Living More Mindfully with Digital Technology with Claudia L’Amoreaux

MP3 Download

After an encounter with a 22-month-old toddler using his cell phone to navigate between Safari’s browser and a children’s video on YouTube, L’Amoreaux felt it was worthwhile to have some deep dialogues around the introduction of young children to such powerful and seductive technology. She cites an REI report called “The Path Ahead” that references research indicating that 95% of Americans are spending most of their days indoors. It states the we are becoming an “indoor species.” In this dialogue we also explore how digital searches do not provide the same information to all users. Unbeknown to most users, information is constantly being filtered. L’Amoreaux shares specific direction regarding conversations that would help us be better informed about the technology we’re using. She points out that “we find ourselves in a place of being connected 24/7 and that is relatively new . . . it’s requiring of us another level of awareness and mindfulness around thinking about how we want to navigate this technology. I think we can make small changes that can make huge qualitative differences.” L’Amoreaux is a proponent of asking better questions and having deep dialogue within our families. She advises us to “think about having the conversation around getting more and more clear about what is it that we care about. You’re not going to pin it down. It may be continually changing. But to have that [kind of conversation] is a core part of making those values visible. [It can be] almost like a family mission statement . . . I think that making those values clear as individuals and as a family is really going to help us when the 80 thousand, 550 thousand, ten million distractions come our way. It helps us to keep on course. I’m not saying you never go off on little side trips; serendipity is a beautiful thing . . . A lot is being asked of us today and it’s easy to spend 5 hours scrolling on Facebook and I doubt if that’s really going to lead to the kind of feeling that we want to be feeling”. (hosted by Justine Willis Toms)

Bio

Claudia L’Amoreaux works at the intersection of new technologies in education. She helps parents and young people nurture the skills needed to make wiser choices about technology that will lead to greater wellbeing. She’s the founder of Mindful Digital Life. She also does a weekly blog, The Interconnect where you can subscribe at www.theinterconnect.substack.com   

To learn more about the work of Claudia L’Amoreaux go to www.claudialamoreaux.com.

Topics Explored in This Dialogue

• How we are becoming an “indoor species”
• What words are missing from the Oxford Junior Dictionary that reflect what’s happening in our culture
• Why we should engage in deep and daily conversations in our family about the digital tools we are using
• What are some of the small changes that can make huge differences in being proactive in our interaction with our personal digital devices
• How the work of the Center for Humane Technology advocates for
  designing technology for humans instead of humans for technology
• Ways we can make a qualitative shift in our life to lessen the impact and stress that our digital devices cause in our lives
• Why it is important to understand that there are thousands of tech designers who are paid really well to keep our attention
• Why solitude is important for de-stressing our lives
• How we can develop deeper and more authentic conversations
• How may we ask more “beautiful questions” as suggested by poet David Whyte
• How can we discover our family values through deep dialogue
• How to be more mindful in the way we interact with technology 

Host: Justine Willis Toms       Interview Date: 4/26/2018       Program Number: 3643

Music Playlist

From Album: Neurosphere
Artist: EsoTerra
2012  EsoTerra

Opening Essay: Track 09 Lattice of Attunement
Music Break 1: Track 02 In This Moment
Music Break 2: Track 05 Conscious Mind
Music Break 3: Track 06 February Rain