A mechanical watch can contain over 100 parts. Each one is connected together in perfect balance to carry out the simple task of keeping time. The attention to detail required of a watch repairman is difficult to comprehend. Each piece must be expertly removed with tweezers, lovingly worked on under magnifying glass and then replaced in its correct spot. A single moment of distraction could ruin the balance of the pieces and render the watch useless forever.
Why is it that we find this skill so remarkable? It’s not only because of the incredible skill required, but also because of the perfect focus and undivided attention that must be devoted to the task.
Being ‘focused’ has traditionally been admired as an enviable characteristic. We are intuitively impressed by someone who can devote their entire self to achieving a particular aim. It’s natural to be amazed by someone who has spent their life researching a particular disease, or writing beautiful poetry, or even becoming an expert on the mating habits of Himalayan mountain goats. We value this because, though it requires considerable self-discipline, focus has led to society’s greatest achievements.
Yet I get the sense lately that we are being duped. We are being slowly convinced that, instead of revering focus, we should celebrate distraction. We are told we should want to see emails and texts while attempting to study, and take a quick peek at Facebook during our shift at work. We should gasp in amazement at someone who can finish three assignments in one night while watching The Voice, tweet about it and make two-minute noodles all at the same time. Though multitasking is an impressive skill in itself, ‘focus’ is loosing its rightful status as an essential part of life.
But don’t be fooled, this cultural shift is not a natural progression. It has arisen deliberately, caused by those who need us to think differently. This shift is the work of the technology behemoths who have infiltrated the most intimate areas of our lives; the Facebooks, Twitters and Apples of this century who have a vested interest in making us want to peek at little screens 500 times a day. Let me be clear, this is not an anti- consumerist rant; I am an avid user of these services myself. Humanity has encountered immeasurable advantages thanks to technological progression. But this doesn’t negate the fact that we are being sold the vision of an Augmented Reality Utopia; a world where technological products will play a part in every facet of our lives, purportedly improving the experience of living. This is a world where switching off to focus is not considered normal at all.
Such a vision is epitomized by Google’s new product; Google Glass.
It’s a pair of glasses that puts a tiny screen in the corner of your vision at all times, keeping you connected no matter what you are doing. This is their vision for the future, a vision shared by many other companies who never want you to disconnect.
Let me use Facebook to illustrate my point. Being focused fundamentally undermines Facebook’s premise. This is because Facebook is not built as a standalone activity. It is meant to be the secondary thing you are doing. So where does this leave Facebook if you just want to focus? If you don’t want to check Facebook while you are doing homework, Mark Zuckerberg is evicted from that part of your life. If you don’t want to check it while in bed with your partner, you are telling Mark to get out from under the covers and leave you two alone. What if you don’t want to read your News Feed when you are at work? Or having a conversation with a friend? Or spending time with your family? If you chose to fully focus on all these moments, Facebook could find itself walled out of your life altogether. And if Facebook is out of your life, then Facebook can’t show you advertisements, its business model falls apart and Mark Zuckerberg’s head implodes into a black hole, tearing the fabric of space-time to shreds.
The same line of logic can be applied to almost any technology company because ultimately, your engagement with their product leads to profit and your disengagement causes their empire to crumble. Exhibit A – MySpace. Once these motives are stripped bare, it quickly becomes apparent that these companies couldn’t care less if they are selling a vision for the world that actually decreases productivity and happiness, as long as it increases engagement with their product. The CEO of Google doesn’t care if watching videos of lolcats on YouTube grinds your study to a halt.
So where does that leave us now? I’m not ashamed to admit that I love my iPhone with a passion and I’m not going to throw it away in pursuit of focus. So I propose an answer that is far less dramatic than ridding yourself of all technology. Why not remind Mark Zuckerberg and his friends that they don’t get to choose the order of priorities in your life. They don’t get to decide when you need to see what your third cousin had for lunch or a selfie of your acquaintances from Saturday night. Take back control of when you engage and more importantly, when you disengage. Become the master of your technology, not the servant. There’s no replacement for dedicating every neuron in your brain to achieving one task, concentrating without distraction. Don’t let the technology industry convince you that focus is a dying art, because an Augmented Reality Utopia is nothing more than a profitable myth.
