Mindful Tech: How to Bring Balance to Our Digital Lives

by David M. Levy

From email to smart phones, and from social media to Google searches, digital technologies have transformed the way we learn, entertain ourselves, socialize, and work. Despite their usefulness, these technologies have often led to information overload, stress, and distraction. In recent years many of us have begun to look at the pluses and minuses of our online lives and to ask how we might more skillfully use the tools we've developed.
David M. Levy, who has lived his life between the "fast world" of high tech and the "slow world" of contemplation, offers a welcome guide to being more relaxed, attentive, and emotionally balanced, and more effective, while online. In a series of exercises carefully designed to help readers observe and reflect on their own use, Levy has readers watch themselves closely while emailing and while multitasking, and also to experiment withunplugging for a specified period. Never prescriptive, the book opens up new avenues for self-inquiry and will allow readers-in the workplace, in the classroom, and in the privacy of their homes-to make meaningful and powerful changes."

Genres: Nonfiction, Technology, Self Help, Health

253 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 12, 2016

Reviews

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as a First Reads giveaway. This is a great book contributing to the conversation on how to best utilize technologies that have the tendency to distract and cause stress in our everyday lives. I recommend reading the first 3 chapters thoroughly, skim through the exercises, then read the last two chapters and decide if you want to go back and try the exercises. While I did not perform or follow any of the exercises from start to finish, I can still foresee some value in them; the breathing and observation exercises seem particularly useful. I may try them in the future whenever I feel like I am being negatively impacted by my online habits. In the very least, Mindful Tech will challenge you to examine your own habits and be aware of the effects they have on your happiness and production.

[Samantha Hines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple actionable steps, sourced in research, on how to get the most out of technology and reduce stress.

[Aerandir · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intriguing book with some very helpful suggestions for exercises to evaluate our interaction with technologies (especially email and social media) and feedback from students of the course Mr Levy has been teaching. It was heartening to read that other people from different walks of life were also struggling in finding a balance between their online and off-line worlds. However, at times Mr Levy appeared to be very self-centered, going at length about the types of courses he was teaching and showing very little interest in research (although some snippets from various sources were quoted). I found a passage regarding what the policy of using technology in a class-room setting to be very compelling - should it be banned altogether, limited (to only applications related to the class - no internet), or should it be the decision of the student how to use it...the book offers some suggestions and a lot of questions which hopefully will spark a constructive debate.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Accessible writing; interesting exercises. I haven't taken the course he teaches that uses this (at the UW iSchool) but I've had him for two other classes; good instructor.

[Johnny Stork, MSc · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to how we can better manage the digital technologies in our lives emphasizing a mindful, self-guided & self-reflective approach. Although somewhat sparse leaving room for a far more in-depth review of the current science around Internet and social-media addiction and some of the psychological effects these technologies are having in our lives. What is needed are more practical strategies, tools and even IMPROVED technologies to better manage our use of those devices.

[Jenneffer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I discovered this book from a list of books that were recommended on a reading list at a Mindfulness for Librarians workshop I attended in 2017.

There are many ways to be mindful, including how we use our technology.

As an information worker, someone who deals with lots of data and different programs on a daily basis, I suffer from "analysis paralysis" and "information overload" on a regular basis.

As a Gen-X-er, I had early exposure to computers, but personal computing was not ubiquitous, and our computer classes at school taught terms like, GIGO (garbage in, garbage out), hard drive, and floppy disk drive. My first interactions with a PC were learned by using C: programming. There were no Windows or touch screens! By the time I got to college, however, we were expected to use computers for our assignments, and computer labs were in most of our campus buildings, hooked up with T3 and T5 speeds. Napster was free. Chat rooms were new and exciting. (Yes, I realize I'm dating myself).

Fast-forward 15 years, I've been working as a librarian. My Masters degree is called Library and Information Services, and it looks completely different than it did when I first entered the profession. I frequently have 15 browsers open, email, our ILS (catalog system), and sometimes other apps. Trying to keep focused is a task.

