I tend to look at my own over-reliance on technology as a failing. A crutch. An addiction.
Our devices, in many ways, make our lives easier. They empower our curiosity, help connect us, and allow us to build new things.
But they also make it more difficult to pay attention, be present, or tolerate boredom. We use our devices to escape all sorts of discomfort, including social awkwardness, instead of powering through.
But as my guest, Jay Vidyarthi, an attention activist, argues—compulsive tech use isn’t necessarily a failure of discipline. In fact, it may point to an underlying need.
Instead of being slaves to technology, Jay believes that we should foster a more intentional relationship with technology and that starts by better understanding why we are reaching for our devices in the first place. What are we missing? Play? Connection? Inspiration?
He argues that technology reflects the values and incentives we build into it—and that we can design technology to support connection, compassion, creativity and wellbeing.
Jay is a designer, author, entrepreneur, and attention activist working at the intersection of technology, mindfulness, and human wellbeing. He is the founder of Still Ape, a design firm that's focused on creating more mindful and human-centered technology. Jay has contributed to more than 50 wellbeing technologies, including Muse and the Healthy Minds Program, and is the author of "Reclaim Your Mind," a guide to developing a healthier relationship with technology. His work explores how thoughtful design and mindfulness can help people reclaim their attention and live more intentionally. He's also no stranger to meditation.
In this episode, we discuss attention, boredom, AI, social media, parenting in the digital world, and how mindfulness can help us better understand our impulses around technology so that we can reclaim our ability to choose what’s worthy of our attention.
Things you can do to improve your relationship with technology:
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I’d love to hear from you. What are your tech habits like? Are you mindful around your technology use? Leave a comment.
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It's interesting. Virtually all your your points I already do. perhaps it is from spending decades in tech I have always just looked at it as a tool. I have become addicted to many things, but tech has never been anything more to me than a cool shovel or hammer to accomplish an end.I think I am blessed to be the last generation who's childhood was outside if we were not in school. We had no tech to speak of just 1 analog phone on the wall in the kitchen, 3 channels on the television that were only broadcasting from 6 am till midnight. perhaps that's helped me to stay grounded techwise (allthough I was having a caniption fit today when my vehicle gps failed and I was forced to use the phone's gps 🤣) - alas the ship of theseus ('06 oddy) has been retired for a 2014 Azera Limited Premium with just 27k original mikes on the odometer that was legit driven to church only on sundays by a little old lady😆) and A DEAD GPS Grrrrrrr.
I guess I am a little addicted to tech.
There is positives that balance the negatives of tech as I think your guest pointed out. One example I think we now take for granted is tech has expanded our personal world It's fun to know that there is only 6 points of seperation between any of us, but with tech we can short circut those that 6⁰s to 0⁰s. Think about it, I am one person in a country of 342 million you Katherine are one in a country of 40 million that means you and I have without tech a very very low chance of communicating with each other. Its about 1 in 2 to 3 million because we would have to physicaly meet. with tech, well that 1 in 2 to 3 mil is reduced to basically 50/50 and the 50/50 is only ruled by a choice we made about 4 or so years ago. I saw a post and gave you shit (it was on joe blow decaring themselves an independent journalist) 😉 and you responded. no six degees of speration no 1 in 2 to 3 mil chance of communicating, just a screen of text between two humans. Basically pen pals in a 280 character public forum.
Once we intellectually and emotionally readjust our norms as a species just in the area of bringing us in contact and communicating with real people 3000 or 10000 miles away from us will be blasé
For what it's worth, I normally put my iPhone on airplane mode at bedtime (or sometimes well before bedtime) and don't turn the signal on again until after I've had my morning coffee and usual light breakfast, and have already had a little bit of a tech-free morning routine going. I also have my phone set to silent almost all the time. I find these habits helpful in terms creating some boundaries between me and my device. When travelling, I do sometimes have to modify this approach a bit given the need to get travel-related alerts or time-sensitive messages.