Technology For Mindfulness

In this episode, Ariel Garten joins us for a conversation about how her company’s device, Muse, provides you with real-time feedback about your own internal state while you meditate. Muse is a brain-sensing headband that tracks your brain activity and uses sound as a stimulus to get your brain back to focusing on your breath. 

Throughout the conversation, Ariel begins by talking extensively about the benefits that Muse provides and how it actively helps people develop their meditation skills. She also discusses how to determine the age of the brain, how meditation benefits everyone, and the direction that Muse is headed. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What benefits does Muse provide? (4:54)
• How do the charts help with reflection post-meditation? (12:00)
• Tell me about your background. (15:41)
• What has surprised you from your research? (19:53)
• Where is Muse headed? (24:22)

In This Episode, You Will Learn: 

• How Muse helps with meditation. (4:03)
• How Ariel and her team created an algorithm that identifies focused attention vs mind wandering. (18:10)
• How alpha peak frequency changes with the decade of the user’s age. (20:14)
• How your mind is like the weather. (27:46)
• Tips for beginners. (30:40)

Connect with Ariel Garten: 

Muse Website

Instagram

Twitter

LinkedIn

Facebook 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 64, Jay Vidyarthi joins us for a conversation centered around attention activism, including the value of just paying attention to your repetitive habits with technology. Jay Vidyarthi is a frequent speaker and educator on the topic of attention activism and mindfulness, with specific expertise on the user-experience and design aspects of technology. 

In this episode, Jay begins with explaining what exactly attention activism is, and how people can start reclaiming their ability to make a choice of where to direct their attention. Jay explains how technology is used to choreograph people’s attention, especially over time, and how developing mindfulness practices around technology use can change the routines in your brain. In other words, when you make intentional decisions with your technology use, you can start to see a big change in your overall lifestyle. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What does “attention activism” mean? (5:01)
• How does attention activism help with resisting the influence that technology has over our brains? (15:50)
• What trends in design promote mindfulness in technology? (33:28)
• How can people get involved in attention activism? (45:44)

In this Episode, You Will Learn: 

• How to become aware of your habits with technology & how to improve them. (0:58)
• How people are reclaiming their choice of where to direct their attention. (5:35)
• How the design of technology is used to choreograph people’s attention. (9:16)
• How mindfulness is infiltrating various industries. (16:19)
• About the ethics of technology design. (33:45)
• What steps people can take to make positive changes in their lives. (42:48)

Connect with Jay Vidyarthi: 

Website

Twitter

LinkedIn

Resources:

Attention Activist

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 63, Christina Crook joins us for a conversation about how to savor the experience of disconnecting from technology. Christina is the founder of JOMO: The Joy of Missing Out, where she helps people find balance in the digital world and connect with others again – outside of technology. 

In this episode, Christina starts by telling us the story of her digital detox, where she disconnected completely from technology for 31 days. This is where her story begins. Since then, she’s learned that restricting technology use actually enhances her experience of freedom in her life, helps relationships bloom, and ultimately brings more joy into life itself. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What motivated you to pursue the Joy of Missing Out? (4:20)
• How does restricting technology use help you experience more freedom? (10:58)
• How did you get focused on joy? (19:35)
• How can people navigate the demands of technology to experience joy? (24:42)

In This Episode, You Will Learn: 

• How to cultivate the joy of missing out. (0:56)
• Why people experience fear around potentially missing out. (7:15)
• Why technology cannot bring joy into life. (23:29)
• The benefits of making a decision on how much you use technology. (33:01)

Connect with Christina Crook: 

Website

Instagram

JOMO Podcast

The Joy of Missing Out by Christina Crook

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the years through Technology for Mindfulness and as a teacher, martial artist, and technology developer, we’ve helped countless people learn how to become aware of, confront, and ultimately win their invisible wars with technology. We’ve worked with people from all walks of life. And from professionals to college students, the one group that I’ve found having the most difficulty with technology is parents.

