Our phones have captured our attention. Social media has fried our brains with overstimulation. Our average attention span has gone down with the rise of technology. Instant access is killing our focus instantly. 

Our brain goes from one thing to another in an instant. Switching focus on different things, not giving it time to sink in. This is not healthy.

A study led by Microsoft Canada on how technology has affected attention span found that since the year 2000, the average attention span of a person dropped from 12 seconds to 8 seconds.

We can scroll hundreds, sometimes thousands of Tik Toks a day, go down a hole, and see everything on the spectrum. From cooking tips to ASMR to using a hair straighter for your eyebrows. You can see everything!

It used to be called ‘lack of focus’ but our focus is getting pulled in a million different directions. It’s not lack of, it’s where you’re putting your focus. 

When people get ‘diagnosed’ with ADD, they feel bad, humiliated, and a little loss of hope. They think they have something wrong with them. That no one else is like them and they’re a negative outlier. I believe this is not the case.

We all suffer from ADD (especially in modern times) and at certain points in our lives, it really takes over. With how fast pace life is, everything is turning and heading into the realm of technology. We have screens everywhere, flashing images, marketing, advertisements, phones listening to us, and still, good old fashion billboards. There is a lot more to go on about, but I don’t wanna take up too much of your attention. 

ADD is very normal, it happens to all of us, it happens to the best of us. With all we have to do in a single day now, I’m surprised people can keep their focus. Distractions are there and we can’t make them disappear, but we can work with them instead of pushing against them.

How do we do this? The first step is to acknowledge that we are unique, everyone has a different brain and way of doing things. No one person is the same. This is a very individual journey. By learning how your brain works first, you can start learning tricks and tips to conquer some of your ADD tendencies that pop up.

It all starts with your brain. 

Frankly, I find it quite sad to see some people accept ADD as a ‘disorder’ where they need medication to combat it. And who knows what those pharmaceutical companies actually put into those medications. 

We all suffer from ADD, it’s the 21st century and this should be common knowledge. There are more distractions than ever before. While people’s levels of suffering vary. I’m here to tell you that it’s completely normal and natural to have it. It gets me at the best of times. 

I’m not perfect. I’m human. 

I’m telling you this because you have the power, you have the control to change your behaviour and live a better life. A life of focus.

A focused life is a happy life.

Until next time,

Brody