In many ways connection has been disastrous. We have confused information (of which there is too much) with ideas (of which there are too few). I found out much more about the world and myself by being unconnected. - Paul Theroux
This may draw some controversy but I would like to explain a lifestyle strategy that has brought a great deal of clarity into my life and helped me to become more disciplined, to the extent that any drawbacks have been far outweighed by the benefits.
I am advocating that guys experiment with disconnecting from the Internet at home and also remove data-plan Internet access from their phones (Wifi is okay). I followed both of these steps inadvertently for a summer once and found that, though boring, they improved my life by forcing me to get out more and interact with people. I was also more productive at work, and I became quite fit, adonic even.
Here is how it works:
- unsubscribe from an Internet service at home. Also switch your phone plan to calls and texts only, with no data-plan Internet access. You of course can access the Internet anywhere else - at work, outside of home, etc.
- this means that when you arrive home you`re cut off from the online world
- in effect, this forces you to get your logistics and organizational work done by the time that you leave work or wherever. It thus makes you more efficient with your time because you know that you have to focus on getting only the really important stuff done by the time that you leave - no Facebook, no clickbait garbage, etc.
- and in the long run being at home is really nice as it clears up your mind for longer-term thinking and the development of new ideas - the kind that a lot of guys here will have never experienced because they grew up with the Internet. The Internet is fantastic but it also distracts us from deeper thinking.
- you disconnect your phone from the Internet as well so that you don`t cheat. If you`re out and about in a city, you can probably find wifi to connect if you get lost or something and need directions
Here are the main benefits that I see from disconnecting from the Internet at home:
- the main one is really important - clarity of thought, perspective, more strategic thinking. How many of us have been caught in a technology loop? I found when I started the disconnection process that I remembered all sorts of things that I`d been too distracted before to allow back into my consciousness. This helped me a great deal in my development as a man as it allowed me a certain way out of the trap of modern life to always have something going on - after all, what`s the rush?
- you`ll go out more and be more social as there`s not as much to do at home
- you`ll get more exercise, whether it be going to the gym (because you`re not tempted to continue looking at some useless article online) or just taking a walk around the neighborhood
- better sleep (less temptation to stay up, and you`re more aware of what your body needs)
- you`ll work less (no ability to check email after work hours) or be more efficient while you`re at work. Come on - in the long run it`s not healthy or beneficial to you as a man to work yourself ragged. We should probably all be working less generally, with some exceptions for guys in the younger stages of their development, but even to them I`d recommend that they go to the gym rather than getting in that last bit of work.
- you`ll do more deep reading, usually from books, rather than reading a bunch of articles online. Both are necessary but when I`m always connected, I read too many articles and not enough books. I found that I hadn`t read a work of literature in over a year.
Here are some of the drawbacks:
- you can`t get shit done at home if it requires the Internet. Personally I can sufficiently mitigate this by doing it at work or at Starbucks on the weekend. It`s not 100% effective as sometimes I really could do with researching stuff at home for a couple hours, but on the whole this drawback is neutralized by the ability, when I really need to, to access the Internet at work or by going out.
- harder to respond to personal emails and social media. Generally though you should be limiting your social media presence, unless it`s for business. If people want to talk to you, they can call or text. Regarding online game, it may be better to cease this almost entirely, as I have.
- harder to conduct a business if you have your own. I have a side hustle and if I really need to get something done online, I`ll just bring my laptop to a cafe with wifi, or go in to work a bit early the next day and get stuff done then. Obviously this will be more of an issue to some guys than others. But it`s still possible. Think of all the guys in Chiang Mai, Thailand who run their own businesses from cafes or hotel lobbies or wherever. The point is, it can be worked around.
- life is more boring. But, on the other hand, it`s not good for our long-term development and happiness to be stimulated all the time. You need mental down time.
Why disconnect entirely at home? Why not just be connected but limit yourself to certain hours of the day, relying on willpower? Personally it didn`t work for me and I gave in. Also, relying on willpower for one thing reduces your ability to resist other temptations - we seem to have a limited reserve of willpower in any given day. It`s probably better to just disconnect entirely and preserve your willpower for going to the gym, etc.
Again, I`m sure that this sounds absolutely implausible to a lot of guys. You`ve got shit to do, money to make, and you have to be connected. It`s true that particularly with online businesses you need to respond quickly to ensure the sale or deal. I am not denying this.
