The Impact of Shorts Addiction on Concentration and Society

The widespread loss of concentration highlights a societal shift towards distraction and superficial engagement with information.

### The Dangers of Shorts Addiction: A Call for Concentration and Awareness
* 📱  Many individuals are experiencing a phenomenon known as **shorts addiction**, where they become so engrossed in short videos that they neglect basic activities like **showering or eating**.
* 🐶  This addiction is fueled by algorithms that continuously release **dopamine**, especially when engaging content, such as **cute animals**, appears on screen, leading viewers to **spend hours watching**.
* 📺  A recent trend reveals that viewers prefer **40-minute summaries** of lengthy drama series, indicating a growing **lack of confidence** in their ability to engage with longer content.
* 📚  Johann Hari's book, "The Shattered Attention," highlights the **systemic decline in concentration** that affects people globally, not just in Korea, suggesting a **significant societal issue**.
* 💔  The internet's rapid evolution has led to an **overwhelming amount of information**, causing individuals to **skim rather than deeply engage**, resulting in a **dazed and distracted state of living**.
* 💸  This distraction is often linked to financial pressures, as those **struggling financially** find it increasingly **difficult to concentrate**, further exacerbating the issue.
* 🧠  To combat this decline in focus, intentional training is necessary, akin to muscle training, where practices like **reading and writing** can help regain **mental clarity and concentration**.
* 🌳  Engaging in digital detoxes and connecting with offline materials can also provide a **much-needed break from the constant stimulation of digital devices**, allowing for **reflection and deeper thought**.

This is a story about investment mindset that I will share on Monday. I want to talk about something related to the phenomenon of shorts addiction, where people excessively consume short videos. I didn't realize it, but it turns out that many people are experiencing this right now. When they get home, they casually turn on shorts and end up not showering or eating because they're so absorbed in watching. This happens because the combination of algorithms and short videos continuously releases dopamine. Especially when a cute dog appears, there's no stopping it. Once a Shiba Inu comes on, people can easily spend an hour just watching that. Some people might get caught up when a cat appears, while others might keep watching if a girl group idol shows up. As a result, they end up watching shorts for two hours. But...

I've been hearing a lot of people say that they can't stop watching. These days, there's a trend where I recently saw a video that summarized a drama series, which is usually about 16 episodes, in just 40 minutes. When I watched this and looked at the comments, I saw people angrily asking why the ending wasn't included and demanding that it be added. What this means is that they no longer have the confidence to watch all 16 episodes. They want a summary that includes the ending and all the spoilers packed into that 40-minute recap. The demand for this has significantly increased. When I upload a 20-minute video, I often get comments saying that it's too long and asking for a 3-minute summary or a three-line recap. But I really don't understand this mindset. I created a video related to mindset, and I wonder what it means to summarize that content.

In summary, it’s about saying to wake up and be aware. What does it mean to summarize this wake-up call? However, I have had similar experiences. Recently, I watched a drama, but while watching it, I found it a bit boring. Nowadays, they have the option to skip ahead every 10 seconds, right? So at some point, I got so bored that I kept hitting the skip button. I would skip ahead and then go back to watch the interesting parts when they came up. Watching myself do this made me realize that I had nothing to say. I wondered what this was all about, and it reminded me of a book I had read before. It’s a book that argues that a lack of concentration is a systemic problem in society. The book is called The Shattered Attention, and it became quite popular, even leading to special editions.

Yes, anyway, this is a book written by the bestselling author Johann Hari, which discusses how people's concentration is now significantly declining. But is this phenomenon unique to Korea? No, it is a common occurrence happening worldwide. The fact that it is a common phenomenon is, in a way, quite frightening. Why? Because when it comes to concentration, depression, and willpower, there is a global authority, Professor Roy Baumeister, who is currently in Australia. He is a leading expert in this theory. However, I also find it hard to concentrate. Without realizing it, I end up playing mobile games instead of studying. This is mentioned in the book. So what does that mean? If even the top experts are saying they cannot concentrate, it indicates that there is some kind of change happening in our era. This is not just about my willpower; it is influenced by the will of others.

