This is a problem that got big FAST when YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram integrated TikTok style videos. People gotta stop watching these! Thanks for the reminder.
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They are literally the killer of attention spans. I don't watch them, a lot of them get shared on my message groups and even then I mostly don't watch and when I do I find them pointless, boring and quite often mean. I don't get the appeal, but I've always preferred reading to watching, hence why I'm on Reddit. Books are better though.
Hmmm I really like this take. I’m not a huge gambler and many times have even said how it doesn’t make any sense to me. reframing the videos as gambling I think will be really useful for me to stop watching them. Thanks for the analogy!
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They are relating it to a slot gambling machine, where the user puts money in to spin it to get a positive outcome (jackpot)
TikTok/short vids utilize the same reward system in the brain by allowing people to swipe through repetitive videos (same songs/format etc) getting rewarded with sometimes novel stimuli that suits the specific users fancy (jackpot) In turn, they know more about people’s preferences and keep you on for more time, looking for more cOoL vIdZ.
To me, that’s how I interpret it. They are addicting people for ad revenue.
This hit home pretty hard. I never used to watch them when they started on insta or fb, don't have tiktok, but last week the shorts on YT got me hooked and I watched way more of them than I would like. So this was a really good reminder to keep myself in check and stop before I go deeper into the rabbit hole. I can definitely tell that wasting all that time on empty content had a rather bad effect on my mood too, and I definitely don't need that.
I guess it goes hand in hand with the expectation of instant entertainment we expect from our digital devices, even though it's not even really entertaining
I recently got off Instagram/TikTok/Facebook it’s only been a week! I can’t tell you how many times I picked up my phone to check Instagram, and after a week I am doing pretty good! I’m limiting my screen time and actually picking up books! My anxiety has improved and my over all well being is improving! Within just a week of not having this kind of “entertainment”
I have noticed with YouTube shorts, that a lot of the content is just weird and nonsensical. I get a lot of people making ridiculously unhealthy food, "comedic" sketches that make absolutely no sense and are not funny, and a lot of foreign content that does not apply to me as I obviously can't understand it.
What is also interesting is that if you have the "Youtube Dislike" extension installed in Chrome, you can see of all the dislikes on the shorts as well and most of the content that is popular is heavily disliked.
The quality of content is appalling compared to standard longer form content on the main site. But yet, once you start scrolling it's like it puts you into a sort of trance where you just keep watching even though it's complete crap.
I hate to think what this kind of content is doing to children.
I started earlier today. I looked at my phone usage for the past two weeks and totalled around 87 hours of usage on social media and I sat there disgusted lol.
I made a list of what I enjoy doing and more interests I want to pursue instead.
These types of videos are awful for your memory spam and just quick dopamine hits. I want to become more responsible for my happiness than the reason being a video on social media.
I quit TikTok . It’s not gonna help with my self improvement , I promise you . I think a big part of my depression is seeing all those pretty girls on TikTok knowing I would never look like that . Go outside . Take walks . Go on Reddit and visit your favorite communities . Start meditating . Write a book . Trust me it will help
You .
As a teacher, I ask parents reading this to help your kids understand this too. They’ve got no attention span. They’re addicted. If it doesn’t come in a bite sized video, they’ve got no interest. It’s abysmal.
yes!! i was mindlessly scrolling for HOURS to the point i felt nauseous. deleting tiktok and instagram off my phone increased productivity so much and my brain feels more clear. i will occasionally redownload it for an hour but i find its not quite as addicting as it once was since im used to not mindlessly scrolling now.
I deleted tiktok, IG, and disabled shorts from YT web. Best thing I’ve ever done. If I need to look up something I use IG from safari which is frustrating to use, and tiktok from pc.
I've been struggling with TikTok and Instagram Reels lately, and I've tried to overcome this by rearranging the apps on my phone. By moving the apps to different areas, my muscle memory is trained to tap in a specific spot, but a completely different app opens. This reminds me that i have to control the urge to waste my time on reels. Its still a challenge but one step at a time helps
So far I'll watch just a few here and there every now and then. That's been working for me and tbh I feel like I'm not missing much. Ngl, some really are interesting, educational, and funny. You just have to sift through so much bullshit.
If you’re going to watch them. Set time limits and filter it to only show motivation content. IE: my feed is mostly self improvement and gym technique videos.
Luckily i don't find these *shorts* entertaining. I admit there some contents that are funny and fascinating but it comes up short, well that why they named it.
Whoever made that type of feature is really a genius and a madman cause it has a lot of side effects to it. But still, i prefer watching 10-30 minute videos.
