Is a Short Attention Span Always Bad?
We read about the shortening attention spans of people, and this is usually portrayed as something undesirable. What are the causes of shortened attention span?
For some, it begins in childhood. Children need to learn how to delay gratification, but some parents are eager to jump in and supply stimulation whenever their child appears bored or restless. These children never learn to tolerate delayed gratification. And their parents are frazzled and become exhausted as they try to keep up with this "help."
The Influence of Smartphones
The appearance and availability of smartphones and social media supply a firehose of information, training users to react ever more quickly to stimuli and therefore needing increasing amounts of stimulation. Many become addicted to their smartphones because in normal everyday life, only only a smartphone can consistently supply that experience.
Time Crunch Necessitates Shortened Attention Span
For many people, the demands on their time have increased. In past times, one member of a household went to work outside the home while another did the cooking, cleaning, childcare, etc. In the evenings, both could relax. Now that many families have two adults working outside the home, each person faces a greater workload. This includes not only their job-related duties but also the household chores that need to get done. Their attention span is shorter because they don't have time to process information in a more leisurely fashion. For these folks, having a shorter attention span isn't an undesirable trait because it enables them to quickly get the information they need.
Genetic Predisposition
Certain people are born with a genetic makeup that allows them to process information at an extraordinary speed. This trait leads them to crave constant stimulation, as they can absorb and react to input almost immediately. This characteristic has both advantages and drawbacks. While it enables them to respond swiftly in crisis situations, it also means they may not experience prolonged enjoyment from activities because their rapid processing tends to shorten the duration of pleasurable experiences.
The Inner Guide
Our Inner Guides understand our individual information-processing capabilities and attention spans. If we have a shortened attention span due to negative factors, our Inner Guides will help us to gradually overcome this problem, improving and expanding our capacity for sustained focus. If you don't yet have an Inner Guide, you can acquire one, for free, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ4G9VIxS94
