Hello! I am so excited about today's activity, you have no idea. Today you are going to have a Solo Disco Dance Party! It is easy to get carried away in the headlines. We are living in a weird time, we don't have a choice but to stay up to date and keep up with current information. It is also easy to always worry about what people are thinking of you. This is natural, this is human. But it is amplified by our new and constant use of social media. So today we are going to take at the most half an hour to be in the moment and take a break. Here are my steps for you:
The Mindful Digital Native
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Today is the day that we all do the thing that we all really, genuinely dread. Talk on the phone. I can’t quite explain why. I just really dislike talking on the phone. And there are slews of articles criticizing millennials for being able to hold phone conversations despite being constantly on their phones. (Don't get me started on this, that's an article for another time.)
According to the New York Times, it’s because phone calls have a tendency to interrupt us. We find them annoying. But at the same time, they are more “honest”. Text messaging is how we roll now, and those things can get misinterpreted, twisted, and forgotten about. Texting allows you to be spontaneous, fast, and easy. But these pros are exactly what make texting less genuine. We forget to think sometimes. We say things we don’t mean in the moment and they are immortalized. Phone calls bring a sense of humanity back to communication. You can understand the tone of voice and have emotional awareness. We also cannot hide behind our screens and speak without consequences. And in this time, keeping up connection is critical to getting through quarantine. So surprise someone with a phone call today! It may be an interruption, but at least they are a genuine one, instead of someone Facebook Messenger-ing you a meme (though I do love memes) I’m going to call my grandma. Happy dialing, The Mindful Digital Native Resources: How texting affects relationships: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/meet-catch-and-keep/201403/is-constant-texting-good-or-bad-your-relationship My Millenials Don’t Like Phone Calls, a graph: https://bgr.com/2018/12/09/millennials-phone-calls-survey/ New York Times Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/fashion/20Cultural.html One of the easiest ways to get off of your phone is do get creative y’all! Not only is art a fun way to try new things, it’s actually got brain benefits too. It allows you to simultaneously do something physical and cognitive.
In my experience, being on social media tends to inhibit me creatively. I think it’s mostly because I end up distracted. On the other side, technology can be really good for us creatively. You can Google crafts or find inspiration through Instagram or Pinterest. I think creativity provides a perfect area to find a balance between technology and life. If utilized correctly, tech can expand art and music. However if we allow technology to overtake art, we lose the humanity of it. Maybe I am getting a bit too philosophical here, but the relationship between technology and art is a hot topic! I think it’s time to go through some cool resources to help you get freakin creative tonight! Right now, a lot of us have free time to use. And we often think that only certain people have the capacity to make good creative work. But today, don't worry about that. Today just make something that brings you joy. Who cares if it's "bad". No one here is going to be judging you. The reason there is not a lot of instruction for today is because it is for what you want to do, which is annoying I know. But below are some cool resources for you.
The Mindful Digital Native Hello everyone! I hope you are staying healthy out there.
Today's blog post is about feeling comfortable in your space. A lot of you are working from home, and you've probably been reading articles or watching videos about how to maximize your productivity and all of that. But today, just take a hot sec to make your space a place you want to be in. Because why would you want to work if you hate the space you are working in? Now, you are probably wondering, why does this matter for digital wellness? Well, we are always comparing ourselves online. And doubtless we are all trying to mark where we are in comparison to others when it comes to transitioning to working from home. You have probably seen people's aesthetic desk snapshots from their homes, or their insanely organized binder system. I am a naturally unorganized person, and looking at that stuff genuinely makes me feel bad. Like I am doing something wrong with my life. But the key, I've realized, is to find what works for you! I know I am not going to always put my papers back where they are supposed to go, so I have an empty folder on my desk to put those papers in. When I am ready to put them away, I go through that folder. Is it the best method? Probably not, but it works for me. This is an exercise in ignoring the comparison that we face online every day, and also to help you love where you are working right now. So here are some ways you can make your space more inviting for yourself (more resources and research will be linked in the resource section):
The Mindful Digital Native Resources: Video on Toxic Productivity Creating Organization Systems Hustle Culture Grid bust! This is an activity that I have been looking forward to! We are going to destroy your Instagram theme. I will admit, my personal Instagram, and even my brand Instagram have a pattern to them. This helps with gaining an audience and capturing attention. Our brains like patterns and themes because they are pleasing. But in my day to day life, I am not trying to gain followers or promote myself. I am just trying to have a good time online. I am not a picture collage of myself, I am myself.