Parents are in a particularly tricky position when it comes to dealing with tech. They have all the individual struggles as adults in a technology-driven world. Constant distractions at work and home, the incessant feeling of needing to be “on” at all times, creating an ever increasing dependence on their smartphones to manage their lives. And at the very moment they are dealing with their own obstacles with managing tech, they look up from their phone and see their children mindlessly scrolling social media or glued to their tablet watching who knows what on YouTube. Parents feel doubly responsible - like they’re fighting their war on multiple fronts.

On one hand, parents tell me they are really concerned. They are wondering what the effects of so much screen-time will have over time, they are concerned about their children’s social skills (and possibly the lack thereof), and they are fearful about the unknown dangers lurking online. On the other hand, they can’t imagine life without technology, and to be honest, they don’t necessarily want to. Besides, in truth, it plays a major role in their own lives, and it is increasingly embedded into their children’s world as well. Teachers are using Google Classroom for assignments, their schoolwork is all done on tablets, the internet is a key research tool, email is used for communication, all their friends are online, and social media is often their only social interaction. 

Parents get that technology is here to stay and they’re ultimately okay with that. The problem, however, is not knowing how to use tech in a way that is healthy rather than destructive, disruptive, or toxic. Specifically they’re asking how do they allow their kids to enjoy technology without letting it consume them? How to encourage healthy behaviors? How to instill boundaries?

At the end of the day, what I hear from parents is the same thing all parents have wanted for ages. To raise healthy, well-adjusted kids that will grow into healthy, successful adults. In order to do that in our modern world, it means understanding how to take control of technology, instead of letting it be in control of them. 

The questions sound simple enough, but you’d be surprised to know how many parents simply don’t know where to start. The idea of balance sounds great, but how to get there seems impossible. They see the opposite ends of the spectrum: take their phones and tablets! Cut off the wifi! Or let them use tech like every other child, cross their fingers, and hope for the best.

What I teach is the how. And what I’ve learned through my own personal experiences and training as a martial artist, is that it’s not about removing technology or even managing your children’s screens. You see, I have come to agree that tech has a use and place in our world. But, if we’re not aware of how we’re using it, why we’re interacting with it they way we are, it controls us. So again, the answer isn’t limiting screen time - it’s managing HOW and WHY it’s used.

That’s where mindfulness comes into play. While it may seem like an unrelated concept, at its core, mindfulness is simply about becoming aware of your behaviors, thoughts, and habits in the moment and without judgment. As you become more aware of yourself, you can start to make wider choices about how to act. Or, as I learned in my martial arts training, you can train yourself to do something different. And you can pass on that wisdom to your children, whether by example through your actions or through explanation or both. Here’s an example between you and me:

Take a moment and think about how you’ve witnessed your children use and interact with technology. Try to remove judgment and simply recall your observations. Chances are you’ll see a lot of their behavior is reactive. Your child gets a YouTube notification, suddenly they’re lost on their phone for hours. They get an alert from Instagram and they abruptly stop mid-conversation with you to text their friends. That familiar ping has become almost like a remote control, directing your child’s behavior with every notification. 

As you look back, you can agree that eventually their behavior moves from reactive to habitual. Suddenly, it’s not just about responding to notifications, but it has evolved into a (subconscious) attachment to their phones. The phone comes to the dinner table, to the bathroom, to the family meeting, to the car, to the grocery store. You notice them absent-mindedly picking up and mindlessly scrolling when they’re bored, have a moment of quiet, or even in the middle of a conversation. Oftentimes, it seems as if they don’t notice or even have a true purpose for picking up and checking their phones.

So what usually happens when you notice this behavior? You move into a reactive state yourself. When you hear the notification, you tell them not to pick up their phone. You find yourself saying “put your phone away” or “leave your phone in the house/car” when you see them reaching for it. You’re reacting to their behavior and they in turn start reacting to you. You’re suddenly the villain because you’re not just fighting your child, you’re fighting the habit your child doesn’t even recognize. 

