Hey folks! I’ve been struggling a bit with overindulging in TV lately, so I ended up diving into the research of why it’s so addictive. I thought I’d share the main ideas that came to light, and I’d love to hear any other suggestions to add to the list:
1. Get it out of the bedroom
The brain is plastic. If you watch TV before you fall asleep, eventually you condition yourself so that you can only fall asleep once you’ve watched TV.
2. Limit it to the weekend
Two days a week is better than seven. Some people allow themselves to binge guilt-free on the weekends, so they can reserve the working week for more productive activities.
3. Make it a social event
Think Game of Thrones viewing parties. If you schedule your TV time to be with other people, you can watch more actively and get some of that sweet, sweet human contact.
4. Consume deliberately
Instead of flicking on the TV as a matter of course, consciously curate the shows worthy of your attention. I use reviews and the recommendations of friends to filter the crème de la crème: You will wrest Rick and Morty away from me over my cold, dead body. Anecdotally, people report getting a lot more satisfaction out of watching a few hours of amazing TV on Sunday then they do by passively watching 20-30 hours throughout the week.
5. Tie your hands
I owned a TV up until a year ago, but it was a dumb box, unconnected from cable or network. The only time I could use it was for deliberate consumption, by plugging in my laptop. That still leaves the laptop itself. I’ve found sheer willpower is not enough – I have to set up defences against my future self. The StayFocusd browser extension has been life-changing. I can ban myself from accessing certain sites for more than a certain time per day, block them altogether, or limit them to certain days of the week.
The broader societal and psychological implications of TV addiction (and yes, such a thing apparently does exist!) is fascinating, albeit very disturbing - I ended up writing a pretty in-depth rant on it if anyone’s interested in the bigger picture stuff. The tl;dr is that a breakdown of community has coincided with the rise of individualism, which is what’s led to this epidemic of depression in the West. The other main takeaway is that we should switch from passive to active leisure - social time, hobbies and cognitive pursuits, sports and exercise - in order to feel happier and more fulfilled.
PS: If any of these tips look familiar, it’s because I’ve gleaned lots of valuable ideas from r/simpleliving! So, thanks for that. This sub is awesome.
Submitted June 13, 2017 at 11:58PM by richard_meadows http://ift.tt/2rudTZf
