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Has your attention span been affected by digital life? What helps you to focus?
Living life in the fast lane can make you miss out on all the many wonders that surround you.
This week's Spiritual Newsletter is all about slowing down a little, and enjoying the moment.
Kit |
We live in a fast-paced world. Pretty much everybody's busy all the time, and in a hurry to get to the next thing, and the next, and the next. Attention spans are shortening, because there's so much out there to grab our attention. 24-hour news, social media with endless scrolling, short videos you can swipe through one after the other. Who has the time to read long-form investigate journalism? Who wants to watch an hour-long how-to video when you can get an AI summary? Well, I do. I still enjoy watching longer videos, and I like in-depth pieces. I can't deny, however, that my attention span isn't what it used to be.
I went to the cinema a few weeks back. It wasn't a super long movie. Two hours and twenty minutes. That proved too long for some people - they just had to take out their phones and scroll. People will have their phones out during concerts. I've had friends over and they'll have their eyes on their phones at several times during conversations. I've even noticed it at restaurants. It's as though people struggle to pay attention, to be present in the moment. And that's such a shame because how can you truly experience something when you don't have the patience for it? How can you truly connect with others when you are constantly distracted?
I love to walk around in nature. There are lovely woods around my cottage, as well as a loch and a water garden. Whenever I am out there I feel refreshed. I can cast my worries aside, at least for a while, and simply be. Sure, if I see something I want to share I'll take a picture, but most of the time my phone's in my pocket and I just wander around, taking it all in. I may spot a pheasant, or a bunny. Dragonflies and damselflies. There are these cute water striders in the water garden, and I might see a jumping fish. This year our loch has attracted a young swan and it's lovely to watch him grow up. There are deer in the woods, and badgers, and hedgehogs... Sometimes I'll hear a fox, but I haven't seen one yet. In the evening there are owls, and bats. Last year there were hundreds of tiny baby toads. Adorable, though we had to be really careful when walking along the pathways, as they weren't easy to spot and we didn't want to accidentally step on them!
There's all this wildlife, and more, but I would miss out on most of it if I didn't pay attention. The area is quiet, but sometimes people will pass through, too busy with their phones to bother looking around them. You have to sit with nature to get the most out of it. When you take a little time to be still, you'll spot more and more life around you - and that life may even come to you.
There is this... impatience. Some people get deeply frustrated because an older person may take a little longer at a check-out, or a tourist may struggle with their suitcase on the escalator. It's a matter of seconds, but those seconds apparently drive them up the wall. I've noticed that there are those who are in such a rush that they don't give other people the space to get off the train, before trying to push their way in. Road rage is real and sure, there are bad drivers, but what's the point of pressing that horn when the cars in front of you are just as stuck in traffic as you are? There's nothing they can do about the situation, so it's just adding to everyone's stress.
We each of us have limited time in our day, but a little patience and understanding goes a long way. Everyone's out there trying to get through life the best that they can. An older gentleman taking a few moments to count out their coins at the till is not holding you up deliberately. A tourist trying to find their bearing isn't doing so to ruin your day. They have as much of a right to our communal spaces as the busy commuter, or the person quickly nipping into the store on the way to their next event. Everyone has their own story, their own reasons for being where they are, and doing what they're doing. It helps me, to see it like that - the world doesn't revolve around me. I'm just a part of a big puzzle with billions of people who are all trying to fit together in their own little space.
We may not be able to slow down too much, but we can try to show more patience, to be more present in the moment, to make the most of the time that we have, to fully pay attention to what we're doing, and to those who matter to us. I've even noticed that during conversations some people feel the need to interrupt, try to finish your sentences so that they can jump in with their own stories, like even briefly paying attention is too much. They're not actually listening, not actually showing genuine interest, just waiting until they can make the conversation about them. Isn't it much nicer to have a real conversation where both people share their stories and ask questions, and build a real connection?
I don't know, maybe I'm just getting old, but I prefer to go that bit slower. And I've found that after a while of not watching shorts and not scrolling endlessly, my attention span is slowly returning to normal. I have more patience to read books again. To pay full attention to what I am watching. To sit in nature and watch the amazing wildlife around me.
We weren't made to be in such a hurry. To be so distracted. To have so much information thrown at us each and every second of the day. So my tip for you this week is to take a step back and go that tiny bit slower. Who knows what will inspire you?
Kit
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Wishing you a week filled with inspiration,
The Spiritual Newsletter Team
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Spiritual: July 29, 2026 Issue [#13868]
