​DIGITAL DETOX

Overload. It's becoming more common. In the sea of information, and while using the most powerful tool that the masses have ever been given, it can at times be too much. It's not the raw potential that is too much, but the fact that information is almost becoming an echo chamber. Region to region we have to face down the issues of the era, but in knowing people who are on the same or even on opposing waves, the messages start to become repetitive. Along with this, it starts to become apparent that people are essentially yelling at clouds.
There is a clear difference between calls to action and venting.
Many times I find myself watching the equivalent of reality television unfold in the post or post-repost link through to comment sections. It's just discourse. People being mad or sad or shocked and sharing it. It has become almost automatic. This part right here is the major issue.
It's not that people aren't thinking as a whole, it's that people are only thinking about a part of the process that they're going through each day. They think about the issues, they reach their logical conclusion, and then they side with the post torrent that aligns with that view. After this they get swept up into the automatic process of spamming or parroting the ideology.
What's the danger in this? What's the harm?
The danger and harm come through in several points.
First, TIME.
We burn time in doing this. Hours and hours spent over years pushing buttons to share ideas and get an emotional spike. The clashes, the likes, the energy. It burns TIME which we will NEVER be able to get back.
Second, ENERGY.
I speak of energy in terms of polarity. When we interact with things we train our minds. We train them to habitually flow through certain routes more easily. This can be done for productive means, and destructive means. We have a limited amount of energy each day, but this can very easily be squandered. This squandering or productive use begins to add up. Energy, like time is a limited resource. If you curate the flow of this energy and you reinforce the right polarity in its use, you will see exponential gains. Your life will naturally trend to the productive and positive side. This in turn leads to a deeper sense of fulfillment.
Third, HABIT.
The repetitive hard wiring of actions can be both beneficial or detrimental. When actions slip into this automatic stage after heavy repetition, we essentially surrender all control of the active mind. Knowing which actions to put into the active and which to repeat until they become automatic will have a massive effect on your life. Professional basketball players repeat their motions so that in the heat of the game they don't have to think about how to hit a jump shot. The body simply does what it is supposed to do. If these repetitions are trained on things that are non productive or detrimental to the individual, when it counts, the person will fall automatically into doing the wrong thing. This adds up and can steer one into oblivion. (Dramatic but true)
To conclude :
If one's actions become automatic, and they drain the finite resources of time and energy , over and over again, every day , for years, the individual is essentially being robbed of their life by an automatic process. There is a solid way to avoid this. Actively limiting and at times completely removing the activities that have the potential to build up that automatic process.
A digital detoxification.
Yelling at clouds is the same as spinning wheels. It's action but it isn't a call to action.
Be conscious of where your time and energy go. Be conscious of your habits. It is great to join with allies and bring about positive change, but we must remain cautious of which actions we're actually participating in. Although something may feel productive, it's often necessary for us to step back and truly analyze what traction is actually being made.
 
- MANIKK -