If you want to see real change and improvement in your child’s relationship with technology, you must first help them to become aware of their behaviors, just as you are. They need to learn to recognize their own behaviors, and take stock of their own interactions. And this isn’t accomplished when emotions are high and everyone is responding to each other’s actions. It’s done in the calm, in between moments.

In these moments you have the power to help your child develop self-awareness. You have the opportunity, not to restrict and demand, but to open a dialogue, to care and teach the principles so they are able to develop their own ability to act on their own. In doing so, you’re providing more than behavior change, you’re setting the foundation for success throughout their lives.

You can’t force someone into mindfulness, it is a practice they must develop on their own, but as a parent, At its core, mindfulness is power. Those who practice it have a unique advantage above the rest. And while you can’t force someone to become more mindful, as a parent, you can help guide your children to a place where they become consciously aware of how they are using technology which is the first step to change.

If you were to take a moment and think about the way you use and interact with technology and the way you’ve witnessed your children do the same, you’d noticed most of it is reactive. You get a notification for a work email and you immediately pick up your phone. Your child gets a DM from a friend on Instagram, they pick up their phone. Subtly, and oftentimes not so subtly, people become a puppet to their phone’s demands.

If you watch long enough, you’ll eventually notice that behavior moves from a reactive state to a habitual one. The phone comes to the dinner table, to the bathroom, to the family meeting. You absent-mindedly pick up your phone when your bored, have a moment of quiet, are in the middle of a conversation. You end up on an app and don’t know why you’re on it or even how you got there. 

So you see, it’s not necessarily that technology is bad. We’ve just let it get to a point where it controls us. And we see that control manifesting the most in our children.

If you want to take control of your technology, you want your kids to have boundaries, and you want to reap the potential benefits that technology can provide, it starts with taking a really hard look at how you’re using it. You’ve got to be real and honest so you train your mind to perform differently. That’s how you begin to set a better example for your children and help them develop their own awareness as well. 

Once your child begins to change their behaviors, your family will begin to change for the better.

Parents tell me that they feel like they have their children back, that they see healthier technology use, and most importantly, they see increasing moments of connection where they are focused and more present.  

The best part of all is, mindfulness has a trickle effect. As you encourage, guide, and help your children become more mindful of their technology use, ultimately you become more aware of your own. It becomes a goal that you’re not just pursuing for your children, but that you are all working together as a family. 

Parents have shared the feeling of joy that comes along with family meals together, pockets of time without screens, and a new-found sense of security that they’ve provided their children with the tools to manage their own screens and behaviors. 

When it comes down to it, love it or hate, technology is here to stay. We must co-exist with it and beyond that, use it to our advantage in service of ourselves and our lives. We’re not after a world without technology. We’re determined on creating one where we can use technology mindfully. 

My work is centered on helping parents bring that awareness and mindfulness to their families. Through sharing exercises and practical tactics, I aim to give both parents and their children a way to hold their technology use up to the light, examine where they can improve, and make a plan of action to change for the better. 

So I’d like to ask for your help. After more than 50 episodes, we’re launching a new product! But we want to make sure we give our listeners best value possible. If you go to askmindful.com, we have a short questionnaire that will help us build the best product possible for you. Plus, when you answer, you’ll get a free guided meditation exercise to help you stay focused and avoid distractions when using your smartphone. Just go to askmindful.com now and thank you in advance! That’s askmindful.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 62, Nina Hersher joins us for a conversation about finding a community focused on digital wellness. Nina is a co-founder of Digital Wellness Collective, a unique organization where people working together on digital health and wellbeing can collaborate with each other, meet one another, share experience, support each other, promote one another’s work, and so much more. 

