The 21st century world is an assault on our senses like never before.
Noisier, brighter (but also darker), smellier and a whole lot rougher round the edges than it was even a decade ago.
- We’re consuming more, but we’re no happier
- We’re reading and listening to more, but we’re no smarter
- We’re connected to more people, but we have fewer friends.
I reckon there’s a simple reason for this.
We spread our attention superficially across a million different things, and we don’t go deep enough with anything before we discard it.
Here are some things to try:
- When you next read a book, implement the ideas in it before you read another
- When you listen to music, play the whole album, instead of 5 seconds of a song
- Make a to-do list with ONE thing on it, and don’t stop till you’ve finished it
- Instead of advertising to 10,000 people, have a 20-minute conversation with one person who looks like your next ideal client
- Build an Inner Circle of 5 people, and hang out with them. A lot.
Most people treat their mind like a dumping ground for low-effort, low-impact, lightweight trash.
You’re smart, so don’t do landfill.
Recycle the heavyweight, important stuff, and use it till it doesn’t work anymore.