On the shortness of attention
Our loss is their gain
In today's digital world, we are being bombarded by more content than we can and should process. Times were quite simpler just a few years back, let alone a decade or two. In those days you mostly knew what was happening around you and in your vicinity, you could find out only what a limited number of people around you are doing, and what are they up to. It does seem quite trivial, but that is in my opinion one of the most important reasons which enabled us better focus and imagination.
At that time, we didn't have a brick of dopamine in our pocket which could fulfill our every minute and save us from boredom in every and any situation. Most of the people today take phone with themselves to the bathroom because they can't spend even 5 minutes alone with their thoughts. That is quite detrimental to our well being, as well as our focus and attention. Boredom is quite essential for our brain, it is a sort of reset button that enables creativity, rest and deep thought which previously lead us on journeys we never could imagine otherwise. Daydreaming is a dying habit these days, but it was a small but great thing which gave our brain a well deserved break.
Today's world does not allow our brains to just chill and rest, they just gets bombarded with a ton of content which we need to process, and the saddest part is that most of that content is bad for us. It is usually low value, short form content which is presented to us by an algorithm in order to provide us with a quick dopamine hit. Such behavior will usually keep most of us glued to the screen doing "nothing" and just consuming "harmful" content, hence the name great name of doomscrolling.
Millions are being poured every day into captivating algorithms and data collection in order to ensure that your brain wants you to click and unlock that damn dopamine brick, and keep it open. That is exactly why we need to review and alter our own behavior. In today's world, we need to be more mindful of our time, the most valuable commodity we have. As Seneca said, most of us only keep account of our physical possessions while we don't even give a second thought on to who and why we give our time, which is the one true commodity that we have a limited supply of.
Let's take back our attention
In order to get back our attention, mind and time we need to rethink our technology usage. Cal Newport has a great book called Digital Minimalism which drives the point home. There is some great advice in it, and concrete steps which you can follow to limit usage and get back you time and attention. His proposed method is a bit cataclysmic, ie. cutting off technology for a 30 day period before bringing it back little by little. However, anyone with any form of self control can lower that number in a less drastic way.
In my opinion the most critical thing which we need to do is to let go off the idea that we need to be available 24/7, and if we are not comfortable with that thought - opt for a lesser evil like an eSIM enabled smart watch. That will ensure your availability but limit your usage since texting on that thing is a nightmare.
Second and more important point is to find alternative hobbies, something with a longer form such as reading or even movies. That will give us back our attention span, at least a bit of it. Reading books will probably feel "awful" at first if you are getting off an Instagram/TikTok binge since your mind will struggle with longer paragraphs, but after a few days you will see a major change and your attention span will begin to return.
Taking back our attention does not mean rejecting technology altogether. It means using it more deliberately and thoughtfully. We need to protect moments of boredom, rediscover slower hobbies, and become comfortable with being temporarily unavailable. Every minute reclaimed from mindless consumption is a minute we can invest in rest, creativity or more meaningful work. Big companies profit from keeping us distracted, our loss is their gain, and the only way to reverse that bargain is to remember that our attention belongs to us and to start treating it that way.