I am saying, though, that for a lot of guys it actually is not only plausible, but will bring them greater long-term success in their business, their game, and their fitness and health (among other things) to afford themselves the clarity of thought that comes from being disconnected. Particularly with business, the ability to think things through is vital and I think that most people would say that being disconnected really helps us to do this. Some people even pay serious cash to be disconnected.
We used to run toward technology that connected us. Now, the luxury is to run away.
Some writers, like Pico Iyer, seem to agree:
The urgency of slowing down — to find the time and space to think — is nothing new, of course, and wiser souls have always reminded us that the more attention we pay to the moment, the less time and energy we have to place it in some larger context. “Distraction is the only thing that consoles us for our miseries,” the French philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in the 17th century, “and yet it is itself the greatest of our miseries.” He also famously remarked that all of man’s problems come from his inability to sit quietly in a room alone...
A series of tests in recent years has shown... that after spending time in quiet rural settings, subjects “exhibit greater attentiveness, stronger memory and generally improved cognition. Their brains become both calmer and sharper.” More than that, empathy, as well as deep thought, depends... on neural processes that are “inherently slow.” The very ones our high-speed lives have little time for...
It’s vital, of course, to stay in touch with the world, and to know what’s going on... But it’s only by having some distance from the world that you can see it whole, and understand what you should be doing with it.
The Internet has changed my life for the better, beyond any doubt. In my mind though it needs to be experienced in moderation, otherwise we become somewhat predictable in our personalities - very literal and lacking in creativity. Having a few hours of free time at night and in the morning helps us to be more strategic and long-term in our thinking, and gives us perspective on what`s going on. It helps us ultimately to be more aware of the world and of the opportunities that surround us.
I imagine that a lot of guys will say that I am a Luddite and nuts, but I`d say that you should try it for a month and see how you feel. Being connected 24-7 has become standard to the point where we don`t remember what it feels like to be somewhere alone with our own thoughts. You need this time to be creative and to afford yourself perspective.
In brief, disconnecting from the Internet at home has made me more disciplined and improved my life. Any drawbacks can be mostly mitigated and anyway are far outweighed by the benefits - at least for me. I recommend that everyone try it for a month.
This may draw some controversy but I would like to explain a lifestyle strategy that has brought a great deal of clarity into my life and helped me to become more disciplined, to the extent that any drawbacks have been far outweighed by the benefits.
I am advocating that guys experiment with disconnecting from the Internet at home and also remove data-plan Internet access from their phones (Wifi is okay). I followed both of these steps inadvertently for a summer once and found that, though boring, they improved my life by forcing me to get out more and interact with people. I was also more productive at work, and I became quite fit, adonic even.
Here is how it works:
- unsubscribe from an Internet service at home. Also switch your phone plan to calls and texts only, with no data-plan Internet access. You of course can access the Internet anywhere else - at work, outside of home, etc.
- this means that when you arrive home you`re cut off from the online world
- in effect, this forces you to get your logistics and organizational work done by the time that you leave work or wherever. It thus makes you more efficient with your time because you know that you have to focus on getting only the really important stuff done by the time that you leave - no Facebook, no clickbait garbage, etc.
- and in the long run being at home is really nice as it clears up your mind for longer-term thinking and the development of new ideas - the kind that a lot of guys here will have never experienced because they grew up with the Internet. The Internet is fantastic but it also distracts us from deeper thinking.
- you disconnect your phone from the Internet as well so that you don`t cheat. If you`re out and about in a city, you can probably find wifi to connect if you get lost or something and need directions
Here are the main benefits that I see from disconnecting from the Internet at home:
- the main one is really important - clarity of thought, perspective, more strategic thinking. How many of us have been caught in a technology loop? I found when I started the disconnection process that I remembered all sorts of things that I`d been too distracted before to allow back into my consciousness. This helped me a great deal in my development as a man as it allowed me a certain way out of the trap of modern life to always have something going on - after all, what`s the rush?
- you`ll go out more and be more social as there`s not as much to do at home
- you`ll get more exercise, whether it be going to the gym (because you`re not tempted to continue looking at some useless article online) or just taking a walk around the neighborhood
- better sleep (less temptation to stay up, and you`re more aware of what your body needs)
- you`ll work less (no ability to check email after work hours) or be more efficient while you`re at work. Come on - in the long run it`s not healthy or beneficial to you as a man to work yourself ragged. We should probably all be working less generally, with some exceptions for guys in the younger stages of their development, but even to them I`d recommend that they go to the gym rather than getting in that last bit of work.
