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By Shana Lebowitz
- "Digital decluttering" means a break in technology to re-evaluate your technology habits and make permanent changes.
- According to Cal Newport, author of "Digital Minimalism".
- Newport says that "digital detox" is not as effective, just switch to action and get back to normal.
At the moment, it's almost a cliché to proclaim that you are "addicted" to your smartphone and that you need a break.
But if you're thinking of getting into a "digital rehab", think again. "Digital detox" is a popular term for a limited period of time without your phone, your computer, your iPad – you get the picture – in order to recharge your mind batteries and reconnect with people and activities that you really appreciate.
As CNN's Jeanne Sahadi recently reported, senior executives are increasingly coming to retirement without digital technology, where they can spend time outdoors, working and meditating.
In his new book, "Digital Minimalism," Cal Newport, professor of computer science at Georgetown University, explains why these detoxes are totally ineffective in order to address an obsession with technology. Like Newport's previous book, "Deep Work," the new book argues for reducing daily distractions so you have the time and attention to work on important topics.
As an alternative to digital detoxification, Newport is proposing a process he calls "digital decluttering." Here's how it works: you set a 30-day period to escape from the optional technologies of your life; you use this time to explore and rediscover activities that you think are meaningful; At the end of the break, you reintroduce the optional technologies one by one, carefully evaluating its value and future use.
The difference between detoxification and decluttering is that you do not let yourself be imposed by technology, but you go back to it immediately; Instead, you use the break as a starting point to change your technology relationship permanently.
Remember to apply Marie Kondo's approach to family organization to digital technology. You do not just get rid of things and straighten your house just to fill it up and ruin it tomorrow; you constantly remember to consider which objects "arouse joy".
With decluttering, you could learn how much you depend on digital technology.
In December 2017, Newport invited people to try digital decluttering and, he wrote, more than 1,600 people signed up. The New York Times published an article on the Newport experience, noting that most participants reported developing new hobbies such as painting and writing.
Newport writes in the book: "People were surprised to learn how much their digital life had become cluttered with reflexive behaviors and compulsive tics."
Read more: 9 successful CEOs and entrepreneurs who can spend hours, sometimes days, without consulting their email or phone
Newport advises future digital de-clutterers to replace the use of digital technology with other activities, before the start of the experiment, otherwise risk of sinking into anxiety and anxiety. 39; boredom.
He adds: "You want to reach the end of decluttering after rediscovering the kind of activities that generate real satisfaction, which allows you to confidently build a better life – in which technology only serves as support for more significant purposes. "
Originally posted on Business Insider.
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