In his book, David Levy shares some really great experiments he tries on himself and from his students' feedback. Using the basic tenets of mindfulness: staying present in your body, focusing on one thing at a time, remembering we are much more than beings who use technology, searching for balance, noticing and logging your thoughts and feelings as you use particular pieces of technology, we can notice what habits we have, and begin to change those we'd like to change.

In this day and age where many of us are working from home, with a computer or laptop, and socially isolated from one another, there is not a better time to dig in and discover our use patterns, and decide if they are working for us, or not. What else are we going to do?

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

“So many of the discussions we are now having about the digital world tend to be based around simplistic dualisms. We ask whether texting is good or bad for us, or whether the Internet is making us smart or stupid. But when we look at the richness of our own experience online, we have the chance to discover when and how texting is helpful and when it isn’t, or when being online is productive and illuminating and when it isn’t.”

[Ted · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mention the idea of "mindful technology use" to friends and coworkers on a regular basis. I found the lessons Levy discusses - the techniques and skills for regaining control over our digital lives - invaluable.

[Roxani]

Wish this had been more engaging, to be honest. The tips make good sense and are likely good life advice, but this wasn't the gripping, reflective read I had hoped it might be.

[Lorianne DiSabato · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mindful Tech is filled with exercises encouraging readers to observe how they interact with technology, and it’s encouraged me to revisit and reflect upon my own use of email, social media, and other apps, not with a prescriptive aim of telling me how I should interact with technology but by encouraging me to ask honest questions of myself. Why do I check email or interact with social media the way I do, and how well are those choices working for me?

[J Crossley · Rating 3 out of 5]

One way to remove the stress caused by always being “on” is to focus on your breathing and posture. Being more aware of technology will allow you to make changes in how you use it. Become more mindful of the way that you utilize technology by noting your patterns. By changing your patterns, you can use technology as a tool to be productive rather than as a master that cannot let you have a moment of peace.

[Nedim · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book focuses mostly on email and multitasking. I expected (because of other reviews) more emphasis on mindful use of social media and mobile apps. The author recommends to observe yourself, to hide the device, and to find your balance, as if these are practical advices.

[Stephanie Wilcox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, accessible, and engaging-- at least for the most part. I definitely skimmed the repetitive parts, but I feel fairly comfortable re-reading this one so I can glean new things from it.

[Taylor Ball · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good guide to controlling the tech in your life instead of letting it control you.

[Frost · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful read with helpful, hands-on techniques.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written as textbook for the class the author teaches, and while efforts have been made to make it suitable for a wider audience, it fails as an entertaining guide for the general public. The writing suffers from academic self-reference and over defining while the activities necessitate peer participation to be effective. Anyone suffering from tech-overload or anxiety would doubtless find this book quite helpful but I am not one of those people and I was disappointed that the book was really just about being more self-aware.

I recieved an ARC of this book through GoodReads.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixing traditional meditation practices with modern technology, Mindful Tech suggests a way to find a balance within our wired world. The bulk of the book is a series of exercises to help increase productivity and focus and avoiding the mindless black hole that Internet browsing can sometimes become, which are useful but become mind-numbingly repetitive. All the same, Mindful Tech is a good guide for finding sanity in a way that doesn’t require moving off the grid to go live in a forest. Recommended.

[Jennifer Brady · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read. Not a fast read if you take the time to thoughtfully complete all of the exercises, but a must read if you desire a way to be more mindful in your actions, both with and without, technology.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one I will want to reread at least semi-regularly, and perhaps do the exercises, to keep myself from falling back into the pit of mindless tech use.

[Jonathan Hiskes · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my full review at Seattle Review of Books. http://www.seattlereviewofbooks.com/r...

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Given my background knowledge with mindfulness, this book was "ok" for me. I can envision it rating much higher for people who are forming a noting practice.

[Stef Garvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found myself being more mindful as I used email, social media, Google searching, etc.

[Sam Holstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the Amazon sample and it did not draw me in. The stuff was true, but I didn't feel it had a new angle.