can only focus on one thing at a time. Block all attention economy services from your computer by default and use them only during the times when you’re allowed to use them as per your schedule for low quality leisure.
Practice: Use social media like a professional
To a social media pro, the idea of endlessly surfing your feed in search of entertainment is a trap. Put your social media work on a schedule too and be intentional in your use.
Practice: embrace slow media
To a social media pro, the idea of endlessly surfing your feed in search of entertainment is a trap. Put your social media work on a schedule too and be intentional in your use.
Practice: embrace slow media
Instead of jumping at the first headlines, wait for high quality sources of information to do their due diligence and provide you with high quality insights. Also, it is worthwhile to seek out information that challenges your presuppositions.
Practice: Dumb down your phone
You could simply switch to a dumb phone, or you could remove all but the essential apps from your smartphone so that it loses the capability to capture your attention. Just let it serve as a tool.
You could simply switch to a dumb phone, or you could remove all but the essential apps from your smartphone so that it loses the capability to capture your attention. Just let it serve as a tool.
Conclusion: Adopting digital minimalism is not a one time activity, and requires adapting periodically. Also, it's not about technology, but about living a more intentional, richer life.
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