The first two weeks of 2021 hit me with two realities.
The first one involves all of us. We are at the brink of the digital wars. And, if you can’t tell by the initial conflicts (here, and here, and [...]), it's going to be like nothing we have ever seen before. The advancements and consequences of digital developments are already far too complex for most of us to understand.
The second one involves me, as a digital marketer. I am an active participant on the war for your attention — so, I guess it kind-of involves you too, as I made you read this.
Now, if the last two paragraphs are the only statements you read about me, you’ll conclude I’m a doomsayer and a hypocrite — and you’ll only be half correct.
How can I advocate for digital minimalism when my livelihood depends on you mindlessly clicking, scrolling and consuming, right? Hypocritical. Again, half correct.
I believe digital tools are the greatest innovation humans have created since written systems. I believe *mindful* consumption is a great asset [almost obligatory] for anyone in the modern world. And, for the same reasons, I believe mindless digital consumption can potentially make my career a short-lived one — as it’ll eventually consume all of us.
There are amazing digital projects out there. Even from the Big Tech companies that I plan on calling out — and those nuances are the most interesting elements in the current digital space.
From Apple News+, yet another Apple subscription I started paying — for the sake of convenience — that allows me to bundle magazine publications and read articles without the need to read someone’s opinion on someone’s opinion on someone’s Op-ed on Twitter. All while paying for content, an all-too important aspect of mindful consumption.
To experiments from Google that blend the line between tech concepts and art — like this Chrome Extension that translate your scrolling into actual length and juxtaposes it with the route of El camino de Santiago — or this app that turns your phone essentials into a paper phone — a foldable PDF.
One of my resolutions is to consume more mindfully, curate more and engage more intensely (with less content), as it is a vital part of my job. And, through this newsletter, encourage you to take an hour or two off on Sundays to mindfully consume content, instead of 15 minutes every 30 minutes every day. Hopefully, throughout this project, we’ll enhance our understanding on healthy digital routines.
ON THE TOPIC AT HAND
[1] Cal Newport, whose blog is one of the biggest influences for this newsletter describes Digital Minimalism as
“A philosophy of technology use in which you focus your online time on a small number of carefully selected and optimized activities that strongly support things you value, and then happily miss out on everything else.”
Cal Newport on Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World
Newport does not advocate for the absence of technology. After all, a big part of his career is made by posting online. Likewise, I will not tell you to read this newsletter and nothing else. But instead, challenge you to rethink your tech habits and remove anything that does not support “things you value”.
(We’ll expand on this point in a few weeks.)
[2] I’m not telling you to downgrade to a flip-phone. I’m the person that gets excited about every single Apple announcement and livestreams every Keynote — although it feels like every time they have more hype, and less technological advancements.
[3] I’m searching for a way to make tech more useful and less draining. Same with time.
This video by Vsauce on Illusions of Time is the perfect set up. The video covers brilliant issues on time perception, chronocentrism, and the macrosociological impacts of technology.
Not all time is created equal.
Some people might frown at the idea of watching a 32 minute video essay. Others might bookmark it for later. Many will spend much more than that scrolling through Instagram Stories until they loathe themselves.
Sometimes I’m all of the above
Not all content is created equal.
(We’ll expand on this too).
This newsletter is a little bit about all of the above, about mindfully consuming digital content. But, it is also about the content itself — about cool stuff on the internet.
COOL STUFF ON THE INTERNET
There is not going to be a constant structure, just a constant schedule — one issue every Sunday. This is Issue 0. Next Sunday I’ll be sending Issue 1.
Feel free to save, print, forward, reply — actually, please do so!
And click freely, I promise all hyperlinks are curated with the Good Stuff!
With Love and Good Times,
Felix Ernesto