attention, please
An excerpt from the introduction to Zen Digital Makeover: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Tech.
‘Men have always been prey to distractions, which are the original sin of the mind; but never before has an attempt been made to organise and exploit distractions… Recollectedness, or the overcoming of distractions, has never been more necessary than now; it has also, we may guess, never been so difficult.’
— Aldous Huxley
Inner quiet.
That’s what brings you here, isn't it?
There’s too much noise these days. It’s really getting out of hand.
Simplification is needed.
How is the quality of your attention?
Now. Right now.
Pause.
Are you fully present?
Or are you already skimming, reading with a fragmented mind?
Could your attention be stolen at any moment by a notification?
When did you last check your phone?
Between ads, social media and messaging, how much information have you inhaled in the last day? In the last hour? What is the ratio of consumption to silent digestion? If information were food, what would your digital diet have you weigh?
When entering your device to do one thing, how often do you get derailed? How much time do you spend in tech rabbit holes? Do you ever catch yourself checking your phone with no memory of intending to pull it out?
Are you worried about your dwindling ability to focus, memorise and articulate yourself clearly?
Do important tasks get swept aside by minor emergencies? Do you feel busy without getting anything done, seldom working on a single task for more than a few minutes?
Are you caught in the weeds, unable to disentangle yourself to see the big picture and make big decisions?
Is there a background hum of unease at your lack of sovereignty?
Do you rationalise this state of affairs because everyone else is doing it? As you step back now, do you see how insane this state of affairs is?
The situation is really quite severe.
If our ancestors visited, would they not perceive this world as dystopian? Would their primary cause for alarm be not war, climate change or AI, but witnessing us spend half our waking hours in screen-induced trance?
As tech becomes exponentially more seductive, the demand to hold your centre intensifies proportionately.
Alas, it is tech frazzle itself that muffles the awareness we need to break free from it.
Ever wonder if it’s too late? Whether your brains are pickled? I fear that this may be the case for many. But there’s no use pondering such darkness. No time to waste.
The spark that brought you here… Yes, this proves that something remains awake. You can disentangle yourself and reverse the tide.
0% Blame, 100% Responsibility
‘For two years I have not had social media apps installed on my phone... These things have been engineered to overcome any type of self-discipline with billions of dollars at stake, which should lead you to believe [that if you think you can fight temptation with the mind alone], you’re bringing a knife to a gun fight.’
— Tim Ferriss
I write from Shaolin Temple, where I train with the legendary warrior monks — paragons of relentless discipline.
In ancient times, the monks developed Kung Fu to protect the Temple from bandits and other foes. Eight hours of ultra-intense training to forge unshakeable warriors.
But put them against a US Navy SEAL with a gun? No chance.
The richest companies in the world invest billions in exploiting weaknesses in your neurocircuitry to keep you addicted.
Similarly, no amount of discipline can overcome the tech Navy SEALs in your pocket, firing temptation bullets at you around the clock.
This is why you succumb to the screen.
Your DNA has not changed. You are not a weakling. This won’t be resolved merely by self-acceptance or therapy.
Tech is frying the brains not only of muggles but high-level meditators. I’ve spent years in both the temple and the trading floor, and it breaks my heart to say that tech is harming both equally.
No need to blame yourself. But finger-pointing will also do no good.
Scientific discussion about the effects of tech is interesting. But it can be a distraction that keeps us in our heads. My specialty? Action. Actually doing things to actually change your life.
Tech is a powerful tool. As with all powerful tools, it carries the potential for misuse. I’m not a Luddite. Not here to tell you Meta is evil.
I’m here to show you how to master tech and not be mastered by it. You will do so with the cool strategy of an internal Kung Fu master, ending the fight before it begins by disarming your opponent. Once your opponent is disarmed, it will no longer be an opponent. Then you can give her a hug and work together.
