Great move. Been deleting IG and FB off n on for 2 years. Usually for 1 month and at times, 90 days off.
However, I noticed once im back, the binge-natured sequence kicks in again.
Guess what? I deleted my accounts 😃, was difficult to do. But 60 days off no account or any reason to go visit the app that adds nothing to my life, im now getting to start new things.
Writing a book now, studying and have read 5 books this year alone, something I couldn't do in many years, not even a book in 5 years.
The fact I cant remember any of the videos after the binge-scrolling spree is 💔💔
There’s something almost industrial about the way attention is treated now.
Not as something human and limited, but as something to be extracted, refined, and resold. Every scroll, every pause, every glance gets fed back into a system that learns how to hold you just a little longer next time.
It’s like standing in a crowded market where every voice is calling your name at once. Not because they know you, but because they’ve learned the exact tone that makes you turn your head.
And the strange part is, the moment you realize it, the noise doesn’t stop. But it does change. It stops feeling random, and starts feeling deliberate.
Spot on. In the Larger Consciousness System’s virtual reality, your attention is your most precious resource. It is where your consciousness is directed, and that direction determines your entropy trajectory.
Social media and infinite feeds are high-contrast traps that pull you into fear, comparison, distraction, and dopamine loops—all entropy raisers. Every scroll you don’t choose consciously is a missed chance to lower entropy through focused intent and love-based awareness.
The game rewards those who reclaim sovereignty over their attention. Master where you place it, protect it fiercely, and use it for growth. That’s one of the fastest ways to level up in this simulation.
Your post reminds me of a favorite stoic of mine, Seneca, who said “it’s not that life is short, it’s that we waste so much of it.” That seems to be more relevant today than ever in history!
You're right, I keep paraphrasing when you gave me the exact words. Here:
---
The Stoics got this right, but they didn't go quite far enough. They didn't live in the age of technology like this. They understood attention as something worth protecting, but they couldn't have imagined a world engineered at this scale to capture it. We need to be modern-day Stoics now, thinking about the bigger picture the way they did, not just guarding against distraction but asking what attention actually is.
The uproar is all about the theft. And somehow we are absolutely silently missing what we could do if we paid attention to our own attention. Because attention isn't just a resource. It's a navigational instrument. It works like a microscope. Whatever you put it on, you magnify. You study. It becomes more of you than it ever would have been otherwise. Where you place it consistently, you structurally become. That's not metaphor, that's neuroscience.
So yes, technology is stealing your attention. But maybe the silver lining is this: the theft has gotten so loud and so obvious that we're finally paying attention to our attention. And that's exactly where awareness, development, and healing begin.
Maybe thank the algorithm for being so obnoxious that it woke us up.
Perhaps the deepest problem is not that people suffer from their interpretations.
It is that they no longer recognize them as interpretations at all.
A thought appears, and within seconds it hardens into certainty.
A feeling arrives, and suddenly it becomes reality itself.
Someone stays silent, and the mind calls it rejection.
Something ends, and the heart names it betrayal.
A delay becomes disrespect.
A mistake becomes proof.
A passing emotion becomes identity.
And modern people rarely pause long enough to ask:
Did this actually happen?
Or did I only surrender too quickly to the meaning my mind attached to it?
Perhaps this is why so many people today are not only wounded by life, but imprisoned inside their own interpretations of life.
Because once a person begins treating every inner voice as truth, the mind slowly stops searching for reality and starts worshipping its own conclusions.
That is where the real danger begins.
Not ignorance.
Certainty.
Not emotion itself.
But the arrogance of assuming every emotion sees clearly.
The Stoics were right to separate the event from the judgment.
But perhaps the modern crisis goes even deeper:
People no longer know there is a difference between the two.
The interpretation arrives so quickly that it feels identical to reality.
And the ego loves this speed, because certainty is comforting.
It protects pride.
It protects narrative.