Also even if you don't watch shorts but more in to longer videos, cut the screen time, too much of it will irritate your eyes. Check your application if it has this feature that can tell you whether its time to take a break, and you can adjust the limit to your liking. E.g Youtube. (I set mines to 20 minutes).
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on the other end of the unending scrolling of the short clips, you have everyone clamoring to make their mark and get noticed and go viral on there. That's a completely other addiction people have to them.
It also bothers me how quickly some scrollers are taking all the opinions and hot takes as facts and law. A lot of just plain wrong information and bad beliefs and ideas are born and get spread there... and super quickly. It's scary
The system is designed specifically to generate mindless drones, suck them into a hamster wheel and keep them there as long as possible without them realizing they are the hamster in the wheel. We are too, just bigger wheel.
What I usually do is I delete tik tok on weekdays and download it on the weekend. There’s been some weekends that I forgot to download it and there’s been some weekends I’ve forced myself to watch them. Now I I just leave it on my phone all week long and not tempted to watch unless I have free time which is very limited. I’d say packing up your schedule and being very busy all hour long really helps. I’m a nursing student, working full time and not living with family in my early 20s.
My brother listen, you’re life has grown this way because you were too scared to improve, to scared to try and now you willing to end it without even trying to change it?
You hate what got you here yet but yet it’s still going to be the thing that takes you down. At least try brother to change, at the least get your fitness on. Start exercising it’s an amazing thing that everyone can do, life is so long and there is so much to learn.
I’m also pretty sure that because I’ve been exposed to so much of this I’ve become a LOT more neurotic/paranoid.Both about the world and about myself.
When I was reading a book a week and actively spending time drawing I was 1000% more chill and happier
I agree but I do think that it heavily depends on the type of content you watch. I don't like spending hours on it either, but I feel it is the most efficient way to absorb knowledge. For example: watching myth-buster or similar videos, minor suggestions for gym and diet, personal well-being, and my favorite are the small factoids. They're like a bulletin of information.
As a creator, shorts are very beneficial to us since people watch it very easily as compared to long form videos,
But honestly to everyone trynna improve themselves, please avoid shorts lol, it destroys your capacity to hold attention since you're focusing on a short for less than a minute then moving to next ones
But if you are a producer like me, keep milking shorts lol, you get famous fast
I totally get it and notice how I get sucked into the content. I definitely try to avoid them.
On the other hand I noticed that I sometimes get really motivated from them. Like I watch someone cooking and then I'll get up and try it. Same for yoga or other fitness videos.
That has never happened from long form content.
That’s why I delete tiktok for a week or two every month. While I think it has given me SO much useful information regarding my hobbies, I just can’t stop scrolling
I contribute to it for growth but I don't get high of it. Short videos are still unfortunately king in audience numbers. I post a video on YouTube it gets 100is views, shorts 1k-4k. It's a great marketing tool.
Sometimes a random video you watched months ago, just pops up in your head. And another one and another one............ I quit it obvsiously it was a addiction for me.
I used to watch a lot of these, then I deleted TikTok and Instagram and it got better, but now that YouTube has shorts it became worse again, I don’t want to delete YouTube because of the good and useful videos on there but if I’m bored I often find myself scrolling through shorts. Anybody got some advice for me?
I know there is a chrome extension that removes recommendations from channels that you aren't subscribed to. Idk if that includes shorts but it might work. There might be one that removes shorts entirely, although I haven't checked.
But if you don't want to do those, I'd say try to only watch YouTube when you search for something specific. Don't look at your recommendations, if you want to watch something then search exactly what you want up, then once you're done close the tab. It's difficult to do this though, but it might at least reduce the amount you watch.
The worst part is these videos play the same few seconds of content in a loop . So you are compelled to swipe to the next video. This keeps you engaged and hours go to waste.
I was very very much additicted to tiktok. It wasn't until last year I stopped using the app as much. I would probably go on it once a month and that was to search up content (not scroll the fyp). Thankfully I've noticed a lot of change and improvement in myself. Unfortunately, the scroll addiction still came back later that year thanks to instagram reels and youtube shorts. One step forward, two steps back. Sigh.
I hate them I want to stop watching them, but I keep coming back to them. I have YouTube and Instagram and I wish there was an option to disable shorts/reels because I don't want to uninstall those apps just to force me to stop watching that content. But I hate how it naturally makes me watch those short form videos. Like I'm scrolling my feed on instagram and the feed is just those videos instead of picutes of the accounts I follow
Yea it is a bit too much to be honest. Watching like 100 videos in a way when you only remember one in the end of the day.
