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Hi Team,

Last week I proposed that we are living through a revolution in human behaviour and how the global economy works is changing forever.

Ecommerce and social media affects almost every part of our lives and more and more of our dollars are being spent online. 

Our behaviour has changed to such an extent that there is now a new type of injury or death called "Injury or death by distraction".


Our devices and social media apps are so good at monopolizing our attention that it is easy to become disconnected from everything around you and this lack of awareness and distraction can have devastating consequences. 

The problem is not the technology itself, it's how we chose to use the technology. Is it serving us or are we serving it?" Mark Manson

The myriad of apps we all voluntarily subscribe to are constantly competing for our attention (our clicks, our views, our comments, our sharing etc. etc.). So, our attention has become very valuable to anyone trying to promote a product or conduct business online. Unfortunately, the quality of the attention doesn't matter; any form of attention is the asset.

"The most sophisticated software in existence is tasked with figuring out how to keep you from leaving the website." Hank Green

The attention economy has introduced some negative social changes. The websites that grab the most attention tend to be distributing the more shocking and extreme content. Narcissistic behaviour and people that are good at self-promotion get the most attention and are rewarded with a huge number of followers/subscribers and a disproportionate amount of income.
 
The online world allows shallow, self-absorbed and opinionated behaviour to dominate and spread and this is a real worry. 
How you use your attention and what you decide to spend time doing online is very important for your own health and happiness and for the good of society in general. 

"In the attention economy anyone trying to connect with an audience must treat the user's time as the ultimate resource." Jakob Neilsen

The ability to control your own attention and to focus on stuff that matters has become a super important skill. Ultimately it is only discerning focus that generates long-term success and meaningful connections and relationships.

Thanks for reading,
Stay safe and stop wasting time on stupid stuff.