Do You Struggle With Tech Addiction? ☠️

Social media isn’t what it used to be.

So, why is it more addictive than ever? What makes tech and social media so sticky in the first place?

If you’re wondering whether it’s an accident, it’s not. In fact, social media + tech companies have invested billions in perfecting the capture of the most powerful resource on Earth – your attention.

“I was stuck on my phone for 11, 12 hours a day.”

“I hate social media, but I can’t stop using it.”

“Nothing feels special about scrolling – it just feels like I have to do it.” 

It’s common to hear these kinds of testimonials from people of all ages, vocalizing the frustration of tech addiction.

“Our phones have been made intentionally addictive using powerful psychological techniques,“ says Jack Winston, co-founder of BePresent.

The company they’ve built punches back at addictive tech by knocking down screen time and gifting people their valuable time back. 

It was because of their experiences, or, as Jack puts it, a rock-bottom moment – that he and his brother Charles ditched their corporate jobs to develop something with purpose. 

Like much of Gen-Z, Jack and Charles sat powerless as years of their life were shaved away due to tech addiction.

Now that they’re adults, they can see right through the complex engineering and psychological hacking that corrupts our attention.

But most people are oblivious to the predatory nature of the tech they use, leaving them vulnerable to manipulation, coercion, and hopeless despair.

Their attention and their clicks are commodified, while their energy and motivation is drained. 

After watching this podcast, you’ll walk away with one grim realization about the tech companies that claim to serve you:

You are the product. 

But all is not lost! In fact, it’s quite the opposite – the fight against tech addiction starts with you, and your weapon is where you choose to place your attention. 

Where is Joy? 🤩

“Even if you are not ready for the day, it cannot always be night …”

At any given moment, joy is somewhere around.

Even in the darkest throes of despair, tucked behind some haunting obstacle, joy is there, waiting to be discovered.

Of course, when things are tough and pain subsumes all emotion, it can feel like joy packed up and left you behind.

All in all, the absence of joy feels like loneliness — perhaps the most hollow, agonizing feeling of all.

But joy never actually goes anywhere — it can just be harder to see it.

That’s why it’s important to develop the tools for finding joy in any space.

Think of it like a pair of prescription glasses that help you see with clarity and precision – now that you can see better, you can recognize where joy is at.

Don’t believe me? Ask Viktor Frankl, a holocaust survivor and author of Man’s Search for Meaning.

Frankl argues that while we may not have control over external circumstances, we always have the freedom to choose our attitude about things.

This mental freedom allows us to focus on small moments of beauty, gratitude, or connection, even in difficult situations.

Recognizing the power of attitude helps people shift their focus to aspects of life that bring joy, no matter how small.

The reality is that it’s never really that bad, and if it is, it could be worse.

Frankl had this idea of “saying yes to life in spite of everything.” 

In his case, since being okay with life while imprisoned in a WWII death camp was totally feasible, life must be universally tolerable. 

You gonna argue him otherwise?

Joy is present with you right now. 

Can you see it? Maybe it’ll help to put on your glasses.

Is it in your thoughts? Or is further ahead in your day?

You may find joy in the smell of coffee brewing in the next room, or from the lamp light by your bed, or from sunshine outside your window, or the words of this here post.

Wherever you may find it, praise.