How to Combat Clip Thinking

Hello friends.

Today we will talk about the new plague of the 21st century - clip thinking. In the era of selfies, social networks, funny pictures and stupid videos from bloggers gaining millions of views, the algorithm of human information consumption is changing. Due to the constant consumption of “information fast food,” it becomes difficult for many people to concentrate for long periods of time. And if you used to read a book in a week, now it can gather dust on your desk for months. Why? Because you are used to information being served in small portions with emotional headlines and pictures.

How to regain your ability for deep learning, how to get off the needle of news and funny stuff, how to finally stop degrading - proven practical methods. The article is short, don't worry)

The term “clip thinking” appeared relatively recently. Initially, it denoted a person's tendency to perceive information only through bright, short-lived images, which music videos are rich in. Later, the meaning of the term expanded: if earlier clip thinking included endless switching of TV channels, now it is: clicking links online, viewing stupid pictures and videos, reading news headlines, social networks, ICQ, WhatsApp, and other Instagrams.

Why is the social network Instagram now gaining popularity, while the more classic Facebook and VKontakte are losing ground? Can you guess? Because Instagram has less text and more pictures. No need to use your head)

Of course, if you use social networks only to send messages, there is almost no harm. But if you hang around in public pages with jokes and the like... the IQ of the average VKontakte user drops by about 5 times when he logs into his favorite social network. Seemingly normal people turn into schoolchildren from a remedial class. Don't believe it? Look at your friends' comments on posts in public pages and you will understand everything. Do you think you are special and that this does not apply to you? Well, well))

Is this bad? Well, a person watches stupid jokes and news headlines. What's wrong with that? It's not prohibited by law!!

Of course you won't die. It’s just becoming more and more difficult for you to learn new information; your level of anxiety increases (if you read the news), which leads to stress and health problems.

You can no longer read books or even long articles. You need the “interesting things” in a condensed form. If you have rich oligarch parents who support you and all you can do is post selfies from the Maldives on your Instagram, congratulations! What if there are no such parents? If you want to achieve something yourself? Then you cannot do without deep thinking, which is the opposite of clip thinking.

If you are reading this article now and don’t understand what I’m talking about, congratulations. You have managed to avoid the corrupting influence of modern culture. But if you recognize yourself... then let's continue)

It is very easy to get hooked on the “entertainment” needle. You won’t even notice how you start to get dumb. And the hand itself will reach out to the phone/computer to check “what’s new.” Believe me, I went through this myself.

How can we fight clip thinking when bright headlines and colorful pictures are coming at us from every hole on the Internet?

Since there are many kinds of addictions, I will list ways to deal with different types of “extra” information, and you can choose the ones that are relevant to you.

You won’t be able to “get off the needle” instantly. At least for most of us. Therefore, one of our main methods will be to reduce doses and their frequency.

“I follow the news, it’s important for me to know what’s happening in the world! What if something important happens!”

News. Perhaps the worst of informational addictions. Because, in addition to reducing your ability to concentrate, regularly reading the news significantly increases your overall level of anxiety. This leads to heart disease and a bunch of other ailments.

Do you really need to know the news? After all, it is specifically made up of negative events, because they attract more attention.

Try to recall offhand at least one news story that you read and that somehow affected your life. Can't? You will learn about truly important events anyway, believe me. Any homeless man near a train station without TV or Internet knows that there is a crisis in Russia. He also knows who the current president is. He may not know everything about ISIS, but why do you need that information?

What I am saying is that reading/watching the news is an absolutely useless and even harmful activity. But how to get rid of this habit? Gradually.

Some people simply cannot read books. Not because they are stupid, but simply because they have that type of personality. This is fine. But if you previously read books without problems, but now it’s difficult for you, then most likely it’s a matter of clip thinking.

So, what else can you do to get back into reading books and generally increase your concentration and deep thinking abilities?

In addition to practical harm, scattered garbage information also causes damage to us at the energy level. But more about that some other time:)

Best regards, Pavel Vlasov TradeLikeaPro.ru