A review by cuddlesome
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport
4.0
Very thought-provoking with some good ideas that I immediately implemented into my own life, particularly tossing some apps and social media sites that I never used anyway into the stratosphere. Now my phone is basically, you know, a phone, with some glorified Kindle and Libby (excellent digital library service) capabilities, and a few utility apps for work.
The irony of reviewing this book on a social media site and listening to it as an audiobook, and partly on my iPhone no less, is not lost on me, but I believe that it actually falls in line with Newport's ideology. The idea of emphasis on minimalism vs total elimination of technology, particularly portable technology, seems reasonable to me. Don't want to end up in a "cutting off the nose to spite the face" situation. Books are hugely important to my life. Listening to audiobooks while working as a library cataloger allows me to have thought-provoking entertainment while doing my job. I like to keep careful record of my book reading and write reviews on Goodreads. Ergo, they're things that I should keep in my life. Meanwhile, watching every recommended video YouTube throws at me is draining and brain-numbing, so it would probably be best to keep that at a minimum if I do it at all (the extension Distraction-Free YouTube is great, by the way).
That said, there were some examples of other people's experiences in this book that I felt I needed to take with a grain of salt or were not at all applicable to me. For example, there was a person that talked about moving out to a rural area that requires constant maintenance of trees or a needlessly detailed explanation of how another person filters their Twitter searches. Obviously Newport wasn't intending for me, or any reader for that matter, to follow their example exactly, but these particular anecdotes stood out as weak to me amid otherwise strong information. I enjoyed reading about the big picture stuff with how companies are trying to keep readers' attention and the way that they profit off of ads (Adblock Plus is another good extension. Ahem).
I'm glad that I never really fell into the Facebook or Twitter rabbit hole, though tumblr seriously owned my soul throughout college during the Star Wars sequel trilogy boom. It would have been interesting to have heard that particular site and its primarily-female userbase addressed in this context, but I imagine that probably could make for a whole book in and of itself.
So, yeah, all around really good book! Believe me when I say it is incredibly hard to get me invested in nonfiction (unless it's a scholarly text about, well, fiction), but I couldn't wait to keep listening to this through to the end. It prompted me to do the aforementioned cleanse of apps and social media on my phone, sign up for Mouse Book Club, and get around to signing up for the fitness program at the university I work for. I'd say it's pretty powerful stuff if it compels me to take all of that action in rapid succession.
The irony of reviewing this book on a social media site and listening to it as an audiobook, and partly on my iPhone no less, is not lost on me, but I believe that it actually falls in line with Newport's ideology. The idea of emphasis on minimalism vs total elimination of technology, particularly portable technology, seems reasonable to me. Don't want to end up in a "cutting off the nose to spite the face" situation. Books are hugely important to my life. Listening to audiobooks while working as a library cataloger allows me to have thought-provoking entertainment while doing my job. I like to keep careful record of my book reading and write reviews on Goodreads. Ergo, they're things that I should keep in my life. Meanwhile, watching every recommended video YouTube throws at me is draining and brain-numbing, so it would probably be best to keep that at a minimum if I do it at all (the extension Distraction-Free YouTube is great, by the way).
That said, there were some examples of other people's experiences in this book that I felt I needed to take with a grain of salt or were not at all applicable to me. For example, there was a person that talked about moving out to a rural area that requires constant maintenance of trees or a needlessly detailed explanation of how another person filters their Twitter searches. Obviously Newport wasn't intending for me, or any reader for that matter, to follow their example exactly, but these particular anecdotes stood out as weak to me amid otherwise strong information. I enjoyed reading about the big picture stuff with how companies are trying to keep readers' attention and the way that they profit off of ads (Adblock Plus is another good extension. Ahem).
I'm glad that I never really fell into the Facebook or Twitter rabbit hole, though tumblr seriously owned my soul throughout college during the Star Wars sequel trilogy boom. It would have been interesting to have heard that particular site and its primarily-female userbase addressed in this context, but I imagine that probably could make for a whole book in and of itself.
So, yeah, all around really good book! Believe me when I say it is incredibly hard to get me invested in nonfiction (unless it's a scholarly text about, well, fiction), but I couldn't wait to keep listening to this through to the end. It prompted me to do the aforementioned cleanse of apps and social media on my phone, sign up for Mouse Book Club, and get around to signing up for the fitness program at the university I work for. I'd say it's pretty powerful stuff if it compels me to take all of that action in rapid succession.