It's becoming weaker. Usually, when such a phenomenon occurs globally, money is often involved. Most things are tied to money, and as a result, our concentration gets distracted. Conversely, one might wonder why it's distracting; the answer is that it has to do with money. About 20 years ago, when I was in high school, and even in the early years of university, I used to memorize phone numbers. Many of you might have had similar experiences. Younger people may not relate, but those over 40 used to memorize phone numbers. I remember having to memorize my parents' phone numbers, as well as my girlfriend's or boyfriend's numbers. If I couldn't remember them, I would get scolded, like, Can't you even remember your mom's phone number? However, at some point, it became impossible to memorize them. Ten or fifteen years ago, I thought we should still be memorizing them.

했었는데 이제는 아예 외울 의지조차 없어졌어. 여러분들도 아마 같은 걸 겁니다. 이런 것들을 외우지 않게 됐어요. 점점 더 그리고 집중을 못 하는 사람들이 정말 많아졌고, 이러면서 사람들이 개인에게 비난하기 시작했습니다. 야, 너는 무슨 성인인데 이렇게 집중을 못 하냐? 너 지금 일 좀 잘 해. 하면서 개인의 어떤 일탈과 개인의 어떤 능력 부족으로 비난을 했었는데, 이 책에서는 그런 얘기를 하는 게 아닙니다. 이 사회적 유전병이, 그러니까 사회적으로 이게 같이 지금 공통적으로 겪는 그런 현상이라는 거죠. 이런 식으로 지금 사회가 구조적으로 바뀌었다는 겁니다. 뭐냐면 인터넷이 발달되면서 예전보다 너무 많은 정보가 있죠. 예전에는 사실 음식을 만든다, 레시피를 만든다고 할 때 레시피를 알려고 도서관에 가서 책을 뒤진다. 

I used to have the will to memorize things, but now I've completely lost that desire. You probably feel the same way. We no longer memorize these things. It’s becoming increasingly common, and many people are struggling to concentrate. As a result, people have started blaming individuals. Hey, you're an adult; how can you not focus? Why aren't you doing your

When I went to the bookstore, I would look for something to read, or occasionally, if I saw a cooking show on TV, I would try to follow along. Sometimes, I would buy magazines. The flow of information was very slow back then; real-time updates were non-existent, and often, the information we could find was a week or even a month old. Moreover, things didn't change quickly. This allowed for time to memorize things and to contemplate and focus on one thing for a longer period. However, as the internet developed and broadband became available, the speed of the internet increased. What happened then? Now, not only videos but a plethora of information is available. So, we have to speed up; we need to skim through information quickly and switch our interests constantly to survive in this society. Naturally, our brains still operate like those of primitive humans, but society is changing rapidly.

As time goes on, my concentration decreases, and I start to feel dazed. I live my life like an animal, just getting through each day. I go to work, do my job, come home, watch YouTube, stream movies, watch variety shows, and then sleep. As I become more dazed, I start seeking out stimulation. I crave something violent, something that involves tormenting others. I can no longer tolerate the blandness of life; it feels like I can't eat anything that isn't seasoned. Therefore, I seek out stimulation, and overall, there's a significant increase in violence in society. Social media companies exploit this because of their algorithms. They say, Hey, you like this? I'll show you more of it, leading to a general rise in violence in society. Not long ago, our country was one where people rarely fought. Just ten years ago...

It was a country where men and women complimented each other. You may not know this, but not long ago, people used to say that Korean women were better than Japanese women, and vice versa, Korean women would say that Korean men were much better than Japanese men. This was only about ten years ago. However, at some point, various conflicts started to arise, such as gender conflicts, generational conflicts, and even regional conflicts. People began to fight, saying, If you're not on my side, then you can't be with me, leading to an increase in violence. With so much information available, facts are often manipulated, and false narratives are created, making the situation increasingly serious. Consequently, those who exploit these conflicts and apply them in marketing are making more money, while those who cannot make money are...

