Eric Schmidt explains how technology steals our attention and why switching off your phone can help you think better.Technology has made it easier for us to stay connected, but it has also brought problems like stress and loss of focus.
Social media notifications and constant digital noise make it hard for our minds to concentrate deeply.
Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, points out that the best way to get your attention back is to turn off your phone.
Even though Schmidt helped build big tech companies like Google and Android, he warns that our devices can harm how our brains work.
He says young people especially find it hard to focus because of all the distractions.When Schmidt asks young people how they focus, many say they just switch off their phones.
He says today’s technology is designed to grab all of our attention, with ads and entertainment breaking our natural thinking process.
“If your phone keeps ringing, how can you have deep thoughts? It’s better to turn off your phone than rely on apps for rest. People have been resting without phones for thousands of years,” he says.
This is not a new problem. Scientists and experts have long warned that digital distractions hurt learning and focus, especially for young people.
Schmidt says turning off your phone is an easy and effective way to regain focus, but that doesn’t mean we should stop using technology altogether. Instead, we should use it carefully and avoid unnecessary distractions.
He shared that once on a flight, he worked for six hours straight using Google’s new AI called ‘Gemini’ because he turned off his phone and stayed away from social media.
His message is simple: When we protect our attention by turning off phones or avoiding distractions, technology can help us instead of stopping us.