You’ve done it again, Roni—hit right on what’s been bugging me lately lol! I’ve learned so much since my first look into Digital Minimalism and Deep Work but I slide back into old habits far too frequently. I’ve curated my Insta and Substack to where there is so much good stuff that I justify voraciously consuming—but then I barely take the time to really get into something. So I’m trying to slow down, add things to my Pocket app, set a specific time to come back to it and pick one to focus on. Deep distractions, indeed.
I also think I’ll shift to using my Kindle as primary for reading books—I love reading on my iPad but too easy to click back and forth on repeat.
Thanks, Dana! I'm glad it served as a nudge and a reminder. I think we all need them sometimes because even when we have the best intentions, that digital creep back to distraction is so sneaky. I think the idea about the Kindle is a good one. I prefer reading on my Paperwhite for that reason. Good luck!
Thanks for all the great suggestions. Cal Newport's work speaks right to my #3 Discipline and I devour it, but hadn't looked to see if he had a podcast. I definitely notice when I'm not vigilant, my time spent on things that matter to me slips. This was a timely reminder with resources to keep me on track. Stay warm!
Glad the reminder helped! And oh yeah, you can hear Cal’s Discipline so clearly in how he goes about things. I don’t have high Discipline but he speaks to my #7 Focus and to my #3 Achiever.
deep distractions! I love that idea. My deep distractions right now are revisiting history of existential philosophy, and getting caught up on three of my Top Fifteen writers!
I also follow a lot of Cal Newport suggestions! One of his I found really helpful is the idea of "appointment television" as applied to social media. So I have Freedom on, and can only access my social media from 9 - 10am (to post something) and from 4 - 5pm (in case I want to find something that came up during the day that I made a note of.) Interestingly, having no access to it the rest of the time means that I've effectively ended the pick-up-and-check cycle, meaning I check it for maybe five minutes twice a day, and that's it. I'm just not interested the rest of the time.
My other big go-to is that I have the kindle app on my phone. Reading a book on my phone isn't ideal -- I'm still on my phone, after all, and that's what my kid would see if she looked at me -- but it means I've always got something to read, and stops me going for any other, shallower distractions.
Oh, that's a great tip about the appointment! I used to use Focus (which is like Freedom) when I was writing and that worked well for me, but I don't turn it on if I'm not actively writing--which is probably something I need to start doing because I don't want to be distracted from my other tasks either. And yes, the Kindle app on the phone can be great in a pinch, even when it's annoying to read on that small of a screen. :)
I try to do deep distractions as well. One tip-I keep books everywhere I would usually pick up my phone-in my kitchen so I can pick it up when I'm eating breakfast or when I'm waiting the pasta to boil, in my car in case I'm waiting for someone somewhere (lunch date or dr appt.) I can run out and get it. It really helps because I think one of the reasons we always pick up our phones is because they are there. I can't believe how much better I feel after reading a book in those moments than I do scrolling on my phone. And I get a ton of books read!
I’m missing the input and expansion of creativity from becoming completely immersed with a subject/topic/hobby/activity. It could be the season of life with kids and work and study; the chaos has me leaping between interests at light speed. Something about the start of this year has given me a similar determination to push through and get a solid grasp on those creations that feel just out of reach. I think the first thing I should place out of reach is my phone so that picking it up feels more intentional and less habitual/automatic.
Putting the phone out of reach is definitely a good first step. Some people find it can help to plug in the phone in the kitchen or something and then only use it plugged in (like it's an old school phone attached to the wall.)
Completely agree, except the "why do my hands always need something in them?" can stem from ADHD and other neurodivergency, and I wouldn't view that one in particular as something to "fix" (unless what you always need to hold is your phone in particular). I think I'm going to re-take your focus class soon to get my brain back on track.
Threads devolved SO quickly. What took Twitter years to become toxic over, took Threads 6 months.
So happy to hear the Jami book is good. That's on my TBR this year.
Thanks for the reminder, Teresa! Anytime I post about attention, I try to remember to put in a caveat about ADHD (both my husband and son have it) but I forgot this time. I’ll have to go back and add it when I’m back in front of my computer.
