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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
26.02.23 1st Read
I started reading this book on my birthday trip in 2022, though was, ironically, too distracted to continue. Since I’ve received the memo to slow down my mind this book jumped out to me and I entered my own digital declutter only a week after restarting this book! I’m on day 19 out of 30 days of rephrasing my relationship with the digital world including devices! The time I’ve reclaimed back has been immense, the relationships I’ve deepened in that time has expanded. I still deal with impulses to slow down though my mind feels a lot calmer and conscious of those thoughts. It’s not about eliminating digital media completely it’s about using the devices to support the life you value so highly. I’m a big Cal Newport fan since this book and am excited to continue this growth with Deep Work.
Biggest lesson from the book: The power of a general-purpose device is in the total number of things it enables the user to do, not the total number of things it enables the user to do simultaneously! If you want to join the attention resistance, transform your devices into computers that are general purpose in the long run, but are effectively single purpose in any given moment. Therefore you become more intentional about your usage ✨
Highly recommend this book to anyone feeling distracted and like they don’t have enough time. To anyone feeling overwhelmed, which can largely be due to our attention being pulled in 101 different directions. To anyone feeling alone or feeling they lack connection with real world around us including people and connections. For anyone who has difficulty being in solitude. This is the book for you ❤️
21.01.2024 2nd Read
At the start of rereading this book I deactivated all my social media accounts, and the peace and quiet it has given my mind is immense. Digital minimalism isn’t just about eliminating social media, it’s about cultivating a high quality life and understanding how you use technology instead of focusing on why you use it.
Reading this book the 2nd time around from a completely different perspective and relationship with technology was so refreshing! It helps to embrace slow living, and pursue high-quality leisure (like relearning to play the piano, working on home build projects, learning new skills) instead even more strongly. It’s allowed me to completely redevelop and optimise my relationship with my phone as a general-purpose device in any given time of the day (especially through the different focus modes on the iPhone). It helps to also keep my phone in a prominent place in my house at all times, in this case I leave it next to our home phone (yup, we still have one). The extra challenge of having to go there and grab my phone when I need it makes using the device extra intentional. Same goes for how I use my laptop and iPad. The purpose of these devices is so much more clear now and at which moments of the day (even days of the week) I use them as supportive devices.
Other changes have been unsubscribing from a huge number of YouTube channels and using it as a search platform and only as entertainment at certain times in the weekend. Netflix has turned into a social activity, allowing myself to only watch movies with others, which has been so much more fun!
If I decide to reread this book next year, it’s going to be exciting to reflect on what other changes have been made in that time! This book remains a constant favourite towards a slow intentional and minimal lifestyle
I started reading this book on my birthday trip in 2022, though was, ironically, too distracted to continue. Since I’ve received the memo to slow down my mind this book jumped out to me and I entered my own digital declutter only a week after restarting this book! I’m on day 19 out of 30 days of rephrasing my relationship with the digital world including devices! The time I’ve reclaimed back has been immense, the relationships I’ve deepened in that time has expanded. I still deal with impulses to slow down though my mind feels a lot calmer and conscious of those thoughts. It’s not about eliminating digital media completely it’s about using the devices to support the life you value so highly. I’m a big Cal Newport fan since this book and am excited to continue this growth with Deep Work.
Biggest lesson from the book: The power of a general-purpose device is in the total number of things it enables the user to do, not the total number of things it enables the user to do simultaneously! If you want to join the attention resistance, transform your devices into computers that are general purpose in the long run, but are effectively single purpose in any given moment. Therefore you become more intentional about your usage ✨
Highly recommend this book to anyone feeling distracted and like they don’t have enough time. To anyone feeling overwhelmed, which can largely be due to our attention being pulled in 101 different directions. To anyone feeling alone or feeling they lack connection with real world around us including people and connections. For anyone who has difficulty being in solitude. This is the book for you ❤️
21.01.2024 2nd Read
At the start of rereading this book I deactivated all my social media accounts, and the peace and quiet it has given my mind is immense. Digital minimalism isn’t just about eliminating social media, it’s about cultivating a high quality life and understanding how you use technology instead of focusing on why you use it.
Reading this book the 2nd time around from a completely different perspective and relationship with technology was so refreshing! It helps to embrace slow living, and pursue high-quality leisure (like relearning to play the piano, working on home build projects, learning new skills) instead even more strongly. It’s allowed me to completely redevelop and optimise my relationship with my phone as a general-purpose device in any given time of the day (especially through the different focus modes on the iPhone). It helps to also keep my phone in a prominent place in my house at all times, in this case I leave it next to our home phone (yup, we still have one). The extra challenge of having to go there and grab my phone when I need it makes using the device extra intentional. Same goes for how I use my laptop and iPad. The purpose of these devices is so much more clear now and at which moments of the day (even days of the week) I use them as supportive devices.
