What We Lose (and Reclaim) When We Put Down Our Phones | Frank Possemato (EP433)
Minimalist Moms Podcast | Purposeful Life & Parenting Tips
Diane Boden
4.7 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 28 January 2026
⏱️ 39 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In a world of constant notifications and endless scrolling, how do we stay present in our real, physical lives? In this episode, Diane sits down with writer and educator Frank Possemato, author of How to Live an Analog Life in a Digital World, to explore how we can reclaim presence, depth, and real connection without abandoning technology altogether.Frank shares how digital overwhelm reshapes our attention, relationships, and even our sense of self - and offers simple, inexpensive practices to take back control. From embracing boredom and asking “What am I doing?” to restoring meaningful face-to-face conversations, this conversation invites you to make room for a slower, more intentional way of living - even in a digital world.
Links Discussed in This Episode |
- Checkout the podcast storefront for recommendations from Diane.
- Previous Episode: The Age of Magical Overthinking | Amanda Montell (EP427)
- The Flight from Conversation by Sherry Turkle
- Connect with Frank:
- Email: analoglifebook@gmail.com
- TedX Talk
- Book: How to Live an Analog Life in a Digital World: A Workbook for Living Soulfully in an Age of Overload
About Frank |
Frank Possemato is a writer and teacher at Cosumnes River College and Boston University. He is the first generation of his family to attend college, and has taught at some of the nation's most diverse community colleges. He writes poetry and fiction and loves having fun with his wife and young daughter, hanging out with his brother and being outside. He grew up in Boston.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | this sort of trend towards living analog or moving away from or questioning the pull of technology, |
| 0:05.1 | it's not really about going backwards. For somebody like me, it might be because I did live that way |
| 0:09.8 | before and because living analog might give you more energy or remind you of the way you felt when you were |
| 0:15.5 | younger or whatever. That might work for somebody my age. But for somebody like that, they don't really |
| 0:19.7 | have a nostalgia for |
| 0:21.3 | the pre-internet times. So this is actually something radical and different and forward that they're |
| 0:26.5 | doing. It's not a step backwards to them. It's not old school. It's not retro. It's not anything like |
| 0:32.7 | that. It's actually kind of subversive and modern and radical moving forward for them to try to resist |
| 0:39.2 | the world that they grew up in, which is a digitally dominated world and moving in a different |
| 0:44.2 | direction. This is Diane Bowden, and you're listening to the minimalist moms podcast. In a world of |
| 0:50.1 | constant notifications and endless scrolling, how do we stay present in our real physical lives? |
| 0:57.1 | In this thoughtful and practical conversation, I sit down with writer and educator, Frank Posimato, |
| 1:02.4 | author of How to Live an Analog Life in a Digital World, a workbook for living soulfully in an age of |
| 1:08.2 | overload. Frank teaches at Boston University in Kassumnis River College and |
| 1:12.3 | brings both humor and philosophy to the question that so many of us are asking. How do we use our |
| 1:17.2 | devices without being consumed by them? Together we explore what we quietly lose in a screen-saturated |
| 1:23.3 | culture, attention, boredom, face-to-face connection, and deep observation, and what we can |
| 1:28.1 | reclaim when we put our phones down. Frank shares realistic, inexpensive practices to help listeners |
| 1:34.3 | take back control of their time, fill empty moments with thought instead of distraction, and |
| 1:39.2 | cultivate richer human connection. As most of you know, I'm not a stranger to topics about cell phone usage, both for ourselves and for our kids. But I will say that Frank brings a fresh perspective to this conversation, and I was so glad to speak with him. And then lastly, if you've yet to leave a rating and review for the Minimalist Mom's podcast, I ask you to pause the episode for a brief moment or two, hit five stars, tell me your favorite episode, |
| 2:01.3 | how the podcast has impacted your life. This is one of the best ways to support the show. So I appreciate |
| 2:06.0 | you being here, leaving those rating reviews, sharing it with a friend or on social media. |
... |
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