I'm talking about how we're gradually becoming more dazed and spending our days without any thoughts. The common point among social media companies is that they make money through advertisements. Therefore, we need to be dazed. The key here is that social media is about making people dazed. So, when I look at YouTube, it's not about the quality of the video or anything like that; what's important is that the video keeps playing continuously. In other words, it should be something that makes you watch it in a dazed state. If the video is well-made and has some depth, people tend to leave. Instead, the speech has to be fast, and the editing has to be quick; otherwise, they can't handle it and will leave. While that might be considered a good video, social media companies might think, If we can't attach ads to this, it's bad. Now, we need to think about this.

They don't let us think and reflect. When you talk about something like dish soap, have you noticed how it immediately pops up on your phone? Many people have probably experienced this. Suddenly, you see a discount coupon for dish soap on Coupang. These occurrences are quite common these days. They don't give you a moment to think; they keep popping up notifications, trying to distract you with other things, and using algorithms to lead you to the next video, preventing you from gathering your thoughts. You see, YouTube provides videos for free, but it also shows ads. Many people believe that YouTube is free because of the ads they watch, but that's only part of the story. We should be aware that while YouTube distributes videos for free, it is continuously collecting our data. So, it knows what types of videos we watch frequently.

How old is a person, where do they live, what are their tendencies, and what are their search terms? As a result, we can predict everything from their political inclination to their future economic power. We can analyze whether a person is introverted and stays at home or extroverted and constantly meets people. We can also determine whether they drink when they meet others. All of this can be quantified into data. Therefore, we need a large sample to create a more sophisticated advertising algorithm system. So, what happens? It's the same with YouTube and real estate. Only videos from people who agree with my views keep appearing. For example, if I bought a house and hope the prices go up, I will only see videos of people saying that house prices will rise. And those people keep commenting, which makes me think that I am right, and it reinforces my beliefs even more.

YouTube is okay. Then, I'll place a real estate advertisement here. Oh, right, you'll put an interior design ad here. Oh, right, you should place a real estate agent ad here. This is how the algorithm operates. Conversely, if I wish for house prices to drop, I will only see videos from people saying that house prices are falling. I end up watching only those for a long time. Then, the algorithm thinks, Ah, I should show you more ads related to that, and it continues to deliver those. So, what I like, I watch more and for longer, almost mindlessly. All the marketing from companies around me is making me that way. Do you all know that? Having a million subscribers on YouTube in Korea is not an easy feat. However, it is said that there are about a thousand YouTubers with a million subscribers. So, if there are a thousand, what do you think?

Do you feel it? Do you think there are many? It's not small, right? If we consider a thousand people, but if I think about how many of these million-subscriber YouTubers there are, I would count them on one hand. There aren't many with a million subscribers. What does that mean? The meaning of this is quite frightening. If a hundred thousand people are subscribed to something, the actual number of people watching it is likely in the millions, right? Considering the population of South Korea, it means that almost one in every 50 people is watching some YouTuber. Among those, there are definitely five to twenty people who know about it. But there are a thousand such people, and I wonder why I don’t know even ten of them. This means that YouTube is only showing me what I want to see, and it's distributing this content individually and customized to all fifty million citizens. I'm becoming increasingly ignorant. So, many people might feel this way.

Think about what time you spend worrying in a day. In a company, you just do the usual tasks, but the real time spent worrying is probably when you're choosing food on delivery apps. You might think, What should I eat today? Didn't I eat this yesterday? Wait, I should check the ratings for this. You're actually contemplating this. You don't worry about other things; you don't think about how to live your life. You're just wondering whether to order from here or from another location. But then, what happens? You say, Choose the food for me. You know what I like, and I'll even give you a coupon, so enjoy your meal. This doesn't create an environment for contemplation or reflection. We wake up, zone out, and then go to sleep. As a result, the opposite situation also arises.