- you`ll do more deep reading, usually from books, rather than reading a bunch of articles online. Both are necessary but when I`m always connected, I read too many articles and not enough books. I found that I hadn`t read a work of literature in over a year.
Here are some of the drawbacks:
- you can`t get shit done at home if it requires the Internet. Personally I can sufficiently mitigate this by doing it at work or at Starbucks on the weekend. It`s not 100% effective as sometimes I really could do with researching stuff at home for a couple hours, but on the whole this drawback is neutralized by the ability, when I really need to, to access the Internet at work or by going out.
- harder to respond to personal emails and social media. Generally though you should be limiting your social media presence, unless it`s for business. If people want to talk to you, they can call or text. Regarding online game, it may be better to cease this almost entirely, as I have.
- harder to conduct a business if you have your own. I have a side hustle and if I really need to get something done online, I`ll just bring my laptop to a cafe with wifi, or go in to work a bit early the next day and get stuff done then. Obviously this will be more of an issue to some guys than others. But it`s still possible. Think of all the guys in Chiang Mai, Thailand who run their own businesses from cafes or hotel lobbies or wherever. The point is, it can be worked around.
- life is more boring. But, on the other hand, it`s not good for our long-term development and happiness to be stimulated all the time. You need mental down time.
Why disconnect entirely at home? Why not just be connected but limit yourself to certain hours of the day, relying on willpower? Personally it didn`t work for me and I gave in. Also, relying on willpower for one thing reduces your ability to resist other temptations - we seem to have a limited reserve of willpower in any given day. It`s probably better to just disconnect entirely and preserve your willpower for going to the gym, etc.
Again, I`m sure that this sounds absolutely implausible to a lot of guys. You`ve got shit to do, money to make, and you have to be connected. It`s true that particularly with online businesses you need to respond quickly to ensure the sale or deal. I am not denying this.
I am saying, though, that for a lot of guys it actually is not only plausible, but will bring them greater long-term success in their business, their game, and their fitness and health (among other things) to afford themselves the clarity of thought that comes from being disconnected. Particularly with business, the ability to think things through is vital and I think that most people would say that being disconnected really helps us to do this. Some people even pay serious cash to be disconnected.
We used to run toward technology that connected us. Now, the luxury is to run away.
Some writers, like Pico Iyer, seem to agree:
The urgency of slowing down — to find the time and space to think — is nothing new, of course, and wiser souls have always reminded us that the more attention we pay to the moment, the less time and energy we have to place it in some larger context. “Distraction is the only thing that consoles us for our miseries,” the French philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in the 17th century, “and yet it is itself the greatest of our miseries.” He also famously remarked that all of man’s problems come from his inability to sit quietly in a room alone...
A series of tests in recent years has shown... that after spending time in quiet rural settings, subjects “exhibit greater attentiveness, stronger memory and generally improved cognition. Their brains become both calmer and sharper.” More than that, empathy, as well as deep thought, depends... on neural processes that are “inherently slow.” The very ones our high-speed lives have little time for...
It’s vital, of course, to stay in touch with the world, and to know what’s going on... But it’s only by having some distance from the world that you can see it whole, and understand what you should be doing with it.
The Internet has changed my life for the better, beyond any doubt. In my mind though it needs to be experienced in moderation, otherwise we become somewhat predictable in our personalities - very literal and lacking in creativity. Having a few hours of free time at night and in the morning helps us to be more strategic and long-term in our thinking, and gives us perspective on what`s going on. It helps us ultimately to be more aware of the world and of the opportunities that surround us.
I imagine that a lot of guys will say that I am a Luddite and nuts, but I`d say that you should try it for a month and see how you feel. Being connected 24-7 has become standard to the point where we don`t remember what it feels like to be somewhere alone with our own thoughts. You need this time to be creative and to afford yourself perspective.
In brief, disconnecting from the Internet at home has made me more disciplined and improved my life. Any drawbacks can be mostly mitigated and anyway are far outweighed by the benefits - at least for me. I recommend that everyone try it for a month.