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Could it have something to do with the increase in quality and quantity of pleasant distractions? It's in our pockets, at our desks, in our living rooms, everyw
by rthomas6 12y ago
Could it have something to do with the increase in quality and quantity of pleasant distractions? It's in our pockets, at our desks, in our living rooms, everywhere. What if technological, political, and social progress has slowed down because it's so easy to escape? Soma in the form of apps, games, and screens. Surely it is harder now for most people to concentrate on something hard and HUGE in scope when there's something easy and fun in their pocket, ready whenever they are. This seems to be the case for me, anyway.
- mod 12y agoThis ails me as well, but I don't think the people who push the world forward are tripped up by this. I'm not a fanboy, but I just can't think of a better person to use for my example: you think Elon Musk is playing Angry Birds? I just think some people have an insatiable desire to [do something]. They're not interested in distractions--the [something] is the distraction. They're consumed. My father has spent his whole life consumed by pool (pocket billiards). He's hit millions of balls. He watches videos of pool matches at home on youtube, hours and hours of them. He reads weird, niche books with tales from pool's storied past. He can think of nothing else, for long. I'm more of a generalist, often to my own disappointment. I have so many interests that I don't have those blinders on that push me to be the best at something. But those people exist, I think, as much as ever. And now, they have a quicker path to success--my father could learn now in one year on youtube what it took him 20 years to learn by trial and error.