What I want to talk about is that there is also a phenomenon of intentional distraction in people. When something is too complicated, they just avoid it. Let's say there's a book in front of me. I want to read the book, but it requires too much concentration. So what happens? Naturally, I put it down and take out my phone. I'm not doing anything special on my phone; it's just that the book feels too overwhelming for me, so I divert my attention. There are research findings on how money and poverty affect concentration. It is said that when there is less money and one is in poverty, concentration significantly decreases. As I mentioned earlier, if I try to solve this problem, it requires a lot of concentration and willpower, but it feels too burdensome. I am currently in a weakened state, so I just...

I'm just skipping everything and going to Baemin. Right now, I should be studying something or contemplating my life, trying to make some changes. Instead, I'm prioritizing ordering food from Baemin, turning on YouTube to watch a variety show, and thinking while I eat. If I get sleepy, I just take a nap. This routine is repeating itself. The bigger problem is this: if I don't intentionally seek out information, I can't access it at all. In the past, I would learn about what was happening in the world simply because newspapers and TV would force content on me, even things I wasn't interested in. But that's not the case anymore. If I don't take an interest and look for it, I won't be exposed to it at all. As a result, even though there are over a million YouTubers, I can barely name a handful. This book has some interesting content. What it talks about is sugarcane.

At the farm, the workers were given an IQ test. However, it turns out that taking an IQ test before doing math and after doing math shows a significant difference in IQ scores. In other words, when someone is lacking money or something else, they can't concentrate. They struggle to solve problems, but after doing more math and gaining some peace of mind, they can focus better and solve problems. It's not that a person's brain changes, but there are research findings that support this. In Northern Europe, for example, they provide a basic income of about $600, which is around 700,000 to 800,000 won, consistently every month. For low-income individuals, the issue of money needs to be resolved first; they can't concentrate because they're struggling to make ends meet. Their focus significantly drops when they're in such situations.

There was a time when I consistently paid attention to this for about two years, and at some point, my concentration itself increased. However, many people, especially those in their 40s and 50s who have regrets about financial management, often say when asked why they lived that way, I was just too busy living in a daze. In reality, it’s not that they were extremely busy or overwhelmed. It’s just that their concentration became too scattered and weakened, which led to a lack of will to change their situation, no opportunities, and no encouragement from their surroundings. As a result, many found it completely inaccessible. Viewers of our videos often leave comments expressing their thoughts. They say the content is good, but it seems that only those who are already doing well are able to focus.

I come here to receive education, and although I already know most of the content, I still listen to the advice occasionally. There are many comments like this, or it could be that I'm just being scolded. In a way, the videos I make may be the ones that people who don't appear in the algorithm need to see, but YouTube doesn't send them out sharply. It doesn't send them to those people at all. And, oh right, I need to be scolded. Yes, it's time for me to be scolded. So, it sends this out to those people saying, Hey, it's time for you to be scolded. That's how it distributes it. YouTube is really cold-hearted, and the people who really need to see it don't show up in the algorithm at all. Recently, when going on blind dates, there's this thing where you check the algorithm. Once you get a little closer, you can quickly see what someone watches on YouTube or Instagram, and you can immediately understand what kind of life they usually lead.

But I feel like it's getting more and more difficult. The reason is that both YouTube and Instagram have incredibly powerful algorithms. Furthermore, they are platforms where you can search for content, but in reality, people don't search much. They just scroll through YouTube aimlessly, and on Instagram, they keep scrolling until something catches their eye. In other words, using search terms involves thinking, reflecting, and putting in effort, which can be bothersome and difficult for many. The Instagram algorithm forces me to repeatedly watch the stimulating content I already like. This could be good, but it could also be bad, and it seems to be negatively affecting quite a few people. So, along with the lost focus...