You’ve done it again, Roni—hit right on what’s been bugging me lately lol! I’ve learned so much since my first look into Digital Minimalism and Deep Work but I slide back into old habits far too frequently. I’ve curated my Insta and Substack to where there is so much good stuff that I justify voraciously consuming—but then I barely take the time to really get into something. So I’m trying to slow down, add things to my Pocket app, set a specific time to come back to it and pick one to focus on. Deep distractions, indeed.
I also think I’ll shift to using my Kindle as primary for reading books—I love reading on my iPad but too easy to click back and forth on repeat.
Great post!
Thanks, Dana! I'm glad it served as a nudge and a reminder. I think we all need them sometimes because even when we have the best intentions, that digital creep back to distraction is so sneaky. I think the idea about the Kindle is a good one. I prefer reading on my Paperwhite for that reason. Good luck!
Thanks for all the great suggestions. Cal Newport's work speaks right to my #3 Discipline and I devour it, but hadn't looked to see if he had a podcast. I definitely notice when I'm not vigilant, my time spent on things that matter to me slips. This was a timely reminder with resources to keep me on track. Stay warm!
Glad the reminder helped! And oh yeah, you can hear Cal’s Discipline so clearly in how he goes about things. I don’t have high Discipline but he speaks to my #7 Focus and to my #3 Achiever.
deep distractions! I love that idea. My deep distractions right now are revisiting history of existential philosophy, and getting caught up on three of my Top Fifteen writers!
ooh, those sound like great deep distractions! :)
I also follow a lot of Cal Newport suggestions! One of his I found really helpful is the idea of "appointment television" as applied to social media. So I have Freedom on, and can only access my social media from 9 - 10am (to post something) and from 4 - 5pm (in case I want to find something that came up during the day that I made a note of.) Interestingly, having no access to it the rest of the time means that I've effectively ended the pick-up-and-check cycle, meaning I check it for maybe five minutes twice a day, and that's it. I'm just not interested the rest of the time.
My other big go-to is that I have the kindle app on my phone. Reading a book on my phone isn't ideal -- I'm still on my phone, after all, and that's what my kid would see if she looked at me -- but it means I've always got something to read, and stops me going for any other, shallower distractions.
Oh, that's a great tip about the appointment! I used to use Focus (which is like Freedom) when I was writing and that worked well for me, but I don't turn it on if I'm not actively writing--which is probably something I need to start doing because I don't want to be distracted from my other tasks either. And yes, the Kindle app on the phone can be great in a pinch, even when it's annoying to read on that small of a screen. :)
I try to do deep distractions as well. One tip-I keep books everywhere I would usually pick up my phone-in my kitchen so I can pick it up when I'm eating breakfast or when I'm waiting the pasta to boil, in my car in case I'm waiting for someone somewhere (lunch date or dr appt.) I can run out and get it. It really helps because I think one of the reasons we always pick up our phones is because they are there. I can't believe how much better I feel after reading a book in those moments than I do scrolling on my phone. And I get a ton of books read!
That’s a great tip! I try to bring my kindle with me when I go out just in case but I love that you have books stashed around the house!
I’m missing the input and expansion of creativity from becoming completely immersed with a subject/topic/hobby/activity. It could be the season of life with kids and work and study; the chaos has me leaping between interests at light speed. Something about the start of this year has given me a similar determination to push through and get a solid grasp on those creations that feel just out of reach. I think the first thing I should place out of reach is my phone so that picking it up feels more intentional and less habitual/automatic.
Putting the phone out of reach is definitely a good first step. Some people find it can help to plug in the phone in the kitchen or something and then only use it plugged in (like it's an old school phone attached to the wall.)
Completely agree, except the "why do my hands always need something in them?" can stem from ADHD and other neurodivergency, and I wouldn't view that one in particular as something to "fix" (unless what you always need to hold is your phone in particular). I think I'm going to re-take your focus class soon to get my brain back on track.
Threads devolved SO quickly. What took Twitter years to become toxic over, took Threads 6 months.
So happy to hear the Jami book is good. That's on my TBR this year.
Thanks for the reminder, Teresa! Anytime I post about attention, I try to remember to put in a caveat about ADHD (both my husband and son have it) but I forgot this time. I’ll have to go back and add it when I’m back in front of my computer.