Chapter 1

Making a Case for Digital Minimalism

Do we really need digital minimalism?

Since the advent of digital tools (like social media) and digital devices, people have struggled with maintaining balance in their digital life. No wonder the idea of digital minimalism was easily accepted by a lot of people when Cal Newport popularized it.

Many people already know that their digital life is taking a toll on them, and these groups of people might not benefit much from this chapter. In fact, if you belong to this group, you might just go straight to Chapter 2. However, if you belong to the groups of people who still doubt the deleterious effect of digital tools and devices on human beings, this chapter is for you.

In other words, if you still doubt the importance of digital minimalism or you don’t fully understand how you can benefit from this type of lifestyle, then this chapter is for you. In this chapter, we will be making a case for digital minimalism and also tell you reasons why you need to consider embracing the lifestyle now!

But before we go into the intricacies, we must explain some terms so that you can understand what we mean when we refer to them.

What is Digital Minimalism?

Digital minimalism is a way of life in which you deliberately limit the time you spend online (i.e., the time you spend in the digital world) or time you spent watching screen devices (e.g. TVs) in order to have more time for offline activities and live a purposeful life.

Please note that the definition giving above is based on our own understanding of the subject, and you may find other definitions that are quite different from the one giving above.

For example, according to Cal Newport, “digital minimalism is a philosophy of technology use in which you focus your online time on a small number of carefully selected and optimized activities that strongly support things you value, and then happily miss out on everything else” ^[1].

Because we now have a lot of online tools specifically designed to hijack your time and make it difficult to free yourself from them, it is crucial we have a specific name for these groups of tools. For lack of a proper name, we will call this type of tools “digital time-waster.”

What is Digital Time-waster?

Digital time-waster is any digital tool (mainly in the form of an app or website) specifically designed to take up your time more than you would ordinarily give out. In other words, digital time-wasters are cleverly designed in such a way that it is extremely easy to waste a lot of time using them.

A good example of a tool that can easily qualify as a digital time-waster is the social media. In addition, TV shows will also easily qualify as digital time-wasters.

Digital time-wasters are now ubiquitous, thanks to human irrational need to stay abreast overabundance of information.

Note: A tool may qualify as a digital time-waster on one occasion while qualifying as a productivity tool in others. Usually, it all depends on how you use a tool. If you use a tool to achieve a specific beneficial goal, then it is a productivity tool in that situation. On the other hand, if you use the same tool aimlessly without achieving any specific goal, then the tool qualifies as a digital time-waster in such a situation.

What is Digital Detox?

Digital detox (also known as digital decluttering) is a process of intentionally removing digital time-waster in order to have a simplified digital life. Digital detox is an aspect of digital minimalism.

 Now that we have explained some terms associated with digital minimalism, it is time to get down to the real business. So let’s get started!

Making a Case for Digital Minimalism

It is still possible to think that you don’t need digital minimalism in your life. You may believe that your excessive consumption of digital tools and devices is not affecting your life negatively. If this is your belief, then read on!

The Problems Associated with Digital Time-wasters and Digital Devices

Digital time-waster has brought many problems to our lives. It has destroyed families,  separate us from our values, and destroy our traditional social relationships.

We can say digital time-waster has made us less human. The social media around us, the useless apps at our fingertips, the overabundance of (crucial and junk) information on the internet, and the enormous amount of (fake and true) news we are exposed to every day have taken up our valuable time and values and have made us less happy.

Below, we have taken time to explain some of the problems associated with digital time-waster and digital devices:

a. Digital time-wasters and devices have negatively affected our family lives

One thing (unforgivable) that digital time-waster has caused is the destruction of family relationships. The quest to stay informed of everything (both useful and useless) has taken a toll on us. It is now a common thing for parents and their children to be glued to screen (smartphone, laptop, and tv screens) throughout the day.