It protects the illusion that we already understand what is happening.
But truth often enters slowly.
With hesitation.
With humility.
With the willingness to admit:
perhaps I do not yet see clearly.
Maybe this is why wisdom begins where inner absolutism ends.
Because a person does not become dangerous only when they stop listening to others.
They become dangerous when they stop questioning the authority of their own mind.
And perhaps this is the hidden loneliness of modern life:
Everyone is surrounded by opinions, but very few people are still capable of doubting themselves long enough to encounter truth.
The mind speaks constantly now.
But very rarely does it step back and say:
“Wait.
Is this reality?
Or only my interpretation standing too close to my fear, my pride, my wound, my desire?”
Perhaps maturity is not becoming emotionless.
It is learning not to bow before every thought that enters the room.
Absolutely. Intention and attention combine to create our chosen reality. The Stoics may find the digital-age manipulation easier as you can turn off the devices, not so your neighbours opinions or Uncles interfering nature. It’s a pity our attention has a monetary value as opposed to individual & societal .. i feel this Substack space offers the opportunity for the latter.. (& long-form YouTube video). Great article, thanks.
Stayed off social media since January.
I have been able to achieve 4 of my targets made since 2023 😆💔.
Where attention goes, energy flows 💯💯
Only left with this app and YouTube, where I read book summaries and narrations or TED talks.
No cartoons, no dramas, no BS, just focus.
I am winning.
Same here.
just deleted my apps rn
Wow.
Great move. Been deleting IG and FB off n on for 2 years. Usually for 1 month and at times, 90 days off.
However, I noticed once im back, the binge-natured sequence kicks in again.
Guess what? I deleted my accounts 😃, was difficult to do. But 60 days off no account or any reason to go visit the app that adds nothing to my life, im now getting to start new things.
Writing a book now, studying and have read 5 books this year alone, something I couldn't do in many years, not even a book in 5 years.
The fact I cant remember any of the videos after the binge-scrolling spree is 💔💔
The brain throttles empty stimulation with an anti-endorphin that can take over twice as long as the session to clear.
Not only is our attention being stolen, but we are the ones paying the price. With interest.
(More here if curious: https://hereisyourbrain.substack.com/p/what-a-binge-does-to-dopamine)
Thank you for the article.
Really well written and straight to the point. No boring, unnecessary statistics — just a good easy read!
Thanks for the article
That line about not remembering what you saw hit.
I’ve had too many of those “where did that go” moments.
Lately I’ve been trying to pay more attention to that exact point where I reach for my phone without deciding to.
Every tech company on earth knows that your attention isn’t just valuable. It’s the most valuable resource in the modern economy,
There’s something almost industrial about the way attention is treated now.
Not as something human and limited, but as something to be extracted, refined, and resold. Every scroll, every pause, every glance gets fed back into a system that learns how to hold you just a little longer next time.
It’s like standing in a crowded market where every voice is calling your name at once. Not because they know you, but because they’ve learned the exact tone that makes you turn your head.
And the strange part is, the moment you realize it, the noise doesn’t stop. But it does change. It stops feeling random, and starts feeling deliberate.
Spot on. In the Larger Consciousness System’s virtual reality, your attention is your most precious resource. It is where your consciousness is directed, and that direction determines your entropy trajectory.
Social media and infinite feeds are high-contrast traps that pull you into fear, comparison, distraction, and dopamine loops—all entropy raisers. Every scroll you don’t choose consciously is a missed chance to lower entropy through focused intent and love-based awareness.
The game rewards those who reclaim sovereignty over their attention. Master where you place it, protect it fiercely, and use it for growth. That’s one of the fastest ways to level up in this simulation.
I’m on board!
Nowadays many people value attention grabing content, but attention isn't enough.
Twitter is a great example. It is quick and grabs attention, but who the hell is transformed by a tweet?
Substack, on the otherhand, is less flashy, but long form generates bigger impact.
