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I've recently been working on breaking my bad habit of getting home from work each day, taking out my phone, and then looking up 4 hours later to realize all my

• putsjoe 5y ago
  Possibly off topic but could this be procrastination more than an addiction to the Algo? I've found my procrastination stems from a fear of failure. Maybe you doom scroll instead of do these other things because your afraid you'll 'fail' at them and feel bad rather than because they are effort and commitment.
• LimitedInfo 5y ago
  I like your use of "The Algorithm." I think every one of us has an issue with The Algorithm, its just a difference of UI depending on which addicting service is the problem.
  • avg_dev 5y ago
    some of us run the gamut
  • serverlessmom 5y ago
    Yes, exactly. I would say that without moderation even the deep delving of information can be a tool for procrastination that is more easily justifiable to yourself for why you never seem to make any progress on your goals.
• nerdponx 5y ago
  I almost feel like Gaming is better than Scrolling at this point. Of course, Reading a Book is probably better still, and has almost the same escapism potential, but also a lot less bad for your eyes and brain.
  • deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  • serverlessmom 5y ago
    I have a tendency to listen to audiobooks about a variety of subjects while I game, scroll, drive, and do other chores in the interest of maximizing my enjoyment time and my educational goals. I do feel as though I get a lot of pleasure from this action but also worry that I'm slowly eradicating my already finicky attention span.
  • greggman3 5y ago
    Reading is less bad for your eyes? When I game it's usually on a console it's 2 to 3 meters from me eyes. When I read the book is 20cm and I know it's bad for my eyes because I find it hard to focus after I look up from the book :P
    • Gigachad 5y ago
      Not to mention the bad ergonomics of reading a book compared to a monitor.
    • all2 5y ago
      Set a timer for a tolerable interval, say 10 minutes. Every 10 minutes, let your eyes rest 1 minute. That "sticking" is an issue with muscle elasticity and rest is about the only thing you can do for it (its in the eye, massage and cold compress is hard).
    • majewsky 5y ago
      I'm not a doctor or such, but the argument I heard for that is that books don't have backlighting, so the surface brightness follows the general brightness in the vicinity, therefore looking at it continously does not strain the eyes as much as looking at a back-lit surface like a screen. (This is also frequently brought up as a benefit of e-ink displays over LCD/LED displays for reading.)
• r3trohack3r 5y ago
  Have been working through this myself. I built https://retrohacker.github.io/wikiscroll https://retrohacker.github.io/wikiscroll partially as a habit breaker. I noticed I use social media (mostly) for information discovery. I asked myself what information I’m trying to discover and worked backwards to a healthier relationship with that discovery mechanism from there. Ended up with Wikipedia and then tried to build a similar mechanism as social media scrolling on top. It’s an alternative to doom scrolling social media for me, where the fun facts are actually fun, little to no social outrage, and there isn’t any FOMO - the same content will always be there tomorrow.
  • inatreecrown2 5y ago
    i enjoy your project , thank you
  • a9h74j 5y ago
    Brilliant! I'm placing a link right next to one I have for https://www.locserendipity.com/ https://www.locserendipity.com/
    • r3trohack3r 5y ago
      This is great! I was just thinking about an RNG for books a few weeks back. I also built http://audile.app http://audile.app for music - it’s the same idea, Math.random on top of Deezer’s music collection.
  • serverlessmom 5y ago
    This is so cool! I'm definitely going to share this with my social groups. I am definitely guilty of using information seeking as a form of procrastination- I feel as though as long as I am learning I am not wasting my time but without the implementation of a to do list I slowly stop getting anything done besides reading in depth about different topics.