It seems that there are increasingly many situations where there is no effort to change. This contributes to the widening gap between the rich and the poor, which is one of the themes of this book. I find some aspects of this relatable and others not so much, but I do agree with the idea that the gap between the rich and the poor will inevitably grow. The loss of focus will be much stronger among low-income individuals and those stuck in a daily grind. In contrast, those who have a bit of leisure or have established systems, like the wealthy, may experience a decline in focus as well, but it will be relatively less severe, allowing them to engage in a wider variety of activities. I think the same applies to me. Even the most authoritative figures, like the esteemed professor I mentioned earlier, use their phones, indicating that this is a sign of the times.

In the flow of this era, it's important to hold onto our mental focus. So, both you and I need to maintain our grip on it. There’s no way to escape this system, so we must engage in intentional training to regain our concentration. It seems that we’ve reached a stage where we need to train our focus like we would train our muscles at the gym. Regular concentration training is essential. It’s often said that we should practice reading books. However, there are those who just close the book after looking at it, right? These individuals tend to have significantly lower concentration levels. It’s not just about acquiring knowledge; it’s about training. I think it would be beneficial to think of building our concentration as developing a muscle. Digital detox is also one of the methods we can employ. By disconnecting from electronic devices and engaging with offline materials like books or observing nature, we can intentionally create some distance from the quick information and dopamine rush that digital devices provide.

훈련을 하는 것도 좋고, 가장 좋은 것은 이제 글쓰기입니다. 내가 가장 머리를 쓰고 고민하는 것들이 글로 나타나기 때문에, 글을 쓰는 훈련도 많이 하면서 이런 것들을 하며 내 집중력을 좀 갖춰 나가야 합니다. 안 그러면 점점 더 바보가 될 것입니다. 그렇게 만드는 세상으로 지금 사회는 돌아가고 있다는 얘기를 한번 해봤습니다. 인위적으로 훈련하지 않으면 생각 자체를 못 하게 될 겁니다.

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부읽남TV_내집마련부터건물주까지

The Impact of Shorts Addiction on Mindset

Many people are currently experiencing shorts addiction, becoming so absorbed in watching short videos that they neglect basic tasks like showering and eating.

The continuous dopamine release from the algorithms and engaging content, like cute animals or popular idols, keeps viewers hooked for hours.

This trend has led to a growing demand for quick summaries and recaps, as people struggle to commit to longer content, highlighting a widespread decline in concentration and willpower.

The Impact of Money and Information Overload on Concentration

The global phenomenon of distraction is closely tied to money, leading to a loss of focus and the inability to memorize important information.

The rapid development of the internet has flooded people with information, causing a constant need to switch interests and skim through content.

This has resulted in decreased concentration, a craving for stimulation, and a rise in violence in society, with social media algorithms exacerbating the problem.

Social media has contributed to increasing conflicts and violence by manipulating facts and creating false narratives.

The platforms profit from keeping users in a dazed state, using algorithms and continuous notifications to distract and prevent reflection.

This data collection allows for sophisticated advertising algorithms, reinforcing users' beliefs and creating echo chambers.

The Impact of YouTube's Algorithm on Viewer Behavior

YouTube's algorithm tailors content based on user preferences, leading to a cycle of watching similar videos and ads.

The platform's success in South Korea is evident, with a thousand YouTubers having over a million subscribers, indicating a significant influence on the population.

This personalized content delivery can lead to ignorance and a lack of awareness about other creators, while also promoting intentional distraction and avoiding complex tasks.

Struggling to Focus and Access Information

The speaker is caught in a routine of ordering food, watching YouTube, and napping, leading to a lack of exposure to new information.

They highlight the impact of financial stress on concentration and problem-solving, emphasizing the importance of a stable income.

The speaker reflects on the scattered focus of individuals, particularly those with financial regrets, and discusses the cold-heartedness of algorithms in distributing content, leaving those who need it most without access.

The Impact of Social Media Algorithms on Focus and Inequality

Social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram have powerful algorithms that promote aimless scrolling, making it difficult for users to focus and engage in meaningful content.

This constant stimulation can negatively affect individuals, contributing to a widening gap between the rich and the poor.

To combat this, intentional training to regain concentration, digital detox, and writing as a form of reflection are suggested as effective methods for improving focus.