For your sake, create some space
Roman politicians had a clever formula for controlling political unrest: panem et circenses—“bread and circuses.” By offering free food and entertainment, they kept the population distracted, too preoccupied to think or challenge the status quo.
Sadly, this same tactic is alive today, but on a much grander scale. Both adults and children have fallen into a cycle of constant distraction, filling every spare moment with mindless phone scrolling or TV watching. We consume sloppy, superficial content and are stuck in an incessant stimulus-response loop that leaves no room for fertile boredom, mind wandering, deep exploration and work—the very conditions that lead to connection with self, original thought, deeper understanding and unique insights, inner peace, meaningful action, and exceptional outcomes. Even life’s essentials—sleep, exercise, hobbies, chores, and relationships—have been displaced by screens.
Sadly, this same tactic is alive today, but on a much grander scale. Both adults and children have fallen into a cycle of constant distraction, filling every spare moment with mindless phone scrolling or TV watching. We consume sloppy, superficial content and are stuck in an incessant stimulus-response loop that leaves no room for fertile boredom, mind wandering, deep exploration and work—the very conditions that lead to connection with self, original thought, deeper understanding and unique insights, inner peace, meaningful action, and exceptional outcomes. Even life’s essentials—sleep, exercise, hobbies, chores, and relationships—have been displaced by screens.
We have become half-present zombies, with foggy brains and attention spans reduced to that of a goldfish, all while sacrificing our incredible capacity to be aware, present, learn, create, and act toward real well-being and self-actualization. What are we doing?!
This constant distraction and gluttonous junk (brain) food consumption is rarely a conscious choice. We are not pausing to ask ourselves why we’ve picked up our phone for the 30th time today and whether it’s serving any purpose. It’s pure dopamine-driven impulsivity, an addictive behavior we’ve barely noticed creeping in. This may be a tough pill to swallow, but the reality is we have become tools of our tools. We are mindlessly giving up on the core essence of our lives - time and attention - to other zombies, charlatans, and advertisers.
You can live and perform better than you are today and 90% of the population if you radically cut your screen time. Create space for something better. Treat your phone and TV like you’d treat any addictive and pleasurable drug - establish strict physical and time boundaries, and limit use considerably. A good rule of thumb is you should be spending many more waking hours without screens than with screens, which is worryingly not true for most of us. Delete distracting apps, disable non-essential notifications, and ban phones in the dining and bedrooms. When you find your hands instinctively reaching for the phone, swap it with something less charged and more useful —a book, a magazine, a notebook to journal and create, a necessary chore, a conversation, or even a simple walk. Or just sit quietly, think, and be bored!
This constant distraction and gluttonous junk (brain) food consumption is rarely a conscious choice. We are not pausing to ask ourselves why we’ve picked up our phone for the 30th time today and whether it’s serving any purpose. It’s pure dopamine-driven impulsivity, an addictive behavior we’ve barely noticed creeping in. This may be a tough pill to swallow, but the reality is we have become tools of our tools. We are mindlessly giving up on the core essence of our lives - time and attention - to other zombies, charlatans, and advertisers.
You can live and perform better than you are today and 90% of the population if you radically cut your screen time. Create space for something better. Treat your phone and TV like you’d treat any addictive and pleasurable drug - establish strict physical and time boundaries, and limit use considerably. A good rule of thumb is you should be spending many more waking hours without screens than with screens, which is worryingly not true for most of us. Delete distracting apps, disable non-essential notifications, and ban phones in the dining and bedrooms. When you find your hands instinctively reaching for the phone, swap it with something less charged and more useful —a book, a magazine, a notebook to journal and create, a necessary chore, a conversation, or even a simple walk. Or just sit quietly, think, and be bored!
If you are currently a heavy user, the only truly effective way is to quit cold turkey and detox for a few days - let your phone run out of charge, go on long hikes or camping, spend a weekend in a remote location, or spend full days chatting with family and friends. Incremental reductions and relying on willpower rarely work with something this addictive when you are deeply addicted.
Only when you escape the non-stop barrage of stimuli and emerge from the fog of digital addiction, you can start to experience life—and yourself—fully once again.
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