After 20 minutes, when you want to check your count, pick up your phone and check your messages. Or 1 hour. We went through a torrent of videos and news that we don’t remember. I promised that tomorrow would be different, but I fell again. It’s not a lack of will, it’s design. Social networks, like the end of a chapter in a book or a movie, have no beginning or end, and are ready to hold our attention without stopping naturally. This exercise to slide the mobile screen —scrollin English terminology, distracts or entertains us, but at the same time pushes us into a large number of stimuli that tire us, or worse, impair our attention.
Neuroscience educator and promoter Marta Romo warns about him in an inspiring book. hyper disconnect (Roca Editorial, 2025): “Elle scroll It works like a drug machine. We don’t know when this video will appear that tells us the news that affects us, but that sense of anticipation keeps us glued to the screen. ” he assures. The machine works under a fuel program that manifests itself in unpredictable ways. The excitement of winning a prize or watching this shocking video makes our brains overexcited, producing dopamine-fueled stories that prevent us from resting. This habit is causing more and more people to feel tired even when they’re not particularly tired. The mind gets tired when: Be aware of your daily micro-impacts.
This technology is designed to allow you to skip between videos and messages without any breaks. Every jump leaves an invisible mark. Professor Sophie LeRoy, a psychologist at the University of Washington, calls her an “attention residue.” This is the part of your mind when you believe you’ve made it through the page, but you’ve fallen behind on previous work. When dynamic cues become extreme, we lose our memory, concentration, and ability to elaborate a coherent story about our lives. And all of the above happens because our attention spans are short.
It has received little attention, largely due to the misuse of technology. Each time we are faced with reading more books or performing activities that require a certain amount of intellectual effort. According to educationist Gregorio Lulli, attentiveness is a new intellectual awareness that will allow people to differentiate themselves in the future. But paying attention is not a luxury, it’s an emotional necessity. It is the basis for creativity, art, deep thinking, or rest. This allows us to focus on achieving goals, finding solutions to problems, and feeling satisfied with our lives. The good news is that we have the ability to influence it. Our brains are plastic and can learn. And the first step is awareness.
“[The solution is]not to separate us. We’re not machines, so we just learn to be more connected, but learn to connect with life,” Romo suggests. To do this, you need to realize that the technology is not the culprit, just the amplifier. They manage their time with maximum productivity, don’t put up with hassles, and even replace conversations with friends with phone calls in exchange for superficial audio. But these habits do not steal from us at all, they are done right in front of us. We are disconnected from the moment of real conversation taking place right in front of us. We live in close contact, yet we are not present at all. On the subway, in a restaurant, in a meeting…we all tilt our heads in the same direction. There is one screen. It is a gesture of our time, and perhaps also a symptom of it. Being aware of our surroundings is actually a worthwhile decision. Because in a world saturated with stimulation, Romo urges, “the quietest revolutions begin with the most radical act: paying attention to the people facing us.”
In addition, although we are always going fast, our body is replenished by mechanisms that require rest and time. Efficiency requirements can be reduced. You can also devote your time to walking around or taking a walk without headphones, leaving space for your imagination. This doesn’t necessarily mean cutting yourself off from your network or demonizing technology, but rather relearning how to use them without giving up your soul. Connect with what really matters, the people we want, and the experiences we want to enjoy. Perhaps, as John Lennon wrote, “Life is what passes by while you are busy making other plans.” Today we can say: While you are glued to your mobile screen. If there is no real fun in the future in that time, pay attention. Because paying attention makes us feel more alive and reminds us that what’s important is not on the screen, but right in front of it.
About The Author
