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Ever Forward Radio with Chase Chewning

EFR 681: How to Increase Your Attention Span, Find Focus, Fight Distraction, and Restore Balance, Happiness, and Productivity with Dr. Gloria Mark

Ever Forward Radio with Chase Chewning

Chase Chewning

Education, Health & Fitness, Self-improvement

5.0 • 947 Ratings

🗓️ 13 February 2023

⏱️ 101 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How many tabs, browsers, and apps do you have open right now? Do you ever notice how glued we are to our devices, yet it's so hard to even focus on what's on our screens? You're not the only one… it has become a way of life for so many of us in the Digital Age. So, what do we do about it?

Gloria Mark debunks popular myths about focus and attention span and reveals the science behind why multitasking is a lie. She talks about why mindless scrolling isn't a total waste of time and why digital detoxes aren't as impactful as we think. Plus, Gloria teaches you two ways to gain more agency over your attention.

Dr. Gloria Mark, PhD is a psychologist and professor at UC Irvine who studies human-computer interaction (HCI), which essentially is our relationship to our devices. Gloria is also the author of "Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness and Productivity", which debunks popular myths about our attention and technology, then teaches you how to use your technologies and maintain a healthy psychological balance.

 

Follow Gloria Mark @GloriaMark_PhD

Follow Chase on Instagram @chase_chewning

Follow him on Twitter @chasechewning

 

Key Highlights

  • Does multitasking actually help you get more done? Do some people really thrive when multitasking? Are women better multitaskers than men? To answer these questions, Gloria breaks down the concept of controlled information processing, which proves that multitasking is not as productive and beneficial as you think.
  • Gloria summarizes her research on human attention span and remote work. Then, she dissects the three pillars of focus and attention: the anatomy of attention, underlying forces of distraction, and focused rhythm and balance.
  • Are digital detoxes actually beneficial? Do digital detoxes increase our focus and attention span? Tune in to hear Gloria's thoughts!
  • Meta awareness and self-regulation are tools you can use to stay conscious of your behaviors and achieve agency over your attention and focus. 
  • Gloria debunks these four MYTHS about attention and technology

 

Episode resources:

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

The following is an Operation Podcast Production.

0:04.0

Hi, I'm Gloria Mark.

0:06.0

I'm a professor at University of California Irvine.

0:10.0

In today's episode, we're going to be talking about our attention spans with our devices when we use our computers and phones.

0:19.0

And we're going to be talking about the science of multitasking, interruptions, distractions, why we

0:27.2

experience these things and what we can do about it. This is your number one source for inspiring content from people who

0:37.2

are putting a purpose to their passion and truly living a life ever forward. I am

0:42.1

your host Chase Chuning.

0:44.0

This is Ever Forward Radio. Let me ask you guys a quick question. Right now, how many tabs, browsers and apps do you have open? On your computer, on your tablet, on your smartphone. I know maybe

1:08.6

listening to a podcast is not the most ideal time to be asking this

1:12.1

question. Odds are, you you know if you're like me

1:14.3

when you're listening to a podcast you're cleaning up the house you're out on a walk

1:18.1

maybe you're in the gym you're probably not multitasking a whole lot there but if you are why why do we

1:27.2

feel this need to stay connected to so many things and so many people all at the same time, aren't we really doing

1:37.9

ourselves a disservice? We're depleting dopamine more quickly, we're influencing and increasing the probability of us

1:47.1

getting ADD, ADHD, or even just contributing to reduced attention span,

1:53.6

well you're in luck because that is exactly what we are going to talk about here

1:57.0

today with Dr. Gloria Mark, attention span.

2:01.5

She literally wrote the book on it. Attention span, a

2:05.1

groundbreaking way to restore balance, happiness, and productivity. This

2:09.9

conversation I was so enthralled with. She and I sat down in studio so if you want to

2:16.0

check out the video I've got that linked for you down in the show notes you can

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