People now aimlessly wander from one website/app to another. Unfortunately, these acts have taken up the time that should have been used to nurture our marital relationship and mentor our children. This problem is one of the biggest problems digital time-wasters have brought to our lives.

b. Digital time-waster has taken our values

It is now a common thing to see people without specific goals or values for their lives. We believe digital time-waster has contributed to this. Because of the overabundance of useless and fake information on the internet, it is now a common thing to see people giving up their values and goals because of what they read on the internet or the friend they associate with on social media.

c. Digital time-waster and devices have made people less human

It is now common to see people pressing their phones when on the highway with little care for the incoming vehicles.

People are ready to do anything to get social media attention and connect with social media friends. They are ready to take a selfie on a railroad, cliff, or highway. They are ready to record with their phone when a dog is about to attack a young child instead of helping. People want to record such a video because they will get high social views. Sad!

Truly speaking, digital time-waster has made us less human. We now consider the evils our forefathers detest so passionately as a normal thing.

d. Digital time-waster has intruded into our privacy

The advent of the internet and social media has made our lives significantly less private.  Parents now upload the videos of their children online with little regard for the opinions of their children. It is also common for people to record private conversations and post them on social media.

e. Digital time-waster and devices have made us less happy

The world is now full of sad people because of the gadget they own. Our devices have put the internet on our palms, and unfortunately, this has exposed us to a lot of challenges. We now have an overabundance of information on our palms. We are also exposed to a lot of sad and fake news, and this eventually makes us sad.

In addition, social media allows us to easily compare our lives with those who have more than we do, and this makes us ungrateful and sad.

f. Digital time-waster steals our time and attention

One obvious thing that digital time-waster has deprived us of is attention. People now have serious difficulty focusing on a task. It is quite difficult for many to perform a task for an hour without looking at their phones, computers, or TVs.

We need not say that digital time-waster has also stolen the time that we should have used for the more important stuff.

 g. Digital time-waster and devices have created a more distracted world

People now get easily distracted because of the digital devices they have. It is not difficult to prove that these digital devices actually own people and not the other way round, as people claimed. We say this because digital devices are now the things that are controlling people’s lives. It is quite apparent that many people are shackled by the devices they bought with their hard-earned money.

h. Digital time-wasters and devices have prevented us from spending time alone or spending time in nature

The benefit of spending time in nature or occasionally spending time alone is great for our mental health. In fact, we have written a comprehensive article explaining why spending time in nature is good for our memory and creativity. You can access it here.

In today’s world, people are unable to take a walk in nature or spend some time alone because they are constantly connected to their phones. What makes it more saddening is that when people finally get some time to spend alone or walk in nature, they are constantly interrupted by the notifications from the phones. And you know what, they dare not leave their phones behind because they are too afraid of missing out.

In summary, we believe the problems mentioned above would not have existed or would have been minimal if the digital world has been guided with the right values right from the onset. In addition, we believe when we fight digital time-wasters and embrace digital minimalism, it is highly likely that the problems mentioned above will reduce greatly, and we will have more time for our goals and values.

Now that we know the evils of digital time-wasters, we are in a better position to look for ways to remove them from our lives. Removing digital time-wasters from one’s life necessarily involves embracing digital minimalism.

What Is so Great about Digital Minimalism?

There has been a real buzz about digital minimalism for some time now. And this is actually because digital minimalism has been producing wonders in the lives of many individuals.

When it comes to our usage of digital devices, there is no doubt that the law of diminishing returns has set in. We are no more getting the joy that we used to get using our digital devices. In fact, it appears we are becoming increasingly frustrated at how we are being controlled by our devices.

Because of our uncontrolled use of digital devices, relationships have been destroyed, children have been left unattended to, work has been left undone, and our lives have been shackled.

Digital minimalism has come to solve all these problems and many more, and that is why it is such a great concept or way of life.

In the next chapter, we are going to be looking at 20 tips to master if you want to start a digital minimalist lifestyle. You can access it here.

Reference:

1. Newport, C. (2019). Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World. Penguin Random House.