A Journey of Self-Discovery and Digital Minimalism
On Living With a Purpose
In my journey battling several mental ailments, one thing kept making itself evident time and time again. I lost the joy that I used to get from a variety of hobbies and pastimes. Programming, video games, learning new languages, learning new things, among others. It is easy to blame all of this on depression and call it a day. But the question remains, why is it that I can spend hours scrolling mindlessly on social media, but I cannot stand 5 minutes of doing an activity that I know brings me fulfillment?
At first, I thought the main culprit is ADHD. It is difficult for someone with ADHD to engage in activity that is slow-burning but fulfilling in the long-run. But I later concluded that it is not a full answer. I was born with ADHD, I did not contract it later in life. So why is it that I was able to derive joy from my hobbies in the past, but now I can't? There has to be other factors at play.
One thing is clear though, if I wish to live with intentionality and purpose, I must take a long, hard look at my life and determine what are the things I truly value and cut out the plaque that grew in the arteries of my soul over the years.
On Digital Minimalism and Taking Back Control
I came across a book called Digital Minimalism - Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport. The book put in the forefront what I had feared and suspected a long time ago. My relationship with digital services such as Twitter, Discord, Reddit, among others have become unsustainable. It had gotten to the point where I cannot even sit for a seconds-long elevator ride without pulling out my phone and checking my timelines. Checking my notifications and feeds has become a nervous tick and habit that I use to fill every idle second in my life. My mind is already occupied with so much as someone who struggles with anxiety, filling it with more junk only serves to worsen my stress and anxiety.
I always knew that my relationship with technology was unsustainable, I found myself asking these questions a lot:
- Do I really need to be reachable 24/7 by my friends and family and respond to them immediately? How did people live before the invention of smartphones?
- Do I really need to know every piece of news related to my hobbies? Even if those news were more often than not upsetting?
- Am I really benefiting from Twitter more than I am being harmed? Yes it helps me stay informed and I get to see pretty art. But is it worth the constant negativity cultivated by social media algorithms?
- Am I using these social media sites? Or are they using me?
I could write a whole book about my thoughts on this topic so I will cut it short. I want to adapt a Minimalistic approach to these digital services. I want to use them only when I need to. Only when I WANT to. I don't want to feel compelled to use them every idle second of my life.
To start this journey, I will follow the steps outlined in Digital Minimalism, starting with the Digital Declutter.
The Digital Declutter
For the next 30 days, I will remove all non-essential online services from my life. For any services that I feel like are somewhat important to my personal or professional life, I will use strict operating procedures to use them. For example, I use Discord to stay in touch with my friends, so no need to remove it from my life, what I will do instead is keep it installed on my computer. This way I can reach my friends if I need to and want to. I don't need to be able to reach them at a moment's notice, if that is the case, I will simply call them instead.
I will delete the following apps from my phone:
- Discord
- YouTube
And I will heavily restrict the notifications from apps like WhatsApp and Email.
After 30 days, I will strategically reintegrate some of the applications that I deem add value to my life, and I will only add them in a way that is restrictive and gets only serving the intended purpose and nothing more.
This isn't about going into monk mode or rejecting technology. It is about using technology with intentionality. It is about using technology as a tool, and taking back control from the attention economy. I am sick of being used and abused by billionaires who think they can control my life. It is time to take back control.
I will continue to blog about my experience and results in various platforms. I don't really expect anyone to read this, but I will do it nonetheless, even if just for me.
Wish me luck!