• circleit 5y ago
  Mentally: It’s actually not that hard, you’re over thinking it. Just do anything else than the thing you don’t want to do. The thing you fall back on is a habit. It is one thing you do over and over, instead of the infinite other things you could otherwise be doing. Recognize in life these fallback habits and do something different. Take the same road to work? Take a different route one day. By breaking habits you open your world to infinite possibilities. Physically: put your phone in your bedroom or wherever you keep it when you go to sleep. Don’t be in that room till you go to sleep. You break the habit of normally having the phone with you all the time. See what happens when it’s not.
  • fao_ 5y ago
    Mentally: It is that hard. Executive dysfunction and ADHD are both fully understood physiological disorders that are only the domain of psych because the symptoms are psychological in their manifestation. A would wager a fair amount of these people will be doomscrolling because they essentially have too little, or too much, dopamine, and while there are ways to get the body to prompt creation of it, often there are tangible problems in the number of neurotransmitters or the amount that is created that can cause this. For example: Often I want to take a shower, but end up sitting on my bed for hours, essentially unable to move to complete my task. I wondered for a long time if this was me, if I just tried hard enough, maybe I could beat it. But the fact is, it isn't -- it's a tangible and measurable problem with the way my body functions that stops me from being able to move to complete the task. The poster's description of this above sounds extremely, alarmingly similar to my experience, and those of my friends and coworkers with it. Personally, I wonder whether the widespread, common, and societally endorsed distribution of caffeine and nicotine -- both stimulants, have effects on the developing child. It would explain the sheer prevalence of it, and also the prevalance of the stimulants, as stimulants are drugs that are prescribed for managing ADHD* :) * - most people who are diagnosed are found to already be weakly medicating themselves with stimulants!
    • serverlessmom 5y ago
      I came here to agree with your post! I wanted to add that when you are having as much trouble functioning as someone with severe ADHD and a general lack of executive function no number of tried and true tricks that a neurotypical person uses are going to be enough to cause real change in your life. I was definitely a heavy caffeine user for years before I was diagnosed as ADHD and given access to Adderall which really helped me be more in control of my schedule.
• quickthrower2 5y ago
  Reading a book might be a good switch: instead of scrolling you are turning the pages. Now it becomes tiring because it requires holding focus. If that happens then play: pen and paper and no plan, doodle something. Or pace around. Be bored! Go for a walk.
• luckyscs 5y ago
  Get out of the house. The house is part of the super algorithm that leads you to getting stuck in that "algorithm". Try meetups, concerts, trivia, etc. You'll get further in your endeavors through absorbing info irl rather than trying to create from nothing.
  • bch 5y ago
    > Get out of the house. This is a tactic I use. Weather permitting, spending an hour out on the bicycle often pays large dividends.
    • gonzo41 5y ago
      The pandemic has been bad in many ways but during the first lockdown i got into the habit of a nightly hour long walk. It's been a really great thing for my mind space after work each day.
      • aakresearch 5y ago
        Yep, wonderful thing indeed. Unfortunately it means selfishly spreading whatever plague-of-the-moment around, so some places instituted a 8pm-5am curfew to prevent these inappropriate habits from forming. Vic, AU had curfew for 5? 6? months out of the last two years. Worked wonders for some people's mind space. Sorry for the rant.
        • moneywoes 5y ago
          Yikes sorry to hear that. I thought the restrictions were bad in my neck of the woods but that is much more difficult
    • jcun4128 5y ago
      Yeah it's funny when the internet goes out or my power goes out, I'm like counting the seconds in real time, like what do I do now.
      • 5y ago
• powersnail 5y ago
  > I find it particularly soul-crushing because I do have things that I consciously want to do during that time, like write music and film short films, but those things take effort and commitment, so instead I spend night after night doomscrolling Twitter/Reddit/YouTube/HN. The things that you want to do might be too difficult to begin. Some part of your brain doesn't know that you can write music or make films successfully enough to gain any reward. The mental hurdle is very big if you just stare at a blank sheet music. Instead, start with something smaller and more structured. Take some lessons, for instance, and do assignments which you know will lead to some form of product.
