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Ray Liu's avatar
1dEdited

This is a great piece, thanks for putting in the thoughtfulness and effort to write it! Some reflections:

- I love the idea of matching fidelity of the medium to the importance of the relationship. Intentionality will be so important in an era where we’ll have access to so many tools and possibilities

- I agree with what you said on the limits of putting the onus on willpower and individual restraint. Every ounce of effort we put in working harder for the same result due to inefficiencies in the design of the systems we utilize is effort that could instead be used on growing to the next level on what we want to actualize or accomplish

- Your “single purpose tools” section inspired me to just place an order on a watch. In my digital minimalism/wellness journey, I’ve found that now that I turn my phone off more, the biggest use case I find I want to turn it back on for is setting a timer, so we’ll see how that goes

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Matt Yao's avatar

I appreciate the reflections, I've also started to wear a $20 watch when I go to the gym or library so I'm less likely to need to check the time on my phone. It's these little things that all stack together

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Brian Wiesner's avatar

This was so good Matt, I like the ideas you laid out in the Separation of Work and Personal section. Cheers to a more human future and cultivating deeper relationships 🥂

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Matt Yao's avatar

I appreciate it man!

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Peck Gee Chua 蔡佩芝's avatar

Wonderful posts as always! Aligning with this season, I've been trying to be more intentional about screen time and app uses. This one is packed with so many gems on prioritizing healthy nervous systems and real connection. "Separation matters because it lets us be fully where we are" "Technology should serve us, not sedate us."

"It's about enhancing what makes us uniquely human: more present, more connected, more ourselves."

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Matt Yao's avatar

Thanks Peck! Sometimes I think all the experimentation with ways to use tech more mindfully are quite excessive, but the fact that I've tried so many things and I still slip up indicates that we're all facing an uphill battle. It really does take a lot of intentional constraints.

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