I recently added the Lewis Howes podcast to my lineup. So far, I have really enjoyed each one and this one was no different. In this episode, Lewis interviews Cal Newport. Cal Newport is a computer science professor at Georgetown University. In addition to academic research, he writes about the intersection of technology and society. He’s particularly interested in the impact of new technologies on our ability to perform productive work or lead satisfying lives. Cal recommends building “fences” around our phones so that we’re not using them mindlessly all day.
One of the main things I took away from this is Cal’s 30 day detox, which is taking a break from all of your apps on your phone for one month. Basically deleting all apps except for the ones you cannot delete. At the end of the month, you then slowly start to add back apps that you need. What most people find is that they don’t need many of the apps they had before, that were mindlessly robbing their time and distracting them from accomplishing other tasks.
Here are some questions Lewis asks during the Podcast:
- What do you recommend for people who are always connected to technology? (10:30)
- How can we build stronger connections? (18:00)
- What’s the void that we are trying to fill with social media? (24:00)
- What’s more addictive: social media or smoking? (32:00)
- How can you train your children to work at things (54:00)
In This Episode, You Will Learn:
- How to train your focus (2:00)
- The three benefits from being alone (8:00)
- Why you need “analog” hobbies (30:00)
- Why anxiety has risen in younger generations (32:00)
- The reason Cal recommends 30 days away from technology (43:00)