Digital Minimalism: A Book Review

We’re all aware that technology can become a pervasive force in our lives if we don’t set boundaries.

I have been hearing great things about Cal Newport’s book, Digital Minimalism. Today, I’m excited to share some of those insights with you.

Minimalism: A lifestyle based on the idea that better living can come from doing and having less.

People born between 1995 and 2012 are spending an average of nine hours a day on devices! They’re known as the iGeneration.

When the iPhone was first announced, Steve Jobs marketed it as “The best iPod ever.” Little did we know that smartphones would change our lives physically, emotionally, and socially. Though it wasn’t the intention, smartphones have become addictive.

These lifestyle changes can be credited to what is called the attention economy. Social media companies such as Facebook and Instagram stay profitable by making their platforms as addictive as possible. Features such as the “like” button were not invented to make us feel good. Social media giants know that these notifications will keep us coming back over and over again.

I love that the claims made in the book are backed by research; more specifically, a study was conducted on 1,600 participants. Each participant was asked to take a month-long sabbatical from technology using the author’s suggestions about digital minimalism.

Here’s what I got out of the book:

• Clutter is costly (time, energy, focus, productivity, anxiety, etc.)
• Don’t confuse convenience for necessity.
• Intentionality is satisfying.
• Most participants in the study reported that the value they gained from social media was much lower than the amount of time it consumed.

Conclusion:

This book has definitely given me some things to consider from a mental health perspective and I would recommend it to anyone. For my story of how I applied Digital Minimalism to my life, click here. You can find this book here.

What are your thoughts? Share with me in the comments!

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