Breaking The Cycle

A Manifesto of Intentional Living and Embracing the Inconvenience

Embracing the Inconveniences (Pt.1) 

I don’t mind the challenges that come with inconveniences. Sure it’s annoying, but isn’t encountering it actually experiencing life at its most authentic and rawest form? For example, I don’t mind taking the extra steps to buy physical media like CDs and then ripping them on my computer to then transfer the mp3 files onto my mp3 player. Sure it’s a hassle, but it’s those little acts I do just to have access to my music makes me feel more appreciative of the media I own, and the process it took for me to even listen to it. I feel when we sacrifice inconvenience for convenience to make things easier. You’re not really connecting with the world.

Inability to Disconnect (Pt.2) 

The problem I have with the state of modern technology and social media is the focus on convenience such as iPhones being literal mini computers rather than just a phone. Where everything is accessible with just your fingertips. There’s good and bad to all things, but this to me is significantly more bad than good. You’re more connected to your phone than you are with the real world, and trying to disconnect is an incredibly difficult task for many people. With algorithms constantly pushing out more content for you to swallow and consume, it’s easy to end up in a catatonic state where you end up just doom scrolling for 8-16 hours a day. The sake of convenience has led to a lifestyle of unhealthy habits that doesn’t benefit you in the slightest.

Capitalism is the Death of Innovation and Creativity (Pt.3) 

Modern tech, corporations, and social media have become stale with their minimalistic approach. Sacrificing creativity and individualism for profit. Back then companies would be at each other’s throats competing to be the next big thing. Innovation was the future, performance was the key, so being creative was one way to catch the eyes of the public. However, nowadays as I already said these industries are opting for stale, minimalistic, and uninspiring designs to the point that they’ll use AI as a way to replace artists. We’re witnessing the effects of late stage capitalism eroding creativity.

Breaking a Cycle (Pt.4) 

In today's age of modern social media we're constantly being overstimulated by a never ending cycle of content. Algorithms continue to feed us content to fill the void in our brains. It's just in our nature to find something to entertain us, we're busy creatures after all, and I should emphasize that it is normal to be entertained. I'm not out here trying to be the fun police. However, what isn't normal is spending hours doom scrolling and reinforcing these harmful behaviors towards your mind and body. What I want to focus on in my own life is how to be mindful of what I consume and how I engage with it. My Approach: What I'm trying to achieve is a healthy balance between social media and technology. Moderation and self-discipline is key, and it's easy to fall and repeat the same cycles over and over again. I want to experience a meaningful life without the reliance of a smartphone. I want to also preface that I'm not perfect. I simply want to improve my life for the better. 

1. Giving myself 1 hour of social media time. (There are exceptions when it comes to projects)

2. Giving myself intentions before logging on social media. This prevents me from doom scrolling for hours on end, when I have a set and defined goal to follow. 

3. Allowing myself free time to invest in my hobbies. 

4. Providing myself a digital detox whenever I feel like I relapsed into bad habits again.