  • iratewizard 5y ago
    And cut off the free dopamine sources. Make your phone's screen black and white. Use an extension to block Twitter, reddit, YouTube and HN. Learn to be bored again like when you were young.
    • Shared404 5y ago
      > Make your phone's screen black and white. Just did this, thank you! > Use an extension to block Twitter, reddit, YouTube and HN. Learn to be bored again like when you were young. For those thinking about this, it's pretty easy to add custom url's to uBlocks lists, I've done it on mobile for most sites like this. ...Still struggling with HN though :/
    • coder-3 5y ago
      > powersnail "start with something smaller" > iratewizard "Learn to be bored" Spot on! And the final ingredient: build habits! Atomic Habits (I know, I know) has some great techniques. The two I have used successfully are: - Glue a new habit to the end of an existing habit (e.g. meditate after brushing your teeth) - Set a time, day (and if required, location) for the task
      • neetrain 5y ago
        > Glue a new habit to the end of an existing habit Thanks for the suggestion. This would be going to help me.
• randomopining 5y ago
  The moment you think this thought, you gotta instantly just put the phone down and do something else. It hurts for like 2 mins and then it doesn't.
• hashimotonomora 5y ago
  Get a tally counter and count every time you have an urge to scroll, watch another video, or refresh Reddit. Write a daily log of your counter. Every time you feel the urge, pause for 10 seconds and then consciously decide if you want to do that or not. It’s a lot of work at the beginning but I guarantee you’ll get your attention back.
  • avgcorrection 5y ago
    Once I act like that (F5 F5) chances are that I don’t have much energy left for deliberate action. So the advice seems to be: do this deliberate action every time you are out of energy. That doesn’t make sense.
    • hashimotonomora 5y ago
      The goal is to train your “conscious system” so that it catches the “automatic system” in its addiction. You are in a way training to recover control every time autopilot goes somewhere you don’t want it to. Cf mindfulness. You must do it always not just when you want to stop.
      • avgcorrection 5y ago
        Thanks. That makes sense.
• petesergeant 5y ago
  I recently moved all Algorithmic Distractions on to a purpose-bought iPad and blocked them from all other devices. This has been useful in helping me distinguish when I'm wasting time or not, and meant I need to be physically using the iPad to distract myself, rather than just having distractions there on my phone or computer
  • texasbigdata 5y ago
    Super interesting thanks!!!
• Gigachad 5y ago
  I don't think either of those are ideal. Your brain does need some rest time, rather than getting home and getting right back on to high mental intensity activities, consider just going outside for a walk. You can let your brain rest while walking, it improves your mental and physical health, and is a much better use of time than reddit.
• BeetleB 5y ago
  A few weeks ago I realized I had spent half of my life with high speed Internet, and half without. I tried to think of all the memorable experiences I'd had with computers, and pretty much every one I could think of[1] were from the pre-high speed Internet era. Most were from before having any Internet. I mentioned this to a similar aged friend, and he thought about it and said it applied to him too. Which leads to the question: Why am I spending so much time on the Internet? I spend a lot more time on the computer. Where is it going and why am I no longer enjoying it? What did I do pre-Internet? - Played games. Lots and lots of them. When I was younger I often felt I had played too many games and bemoaned the time lost. Looking back now at so many good experiences I had with games, I don't regret it one bit. I should get back into playing games (I stopped a long time ago). - Wrote code for fun. Wrote simple silly games. Wrote programs to produce the Mandelbrot fractal. Today I write code to help me solve problems, but not for fun. - Toyed with programs like POV-Ray - Generally explored interesting SW What do I do today on the computer? - Read articles - Write code to solve problems (automate boring tasks, improve my web site, etc) - Email - Productivity related stuff (TODO management, finances, etc). - Looking up stuff (Google Maps, Yelp, Stackoverflow) - Shopping, online banking, paying bills, scheduling medical appointments, booking flights, etc. I'd say perhaps 90% of that time is using the browser. Getting a consistent interface is pretty much an experience killer. I've certainly learned a lot with all that reading. And my code I write really does solve problems. But none of it is fun or memorable. Conclusion? I traded enjoyable experiences for utility. It was not a good trade. [1] And I could think of many!