Nina Hersher is the co-founder of the Digital Wellness Collective. She holds her Master of Social Work with an individualized degree in Digital Culture and Program Development. She’s also an international speaker and meditation teacher. She is a digital wellness expert working with individuals and companies on technology usage to increase productivity, efficiency, and self-care. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What is the Digital Wellness Collective? How did it get started? (5:24)
• Why are some places more interested in digital wellness than others? (11:06)
• What is National Day of Unplugging? When is it? (18:09)
• Are there any trends that you’re seeing for the digital wellness movement? (27:31)

In This Episode, You Will Learn: 

• Robert’s weekly tip. (3:40)
• How Digital Wellness Collective is spreading across the world. (9:46)
• The top 3 benefits of becoming a member of Digital Wellness Collective. (13:19)
• How unplugging can lead to inner peace. (21:31)
• What the difference is between “healthy tech” and “anti-tech.” (34:40)

Resources:

Digital Wellness Collective

Digital Wellness Collective - TFM

Digital Wellness Collective – Get Involved

Digital Wellness Collective – Instagram

Digital Wellness Collective - Facebook

National Day of Unplugging

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 61, Christina Malecka joins us for a conversation around how to implement a digital mindfulness retreat into your life, and why this will positively transform your relationship with technology. AS a Seattle-based psychotherapist, Christina has had a front-row seat to the emotional impact smartphones and social media have had on her clients, including loneliness, anxiety, and alienation. To combat this epidemic, Christina Melecka has created a series of digital mindfulness retreats, which can be done at home or within a beautiful, nature-focused location with Christina. These retreats will transform your relationship with technology, connect with others, and connect back to yourself, too. 

Christina Malecka earned her master’s degree in Clinical Psychology and is a licensed mental health counselor in the state of Washington. She works with adults, children, and adolescents of all cultures and orientations to help people find relief from the emotional suffering they’ve experienced in life. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What got you motivated to work in the digital mindfulness space? (4:20)
• What are digital mindfulness retreats like? (10:36)
• How do people’s expectations and experiences differ on the retreats? (16:19)
• How can people learn more about your work and get in touch with you? (31:34)

In This Episode, You Will Learn: 

• How to take a micro-retreat from technology. (1:19)
• How social media can be both beneficial and destructive. (5:43)
• What attention restoration theory is. (10:51)
• How to have an at-home digital mindfulness retreat. (26:05)
• Why a gratitude practice is essential to combating our natural negativity bias. (29:57)

Resources:

Christina Malecka’s Website

Information on Upcoming Retreats

Christina’s Email: [email protected]

DMRET Mexico Retreat

The Joy of Missing Out by Christina Crook

Christina's upcoming retreat on October 17-21

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Technology for Mindfulness Podcast, I wanted to cover some simple steps you can take in how you interact with technology to create positive change in your life.

I've had other experiences in life where I had changed my own habitsI had control of myself and knew that it came down to how my mind and body reacted to the phone ringing. I used a combination of my experience of mindfulness meditation and martial arts training to train myself to respond to the phone ringing and the phone vibrating. The challenge was how to adapt that to my interaction with my phone.

Here are some of the steps I applied to alter my habits and responses to technology disruption:

1. Manage and monitor your triggers: Practice a different response to your phone or device ringing.
2. Follow the same training plan: Through practicing pausing and waiting before interacting with your phone, this will help with anxiety management.
3. Replace with a habit of discipline: You'll replace your habit of how you respond to technology with a new, controlled habit. This will still require you to practice these habits for maintenance.
4. Replace your ringtone to encourage Affirmative Relaxation: Create a different experience and response to your phone ringing.

Now that I've shared some of my journey with you, I'd like to ask for your help. After more than 50 episodes of the Technology For Mindfulness, we’re releasing a new product that will help with this very issue to help build a habit around our responses to our smartphones. I’d like to ask for your help. If you go to askmindful.com, we have a short questionnaire that you can fill out that will help us to build the best product possible for you. When you answer, you’ll get 50% off that product. Go to askmindful.com now and receive 50% of our new product!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 60, David Ryan Polgar joins us for an engaging conversation around the history of digital wellbeing and what it means to be human in the digital age. David takes a different approach to how people should combat oversharing personal data and addiction to technology. Instead of focusing on what we, as end-users, need to do to combat overuse or misuse of technology, David focuses on transforming the ways that technology itself is deployed. 