Other changes have been unsubscribing from a huge number of YouTube channels and using it as a search platform and only as entertainment at certain times in the weekend. Netflix has turned into a social activity, allowing myself to only watch movies with others, which has been so much more fun!
If I decide to reread this book next year, it’s going to be exciting to reflect on what other changes have been made in that time! This book remains a constant favourite towards a slow intentional and minimal lifestyle
After being vegetarian for 6 years, last summer I started craving the idea of meat. I thought that I would be able to feel the protein flowing through my veins, like I was becoming superman. I decided to try fish in Hawaii - I picked out a small shop known for fresh fish weeks in advance and was so excited to try it for our first lunch there. My reaction to trying fish, chicken, and steak again was, "oh yeah, that's what that tastes like." I didn't miss it, and it didn't make me feel any different.
The real key to what I was craving was digital minimalism. I did my own version of Cal's 30 day "digital declutter" in an effort to not be so distracted by technology when our son was born. Of course, he came the day after the 30 days ended. I think Cal's approach is really smart - strip your technology use down to only the essentials (or objectively high-quality), get used to that, and only add back in what is actually important or valuable. After 30 days of not using YouTube, I no longer missed it, and actually felt like it was a really low-quality source of entertainment compared to a good show, movie, or book.
I almost immediately felt the benefits. My attention span and appetite for working hard in my job increased immediately when I was no longer distracting myself. I slept more, exercised more, and read more. I'm definitely not perfect but every time I replace mindless, low-quality screentime with literally anything else - even replacing that time with just sitting there doing nothing - my life is better.
My only criticism of the book is that it's a little boring and intuitive, obviously there aren't any surprises here. We all pretty much know why social media and other scrolling is bad, so I didn't learn anything new.
The real key to what I was craving was digital minimalism. I did my own version of Cal's 30 day "digital declutter" in an effort to not be so distracted by technology when our son was born. Of course, he came the day after the 30 days ended. I think Cal's approach is really smart - strip your technology use down to only the essentials (or objectively high-quality), get used to that, and only add back in what is actually important or valuable. After 30 days of not using YouTube, I no longer missed it, and actually felt like it was a really low-quality source of entertainment compared to a good show, movie, or book.
I almost immediately felt the benefits. My attention span and appetite for working hard in my job increased immediately when I was no longer distracting myself. I slept more, exercised more, and read more. I'm definitely not perfect but every time I replace mindless, low-quality screentime with literally anything else - even replacing that time with just sitting there doing nothing - my life is better.
My only criticism of the book is that it's a little boring and intuitive, obviously there aren't any surprises here. We all pretty much know why social media and other scrolling is bad, so I didn't learn anything new.
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Truly depends on what type of user you are, coming into this book. But a wake up call for me, and hopefully a useful prescription for my next 30 years.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
It is not without a sense of irony that I rate and review this book on an Amazon-owned platform, thus contributing to the attention economy. Yet I can't help but do it, so that others know the value of this tremendous book.
informative
reflective
fast-paced
I like the philosophy, because it doesn’t advocate for full cold-turkey abstinence, but rather assessing what adds value to your life and relationships. I want to push towards a digital minimalist lifestyle, or at least significantly reducing my hyperstimulation. My main points will be: focusing on one thing at a time, rather than having a YouTube video always in the background or whatnot; reducing my habitual opening of apps like instagram, especially when I’m going on a quick walk to another room; decoupling receiving a notification from an immediate call for attention; cultivating high quality leisure like reading, practicing my trumpet, meditating, walks, spending time with friends, OSRS (lol); and finally, most importantly, being more present at events and in life’s important moments where human interaction takes place (even when we are having a discussion, and we could so easily look something up). I also liked the idea of keeping the phone always on DND/having social media only on the PC, so you have to choose to look at them when you are mentally prepared.
challenging
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
I think the paradigm Newport expounds of a philosophical adjustment to lead the richest possible life is such a revolutionary way to approach the question of "How can I be on my phone less?" Even if not everything resonates for you, I think this is one of those books you can only gain from by reading. I mayyy even go so far to appoint it "required reading" if you care at all about the [harmful] impact phones may be having on your life/society.
informative
reflective
slow-paced