I have watched my peers painstakingly curate images and concoct the best filter and editing combinations so their feeds are cohesive and perfect. They even make separate accounts so that the posts that don’t fit their theme have somewhere to go. While I think that editing photos is an art, and I do it too, I think it is also important to remind ourselves that social media, at least for personal use, is not that serious. We can post what we want, and be our authentic selves, if we choose to. So today’s activity is to break your Instagram theme if you have one. And if you don’t, post something that makes you feel good! This is an exercise to ground us, and remind us that the outward image we portray isn’t all there is, and it’s okay to do something different once in a while. You don’t have to keep you #gridbust photo on your Instagram or Facebook forever. Just until the end of the 30 Days. And if it bothers by the end, archive it dude! But know you participated in a cool challenge. If you want me to see your cool Grid Bust photo, tag me and use the #gridbust. And if you don’t want to do that, that is cool too. Let’s Destroy Our IG themes, together, The Mindful Digital Native Bing! Pop! Woosh! These are my best text imitations of notification sounds. And they are a major part of our activity today.
We are going to get into some ethical tech,which is part of the description for this program. In my view, ethical technology is tech that supports you as a person and doesn’t purposefully distract or hinder you. The Humane Tech Community calls it “human flourishing”. The Center for Humane Tech called is “fighting human downgrading”. Everyone has a definition of what ethically technology looks like, and we are working together to achieve that vision. But there is a general consensus that most apps are designed to capture your attention and not let it go. They are designed to be somewhat addicting. This leads to a discussion of the attention economy and the battle all the apps on our phones have for our limited daily attention. I will provide resources so you can go into depth, but the down low is this: the more you are on an app, the more data can be collected on you and the more advertising can be targeted at you, and the more money companies can make. All apps want you to be on their app, so they make their app design, notification sounds, and even their fonts as pleasing to you as possible so you won’t want to leave. Things like having an infinite feed also contribute to this desire to keep scrolling. So part of the reason we are on our devices so much is not because we lack willpower, but because the apps we are using are designed to trap our human brains. One of the easiest ways to help, at least somewhat, remove yourself from all of Big Tech’s shenanigans is to turn off notifications on all your nonessential apps. It is a very simple way to put yourself back in control of what you consume. Instead of responding to the singing call of a notification designed to pull you in, you can access what you want when you want. And every time you get the little box that reads “Would You Like to Allow Notifications?”, you click “Don’t Allow” from now on. Turning off Gmail notifications, I can say, really changed my life. It helped me stop chasing after every spam email and irrelevant school announcement that was popping up in my inbox. Below I will be linking a bunch of resources on ethical and humane tech, and how to turn off your notifications. Have fun taking back your attention! The Mindful Digital Native Resources: Addicting Design: https://www.vox.com/2018/2/27/17053758/phone-addictive-design-google-apple Why Notifications Are Distracting: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/rest/201507/notifications-are-the-new-distractions Center for Humane Tech - Why Our Attention Has Been Hijacked: https://www.wired.com/story/our-minds-have-been-hijacked-by-our-phones-tristan-harris-wants-to-rescue-them/ Center for Humane Tech Blog: https://humanetech.com/category/blog Tech Ethicist David Ryan Polger: https://www.davidpolgar.com/what-is-a-tech-ethcist#! How to Turn Android Notifications Off: https://www.digitaltrends.com/android/how-to-turn-off-notifications-in-android/ How to Turn Apple Notifications Off: https://www.tomsguide.com/us/turn-off-notifications-iphone,news-21195.html Hello all! Today we are going to talk about my favorite thing. Sleep. I really enjoy sleeping, as most students do. But cell phones can really mess us up. And I know everyone has heard this before, but today you are going to get a chance to experience science.
Your brain produces a chemical called melatonin, which helps you calm down and go to sleep. But a lot of our devices produce blue light, which is scientifically proven to energize and wake up your brain. When you use your phone before bed, you are disrupting a natural process that allows you to sleep, and are therefore reducing your sleep quality. Today, we are all going to put our phones down for 10 minutes before bed(at least). What I like to do is put my phone and charger far away from my bed. Then I sit in my bed and write in my journal, or read something, or actually apply the skin care routine that my sister planned for me. You realize there are tons of other things you could be doing before bed instead of scrolling. This is kind of a difficult spot for me. I, for some reason, have a very hard time not looking at my phone before I sleep. I know no one is going to text me at 1am, but I do it anyway. It’s a sport I’m trying to grow in, and we can all grow together! Use the tools you have collected this far to help you (like your journal, your reading, your ability to savor boredom). And when you wake up tomorrow, assess your sleep. Do you think you slept better? The Same? Worse? Write it down somewhere. See what happens. Sweet Dreams, The Mindful Digital Native Resources: How Blue Light Affects Sleep: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side Ways Nighttime Phone Use Destroys Your Sleep: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/prescriptions-life/201804/6-ways-night-time-phone-use-destroys-your-sleep Testimony of Someone Who Stopped Using Their Phone Before Bed: https://www.businessinsider.com/i-stopped-using-my-phone-before-bed-2018-5/ On Day 7, we talk about eyestrain. Yes, we do.
