I used to work 24/7. In the morning, I’d open my laptop with no idea of what I wanted to get done. I’d then check my inbox, get distracted by all the new email – and spend most of my day on urgent, yet unimportant tasks. In the evening, I’d feel guilty about not making progress on the important stuff. As a result, I’d work late. Really late. When I finally called it a day, I couldn’t get work out of my head. It would consume me during my time off.
I wish I could still find the source, but your point about constant connectivity reminds me of a comment made in a podcast, or perhaps a tech article, about the profound effect Smartphones and/or iPad would have on society. (This would have been about ten or 15 years ago.I thought the author used the phrase "the death of boredom," but I cannot find the original source. The point was we would lose the mental downtime, therefor nullifying the benefits of the "unconscious thought theory" you refer to above. Basically, rather than staring out the window of the bus, allowing our mind to do what it does best in times of boredom, we turned to checking our phones.
The potential downsides of this on our children frightens me. I have already spoken to my daughter about this with regard to my six month-old granddaughter.
I wish I could find that source... I always thought the name of the speaker/author was Lawrence Lessig, but I can't find the exact quote.
I wish I could still find the source, but your point about constant connectivity reminds me of a comment made in a podcast, or perhaps a tech article, about the profound effect Smartphones and/or iPad would have on society. (This would have been about ten or 15 years ago.I thought the author used the phrase "the death of boredom," but I cannot find the original source. The point was we would lose the mental downtime, therefor nullifying the benefits of the "unconscious thought theory" you refer to above. Basically, rather than staring out the window of the bus, allowing our mind to do what it does best in times of boredom, we turned to checking our phones.
The potential downsides of this on our children frightens me. I have already spoken to my daughter about this with regard to my six month-old granddaughter.
I wish I could find that source... I always thought the name of the speaker/author was Lawrence Lessig, but I can't find the exact quote.
Anyway, thank you for the insightful article.
Hi Steve. Thanks for sharing this. I fully agree.
While this isn't the article you're looking for, you might find this one by Cal Newport
interesting, too: https://calnewport.com/neil-gaimans-advice-to-writers-get-bored/
Great link! Thanks for sharing.