  • yodsanklai 5y ago
    Before internet, I would read a lot of books and magazines. Also, when I was a math undergraduate, I would work a lot. Nowadays, I have the hardest time to focus. I'd love to regain my past ability to focus.
  • _AzMoo 5y ago
    This sounds more like you've just moved from a kid without responsibility to an adult with responsibility.
    • 5y ago
• tomjen3 5y ago
  I have mentioned this before, but I have trouble starting things. At one point it reached pathological levels and I had to do something. What I found out researching on the internet was the idea of committing to do something for just 10 minutes, then I am free to stop or not. Often I find that I don't want to stop, sometimes I do. If I do stop, that is absolutely fine too. For everything else, there is beeminder.
• apatters 5y ago
  At the risk of oversimplifying this, why don't you just stick your phone in a drawer when you get home? I do that (and when possible, put it in another room entirely) when I want to get some focused work done. Same goes for when it's bedtime, which has done good things for my sleep quality. Just dump the infernal thing for a while and see where your brain takes you.
• watwut 5y ago
  > I do have things that I consciously want to do during that time, like write music and film short films, but those things take effort and commitment, so instead I spend night after night doomscrolling Twitter/Reddit/YouTube/HN. Are the things you want to do actually rest and relax to you? Maybe you are trying to turn your life into 80 hours crunch and overwork. And it will have the exact same effects as working that much on a job. People were not 100% pre-mobile phones. We read junk books, journals, watched tv, socialized, played soccer, spent a lot of time daydreaming.
• OtomotO 5y ago
  One tip I can give you: Give yourself small, achievable (!) goals for each day. Nothing too fancy, nothing you need to put in hours of research before you can complete them, just something. And then execute it. Each and every day, without failing. Sometimes you do more because you're "in the flow" on others you do the bare minimum. I am doing this with my fitness routine for over 2 years now (started pre-COVID) and it does wonders to my brain and my overall well-being. Because I am committed. I have a streak for over two years (when I got vaccinated, I did more the days before and took a few days off - the minimum was kept for every single day, just not executed on every single day. Only exception: Vaccination) and I feel motivated not to break it. This recurrent approach worked wonders for me.
  • xorfish 5y ago
    Around two months ago I started to do a rather minimal bodyweight fitness routine (around 30 minutes 3 times per week): https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/routines/bwf-primer https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/routines/bwf... I'm not sure how much of my motivation is the constant progress I'm making and how I will keep the motivation once progress slows down.
    • OtomotO 5y ago
      Another tip: Don't focus on results, focus on the process. I know it may sound esoteric, so to speak, but that helps. Do it because you know it makes you fitter, or keeps your body at a certain fitness level, don't do it to gain a perfect body. Look at a lot of movie stars. They train like a Berserk for a role and afterwards slack off and become fat again. Just enjoy the warm feeling of accomplishment. I do that with all my spare time activities and detaching myself from the result oriented (paid) work mindset has worked wonders. Also: Motivation doesn't necessarily come before the work. For me just starting gives the motivation (so it's an equivalence or even an inverse implication of the form: Motivation follows (the start of) work
• herbst 5y ago
  What worked for me to increase the productivity and fun in my free time is making the free time long enough to actually enjoy it. I heavily a doubt a human can be mentally healthy with time consuming hobbies and a 40hour plus job.
• huachimingo 5y ago
  Maybe a little challenge could motivate you? Have you heard about "the 30 day Rudy challenge"[1]? Probably a bad idea, but could be fun anyways... [1] https://youtu.be/TaZ8CLTQ_1M https://youtu.be/TaZ8CLTQ_1M