Howdy y’all, it’s me again! It is also you again, hello! Today’s activity is about reading. Reading is one of my favorite things to do, and if you follow me on Instagram, you probably know that I really love Jane Austen books. Is that relevant to this activity, no. But I just wanted to let you know. Reading on screen is a part of daily life for all of us. We read emails, we read articles, we read texts. But we seldom think about the effects of all of this screen reading. It turns out, too much digital reading can be very bad for your eyeballs. It can cause headaches, dry eyes, and (of couse) a feeling of strained eyes. And on top of that, when we read digitally, we are not actually absorbing all the information on the page. We read in an F shape that causes us to skim and skip around. We can all use a break from our screens, and reading is always a good choice. So, pick up something. Anything. Could be a magazine at the doctors office, or a book you have been meaning to read for a really long time. And my recommendation is to carry your reading item with you, if you can, and keep a bookmark in it. One thing that always kept me from finishing books was losing my place and having to find it. Outside of Digital Wellness, reading is just a great way to take a break from today and step into the rich stories of others. I’ve noticed that as people get older and they leave school, they let their love of reading fade. Use this as an opportunity to bring it back! Today, try to use your reading material, whatever it may be, to replace your phone at least once. Catch you on the flip side, The Mindful Digital Native Resources: Symptoms of Digital Eye Strain: https://www.thevisioncouncil.org/content/digital-eye-strain F-Shaped Reading Pattern: https://www.nngroup.com/articles/f-shaped-pattern-reading-web-content/ How Eyestrain Messes Up Your Eyes: https://medium.com/the-mission/digital-eye-strain-is-destroying-your-eyes-4ac7f8e87b24 It is Day 6! We really out here guys! How are you? I hope you are doing very well.
Today’s activity is about getting outside! As an engineering student,and a student in general, a lot of my time is spent inside a lab on a computer, in my room on a computer, or in a library, you guessed it, on a computer. Sometimes, I don’t get to spend large amounts of time outside, and that is not good! During this time it's also easy to assume that you should not be going outside at all, as a safety precaution. But that is NOT at all good for you. You are allowed to go outside for your own health! Technology causes us to spend less time out in the world. It is unfortunate, but true. So today, we have another simple activity. Try to spend some time outside today. At least half an hour. For me, that probably means reading outside in the little garden area my school keeps. For you, it might mean going up to the room of your apartment building and looking out. Or maybe taking a walk through your neighborhood. You do not have to go to a national park to be in touch with nature! There are probably trees outside where you live somewhere. Or, make an adventure out of finding nature in your area! But the tricky part? You are going to take your phone. You are going to take your phone, but you are not going to use it. At all. Need to check the time? Use a watch. See something pretty that you want to snap a picture of? Don’t. It sounds simple, but it is going to be a little harder than you think. You can do it though! I believe in you! Enjoy today and everyday. Catch you on the flip side, The Mindful Digital Native P.S I highly encourage you to check out the resources below Resources: Reasons playing outside is good for kids: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/6-reasons-children-need-to-play-outside-2018052213880 Why We Don’t Go Out Anymore: https://counsellingresource.com/features/2014/02/11/we-dont-go-out-anymore/ Benefits of Forest Bathing: https://time.com/5259602/japanese-forest-bathing/ More Reasons the Outdoors is Cool: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-the-outdoors-make-you_n_5508964 Experiencing the Outdoors in the City: https://blog.nwf.org/2010/03/how-to-experience-nature-in-the-city-in-seven-days/ Hello everyone and welcome to Day 5! Almost one week down!
Today we are doing one of my favorite activities, “Following” clear out. Often times, we forget that we are in control of our social media feeds. We can curate what we want to see and what we don’t want to see. So today is very simple. Go through your “following” section and kick off everything and everyone that you don’t want to see anymore. Sometimes it can feel like a breach of loyalty when you unfollow brands or people you like, or used to like. But if what they are posting doesn’t make you feel good, get rid of it. You deserve to feel safe and supported online. Doing this changed the way I consume online media. I actually unfollowed a lot more people than brands and influencers because they were acquaintances that I didn’t know well, and we exchanged handles to “keep in contact” but neither of us really bothered to. (Y’all know what I’m talking about”) Seeing what they were doing did not really add value to my experience, so I unfollowed them. The result was a less cluttered feed that was more relevant to me, as well as less things to look through, and therefore less time spent scrolling. The most important thing I would like to stress is that just because we unfollow people online doesn’t mean we unfollow them in real life. You can be friends with someone, or be nice to them, and not follow them on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook. I refuse to support that exchanging handles is a testament to friendship, but that is a conversation for another time. You might be wondering, “How can I tell who I should unfollow?” Well, looking through your “following” section, you probably already have an inkling of who you want to go. But I recommend asking that following questions (pun not intended):
Happy unfollowing (and muting), The Mindful Digital Native Resources: Reasons to Unfollow: https://www.cheatsheet.com/gear-style/12-good-reasons-unfollow-someone-social-media.html/ How to Mute People on Social Media: https://help.twitter.com/en/using-twitter/twitter-mute https://help.instagram.com/290238234687437 https://www.imore.com/how-mute-instagram-posts-and-instagram-stories https://www.wikihow.com/Mute-Someone-on-Facebook |
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