It is certainly a helpful point of view. Thanks for sharing that. However, I have to disagree with your opinion that, as a society, our attention spans are fine. They are indeed shrinking every decade for a number of reasons.
For those who are interested in focus and attention span issues, I would suggest Johann Hari's book "Stolen Focus." Cheers!
When you find your obsession, you won't even have time to watch YT for half an hour. But maybe your obsession is related to the videos you watch, because in my case, if I find an interesting video, I can barely watch it for a few minutes, so there must be something else to it. The solution is not to control your urges, which never works, but to replace them with something positive that you are obsessed with.
Thanks, Ash. I agree. It is actually sad to see how schools and systems are labelling little kids since age 3 when they don’t want to calmly take part in circle time. Some would just prefer to be out building or climbing, AND THAT’S FINE.
Interesting take! I (very respectfully) disagree entirely. Here's why:
Binge-watching shows or 3-hour podcasts are both very passive activities and often things we enjoy doing with little mental effort. Similarly, fantasy novels and shows offer us a form of escape from reality (again, something we enjoy, often passively).
Active tasks like writing or completing a project require a lot more mental effort; therefore, it's easier to succumb to distraction or escapism. And I would argue that sometimes, finding the things you are most interested in requires the mental focus to delve deep enough to find that thing.
We could then discuss the difference between career vs. vocation and finding purpose. But as far as attention span goes, I genuinely do believe social media (and distraction + instant dopamine spikes) have harmed our society's ability to focus on meaningful tasks.
Always open to different perspectives though! And appreciate hearing a counter argument :)
I think I'm going to have to disagree in part with this one. While I think this can be a good indicator of how important/productive something is, at the same time, there are still things worthwhile paying attention to that aren't at all easy to. I recently stumbled across this lovely blog post about this, I would love to know what you think about it. https://tolstoyan.substack.com/p/paying-attention
Thank you, Ash Lamb, for your explanation and valuable insights.
Thank you for your readership!
Great point of view 👌
I concur. Have had the same thoughts. Thanks for the article
Glad to know this resonated with you Arjun
It is certainly a helpful point of view. Thanks for sharing that. However, I have to disagree with your opinion that, as a society, our attention spans are fine. They are indeed shrinking every decade for a number of reasons.
For those who are interested in focus and attention span issues, I would suggest Johann Hari's book "Stolen Focus." Cheers!
What is my obsession if I can watch YT whole day? Videos from blacksmiths to a man draining holes in a street on rainy day?
Should we really allow our urges to control us?
When you find your obsession, you won't even have time to watch YT for half an hour. But maybe your obsession is related to the videos you watch, because in my case, if I find an interesting video, I can barely watch it for a few minutes, so there must be something else to it. The solution is not to control your urges, which never works, but to replace them with something positive that you are obsessed with.
Thank you for the valuable answer
Thanks, Ash. I agree. It is actually sad to see how schools and systems are labelling little kids since age 3 when they don’t want to calmly take part in circle time. Some would just prefer to be out building or climbing, AND THAT’S FINE.
I feel that we often get labeled as “lazy” or “distracted” and in turn we internalise that voice and start calling ourselves that.
Maybe the fact is we are just uninterested and there exists stuff we would be extremely interested in.
If that’s the case how important it is to “be obsessed with what you do to make a living”?
Valuable insight
Why 212 of 500 words?
Interesting take! I (very respectfully) disagree entirely. Here's why:
Binge-watching shows or 3-hour podcasts are both very passive activities and often things we enjoy doing with little mental effort. Similarly, fantasy novels and shows offer us a form of escape from reality (again, something we enjoy, often passively).
Active tasks like writing or completing a project require a lot more mental effort; therefore, it's easier to succumb to distraction or escapism. And I would argue that sometimes, finding the things you are most interested in requires the mental focus to delve deep enough to find that thing.
We could then discuss the difference between career vs. vocation and finding purpose. But as far as attention span goes, I genuinely do believe social media (and distraction + instant dopamine spikes) have harmed our society's ability to focus on meaningful tasks.
Always open to different perspectives though! And appreciate hearing a counter argument :)
Cheers,
Eric
I have seen this for myself. When I am making visuals, I am so into it that I won't check my phone for hours.
pengetahuan yang sangat berharga
🙏
I think I'm going to have to disagree in part with this one. While I think this can be a good indicator of how important/productive something is, at the same time, there are still things worthwhile paying attention to that aren't at all easy to. I recently stumbled across this lovely blog post about this, I would love to know what you think about it. https://tolstoyan.substack.com/p/paying-attention