Focus and attention

Some personal habits I recommend to try:

  1. Have a default place for your phone in your apartment
  2. Setup automatic Wi-Fi turn off after certain time in the evening, e.g. 11pm
  3. Go for a walk without a phone

An argument for logging off – Aaron Francis:

I don't need to influence global politics, I don't even need to influence national politics. I need to influence my four little kids. I need to produce work I'm proud of. I need to focus.

How I Got My Attention Back — Craig Mod:

There is a qualitative and quantitative difference between a day that begins with a little exercise, a book, meditation, a good meal, a thoughtful walk, and the start of a day that begins with a smartphone in bed.

Andrej Karpathy on Internet Detox:

Returning from an experimental ~2 week detox from the internet. Main takeaway is that I didn't realize how unsettled the mind can get when over-stimulating on problems/information (like a stirred liquid), and ~2 weeks is enough to settle into a lot more zen state.

Tim Morgan:

Fight fastism! Slow down. Enjoy simple things.

What I use

DNS

macOS

A few friends had good experience with SelfControl and Flow.

iOS

  • Opal
  • Brick – a device that temporarily removes distracting apps

Books

  • Stolen Focus
  • Cal Newport books
  • Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman

Devices

Inspiration