Short Attention Span Theatre - 254

Captain Distraction strikes again. And appears when you least expect it. Short attention span theatre is a real thing, but also a fun name for this episode. It is our theory that attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. Shawn believes attention spans have been getting worse, while Amanda thinks they have always been pretty bad. What is the truth of the matter....the world may never know!

As a species, humans have always been distracted by the next big thing. Focusing on one thing at a time is quite difficult. You don't want to miss out on something, but you still want to pay attention to the current thing, but that rock is really shiny, and that animal looks so weird, but what is that noise in the background and hey, what are you eating right now!

What competes for our attention? How do we stay on track? We have television, books, video games, texting, phone calls, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, magazines, Snapchat, movies, friends and so many more things to contend with. And in the past there may not have been as many things, but humans still found ways to be distracted. Before digital technology, we had newspapers, radio, Walkmans, drugs and so many other things as well.

Many of us suffer from big screen syndrome. We lose focus. We can't pay attention with so many things going on in the background. Being alert and mindful may be the only way to ground ourselves.

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