Over the course of the last few years, I have always wanted more out of my summers. I wanted to be able to do the hobbies and explore potential interests further. But every single year the same thing happens: I rack up a totally absurd amount of screentime. The center of my issue stems from YouTube. I don’t even have the app, I just use the browser version and watch from my iPad that I use for my high school. And I know my pattern exactly. I tell myself I want to watch an educational video. I watch it. Then another one, using things ranging from self improvement to economics pops up. I watch it. Soon enough, I am either in a complete rabbit hole, or I have burnt my dopamine receptors to the point that I am just watching comedy-based videos. At the end of the day, I feel like I failed myself. And yet I do the same thing all over again. I guess that is also one of the main reasons why I joined this group in the first place because it gave me the opportunity to disconnect from my digital jail and I felt as though I could find people with the same experiences as me. With this said, I have started to fall to the same traps again. My only question is: how do I finally stop. I have tried apps like Screenzen to monitor my time. They don’t work for me. I have tried to use grayscale: I either mindlessly turn it off or I genuinely watch hours of content with it on. No matter what I try, I feel like I will relapse. I feel like its because I don't have anything to fill my time with. With this void, I gravitate towards anything to cure my boredom, but I know I need to learn to live with a certain level of boredom in order to go back to a normal level of control over myself. With all of this being said, does anyone have any advice? What can I tell myself to be able to not go bad to the same bad habit. I want to put this chapter behind me so I can enter my adult life not addicted to content and be able to actually focus on my career and other important aspects to the rest of my life.

What books are you currently reading or have read that has changed your daily routine? Is it something obvious or an idea you needed to read multiple times to understand? A book that has significantly shaped my creative output is The Creative Act by Rick Rubin. It’s one of the most influential reads that reshaped how I think about why and how I create my videos. I’d highly recommend it to anyone involved in creative work, whether professionally or as a passion. One idea that stood out to me is the concept of having no rules. It’s easy to fall into the mindset of always needing to be productive or checking off tasks from a to-do list. While that structure can be helpful, it can also limit the infinite possibilities of what you could create or explore. I’ve noticed this in my own process, sometimes I default to a formula or stick to what feels comfortable. That in itself isn’t necessarily bad, but it becomes a problem when it happens unconsciously and starts to limit creativity. Happy reading and share your books everyone! Post was inspired by @Ryan S Thanks for messaging me about this!

What do you think of the video? I made it from my current perspective, where my job doesn’t really feel like a typical “job.” I enjoy what I do, and that shapes how I see work overall. At the same time, I understand that this viewpoint might come across as a bit “rage baity,” especially since a lot of people have very different, often negative, experiences with work. *SPOILERS* I push back against the common narrative that jobs are inherently miserable or that working is something to escape from. Instead, work can actually be an important part of building a fulfilling and meaningful life. Not just financially, but mentally and emotionally as well. I believe that having something to work toward, contributing to something, and developing skills over time can bring a strong sense of purpose and satisfaction. However, many people haven’t found that kind of experience with work yet, which makes this perspective harder to relate to or even frustrating to hear.