David Ryan Polgar is a 3-time TEDx speaker and tech writer. He’s known for his work in exploring the impact of tech from an ethical, legal, and emotional perspective. He’s been featured on CMS This Morning, USA Today, AP, LA Times, CNN, BBC, and more. David is also the founder of All Tech Is Human, which is an initiative to align the purpose of technology with what the end-users need to create a more human-centered society. 

Some Questions I Ask: 

• What motivated your work around digital wellness? What challenges did you face? (5:08)
• What organizations are you involved in? (34:35)
• How can people reach you and get involved with everything you’re doing? (44:47)

In This Episode, You Will Learn: 

• Robert’s tip for mindfully granting access to applications. (0:58
• What a “mental food plate” is. (8:41)
• What prompted Robert to be mindful around granting apps permissions to his data. (17:32)
• Why advertisers’ targeting strategy became a massive collision course. (32:29)
• About David’s work with mental wellbeing with tech use. (39:22)

Connect with David Ryan Polgar: 

Website

Facebook

Twitter

All Tech is Human

Resources: 

“Is Google Making us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr

Headspace

Calm

The Center for Internet and Technology Addiction

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today’s episode of the Technology For Mindfulness podcast, I’m going to share with you some of my own journey in grappling with stress and distraction from technology. 

In this episode, you will learn:

• How I’ve developed techniques and habits that I use to stay grounded and focused with my smartphone and other devices and how you can too
• How I deal with distraction in my work and professional life
• An experience I had during my karate black belt test and how that mindset can relate to dealing with digital distraction
• If you’re feeling controlled by technology or that you don’t have any options for relating to your devices differently, the way things in your life now isn’t the way things have to be. 
• How the average person interacts with their phones 2,617 times a day when our instincts drive our phone. This is what can lead us to be more anxious and unproductive. 
• A mindfulness exercise around using your smartphone

After more than 50 episodes of the Technology For Mindfulness, we’re releasing a new product that will help with this very issue to help build a habit around our responses to our smartphones. I’d like to ask for your help. If you go to askmindful.com, we have a short questionnaire that you can fill out that will help us to build the best product possible for you. When you answer, you’ll get 50% off that product. Go to askmindful.com now and receive 50% of our new product!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 59, Tracy Dennis-Tiwary joins us for a thoughtful discussion around how parent-child relationships are impacted by technology use. She dives into the details of how the human eyes have evolved to function in social settings, tracking eye movements and sharing gaze with others—and how technology can disrupt that communication.

Dr. Tracy Dennis-Tiwary is a professor of psychology, clinical psychologist, and digital mental health expert. She was recently featured on ABC’s Screentime, looking at the proliferation and consequences that mobile devices have on daily life. Her research mainly focuses on teen and adolescent wellness and what role technology plays in the struggles that today’s youth face.

Some Questions I Ask:

·     How does your work relate to technology? (3:59)

·     What are some examples of the productive ways that young people can use technology to ameliorate the problem? (9:58)

·     What impact does guilt around technology use have on parent-child relationships? (18:17)

·     How can parents repair their relationship with technology use? (24:44)

·     What suggestions do you have for parents to start managing their technology use? (34:29)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

·     Strategies for answering your phone while talking with someone face-to-face. (1:11)

·     How research supports the notion that technology contributes to stress and anxiety in youth. (7:08)

·     How to create a path for youth to change unhealthy technology habits. (10:48)

·     How to navigate the space between reaction and action when it comes to combating automatic habits around technology. (14:08)

·     About an experiment used to study how technology impacts parent-child relationships. (21:01)

·     How humans’ eyes have evolved to highlight the importance of shared gaze as part of communication. (30:19)

Connect with Tracy Dennis-Tiwary:

Website

Twitter

Personal Zen

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.