Think of it this way: Attention makes people walk through the door, impact makes them stay.
If you don't provide value, attention is useless and your empire will crumble in the long term.
Your post reminds me of a favorite stoic of mine, Seneca, who said “it’s not that life is short, it’s that we waste so much of it.” That seems to be more relevant today than ever in history!
You're right, I keep paraphrasing when you gave me the exact words. Here:
---
The Stoics got this right, but they didn't go quite far enough. They didn't live in the age of technology like this. They understood attention as something worth protecting, but they couldn't have imagined a world engineered at this scale to capture it. We need to be modern-day Stoics now, thinking about the bigger picture the way they did, not just guarding against distraction but asking what attention actually is.
The uproar is all about the theft. And somehow we are absolutely silently missing what we could do if we paid attention to our own attention. Because attention isn't just a resource. It's a navigational instrument. It works like a microscope. Whatever you put it on, you magnify. You study. It becomes more of you than it ever would have been otherwise. Where you place it consistently, you structurally become. That's not metaphor, that's neuroscience.
So yes, technology is stealing your attention. But maybe the silver lining is this: the theft has gotten so loud and so obvious that we're finally paying attention to our attention. And that's exactly where awareness, development, and healing begin.
Maybe thank the algorithm for being so obnoxious that it woke us up.
— Dr. Lynn Fraley | What Nobody Told You About...
---
I share in your sentiment! So well said, thank you!
Absolutaley hillarious, that I read this in an app, because a notification popped up on my phone😁
Sorry, what is social media?
Perhaps the deepest problem is not that people suffer from their interpretations.
It is that they no longer recognize them as interpretations at all.
A thought appears, and within seconds it hardens into certainty.
A feeling arrives, and suddenly it becomes reality itself.
Someone stays silent, and the mind calls it rejection.
Something ends, and the heart names it betrayal.
A delay becomes disrespect.
A mistake becomes proof.
A passing emotion becomes identity.
And modern people rarely pause long enough to ask:
Did this actually happen?
Or did I only surrender too quickly to the meaning my mind attached to it?
Perhaps this is why so many people today are not only wounded by life, but imprisoned inside their own interpretations of life.
Because once a person begins treating every inner voice as truth, the mind slowly stops searching for reality and starts worshipping its own conclusions.
That is where the real danger begins.
Not ignorance.
Certainty.
Not emotion itself.
But the arrogance of assuming every emotion sees clearly.
The Stoics were right to separate the event from the judgment.
But perhaps the modern crisis goes even deeper:
People no longer know there is a difference between the two.
The interpretation arrives so quickly that it feels identical to reality.
And the ego loves this speed, because certainty is comforting.
It protects pride.
It protects narrative.
It protects the illusion that we already understand what is happening.
But truth often enters slowly.
With hesitation.
With humility.
With the willingness to admit:
perhaps I do not yet see clearly.
Maybe this is why wisdom begins where inner absolutism ends.
Because a person does not become dangerous only when they stop listening to others.
They become dangerous when they stop questioning the authority of their own mind.
And perhaps this is the hidden loneliness of modern life:
Everyone is surrounded by opinions, but very few people are still capable of doubting themselves long enough to encounter truth.
The mind speaks constantly now.
But very rarely does it step back and say:
“Wait.
Is this reality?
Or only my interpretation standing too close to my fear, my pride, my wound, my desire?”
Perhaps maturity is not becoming emotionless.
It is learning not to bow before every thought that enters the room.
Absolutely. Intention and attention combine to create our chosen reality. The Stoics may find the digital-age manipulation easier as you can turn off the devices, not so your neighbours opinions or Uncles interfering nature. It’s a pity our attention has a monetary value as opposed to individual & societal .. i feel this Substack space offers the opportunity for the latter.. (& long-form YouTube video). Great article, thanks.
Well said - thank you for the reminder. “Keep on Post’n” - Don’t give up!