“For he who cracks the riddle of attention holds one of the most crucial secrets of the human mind.”
Human beings for the first time have access to the world’s information. Feeds, real-time information blasts, opinions, articles, tutorials, videos and people-powered encyclopedias have unchained access to knowledge. Yet, the very nature and speed in which we access this information has become addicting. We constantly check our phone when we’re standing in line. Oh, your plane got delayed? Just hide out in your blackberry, and pretend to check your email in order to avoid a conversation with a stranger.
The technologies we use to control time have instead begun controlling us. Effectiveness has been replaced by capability. For example, the Amazon Kindle is a device that allows you to read books electronically on the go. I’ve got an alternative to reading electronic books on the go, it’s called–gasp–a book.
With the rapid wealth of technologies, tools and capabilities being blasted through us on blogs like Tech Crunch or Mashable every single day, it’s extremely easy to get caught up in the cess. I know from experience. It’s happened to me.
There are two things missing today that threaten long-term productivity in society:
- A 1,000 Foot View: More today, than ever before, start-ups are getting launched without understanding why they’re in business. I’ve said it before, the best online companies are those that solve offline problems. Every single Twitter add-on that I’ve come across solves an online problem. I never use them.
- Attention: Our society is filled with multi-tasking, constantly-captivating stimuli. We’re drowning out emotion through constantly checking our phone.
This second element is what Maggie Jackson’s book, “Distracted,” focuses on.
I was expecting something else when I picked up Maggie Jackson’s book. I figured it would be another “How to.” For example, “How to focus, How to get organized, How to clear off your desk, How to get disciplined.”
It was quite different. It was deep.
Through travels, case studies and meetings with ground-breaking professors, Maggie uncovers the deep implications of a society that is constantly distracted.
Maggie dissects the three critical networks of attention:
- Orienting: Discovery and orienting oneself to the environment around you.
- Alerting: Awareness (people attempt to enhance this through coffee)
- Executive: Troubleshooting ( development peaks at age 8 )
She also tells the tale of man’s extraordinary capabilities of focusing when in the zone. She cites Charles Bonnet’s intense study of insects from 5:30am to 11pm for 21 days straight. You see, the masters of the universe back in the 1800′s were those who dominated their own minds by controlling its wandering ways.
The element of attention and distraction also involves the element of time. Economist Jeremy Rifkin once established that, “The great turning points in human history are often triggered by changing conceptions of space and time.”
Maggie also addresses the question, “How do some focus in seemingly effortless fashion, while others cannot?”
Is it genetics? Experience?
Maggie answers, “Both.”
I found Maggie’s segment about Tibetan Buddhism to be rather refreshing. Maggie visited the Shambala Mountain Center in Colorado. It’s a place that I’ve studied at before–hoping to further understand the mind, the concept of focus and meditation. When I was there, there were Buddhist monks who would separate themselves from society from 3 months at a time. Maggie connected with researchers at the center who were attempting to measure the results of this practice.
They found the results did, indeed, dictate improvements in attention and focus. The adult brain can (i) grow new neurons, (ii) rezone new regions, (iii) repair damaged regions.
In the end, distraction is a critical element in our environment that we must become aware of, and hopefully, develop some control over it.
You can learn more about Maggie at her website here.