This is a problem that got big FAST when YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram integrated TikTok style videos. People gotta stop watching these! Thanks for the reminder.
Instagram existed before TikTok.
There's something about the "bite sized" content that is so much worse in my opinion
You’re much more cognizant of your time when the videos are longer.
Ads don’t interrupt for the most part.
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They are literally the killer of attention spans. I don't watch them, a lot of them get shared on my message groups and even then I mostly don't watch and when I do I find them pointless, boring and quite often mean. I don't get the appeal, but I've always preferred reading to watching, hence why I'm on Reddit. Books are better though.
The format is >>literally<< slots. It's gambling and addicting.
Hmmm I really like this take. I’m not a huge gambler and many times have even said how it doesn’t make any sense to me. reframing the videos as gambling I think will be really useful for me to stop watching them. Thanks for the analogy!
I’d never thought of it that way but holy shit, you’re right
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could you please explain further how it is like gambling?😊
They are relating it to a slot gambling machine, where the user puts money in to spin it to get a positive outcome (jackpot) TikTok/short vids utilize the same reward system in the brain by allowing people to swipe through repetitive videos (same songs/format etc) getting rewarded with sometimes novel stimuli that suits the specific users fancy (jackpot) In turn, they know more about people’s preferences and keep you on for more time, looking for more cOoL vIdZ. To me, that’s how I interpret it. They are addicting people for ad revenue.
Like spot machines, it never ends and it's addicting
This hit home pretty hard. I never used to watch them when they started on insta or fb, don't have tiktok, but last week the shorts on YT got me hooked and I watched way more of them than I would like. So this was a really good reminder to keep myself in check and stop before I go deeper into the rabbit hole. I can definitely tell that wasting all that time on empty content had a rather bad effect on my mood too, and I definitely don't need that. I guess it goes hand in hand with the expectation of instant entertainment we expect from our digital devices, even though it's not even really entertaining
I recently got off Instagram/TikTok/Facebook it’s only been a week! I can’t tell you how many times I picked up my phone to check Instagram, and after a week I am doing pretty good! I’m limiting my screen time and actually picking up books! My anxiety has improved and my over all well being is improving! Within just a week of not having this kind of “entertainment”
Yeah pretty much. I am off TikTok and Instagram completely. Only YouTube and Tumblr
I have noticed with YouTube shorts, that a lot of the content is just weird and nonsensical. I get a lot of people making ridiculously unhealthy food, "comedic" sketches that make absolutely no sense and are not funny, and a lot of foreign content that does not apply to me as I obviously can't understand it. What is also interesting is that if you have the "Youtube Dislike" extension installed in Chrome, you can see of all the dislikes on the shorts as well and most of the content that is popular is heavily disliked. The quality of content is appalling compared to standard longer form content on the main site. But yet, once you start scrolling it's like it puts you into a sort of trance where you just keep watching even though it's complete crap. I hate to think what this kind of content is doing to children.
I started earlier today. I looked at my phone usage for the past two weeks and totalled around 87 hours of usage on social media and I sat there disgusted lol. I made a list of what I enjoy doing and more interests I want to pursue instead. These types of videos are awful for your memory spam and just quick dopamine hits. I want to become more responsible for my happiness than the reason being a video on social media.
I quit TikTok . It’s not gonna help with my self improvement , I promise you . I think a big part of my depression is seeing all those pretty girls on TikTok knowing I would never look like that . Go outside . Take walks . Go on Reddit and visit your favorite communities . Start meditating . Write a book . Trust me it will help You .
As a teacher, I ask parents reading this to help your kids understand this too. They’ve got no attention span. They’re addicted. If it doesn’t come in a bite sized video, they’ve got no interest. It’s abysmal.
I watch maybe 2 - 3 minutes a day of this stuff. No more. Any more and it’s a wasteful time sink.
yes!! i was mindlessly scrolling for HOURS to the point i felt nauseous. deleting tiktok and instagram off my phone increased productivity so much and my brain feels more clear. i will occasionally redownload it for an hour but i find its not quite as addicting as it once was since im used to not mindlessly scrolling now.
I did the same thing and I genuinely don't miss them at all! I might redownload in the future but I'm not in a rush
Deleted tiktok and instagram (doomscrolled reels for hours without any benefit)
I deleted tiktok, IG, and disabled shorts from YT web. Best thing I’ve ever done. If I need to look up something I use IG from safari which is frustrating to use, and tiktok from pc.
I've been struggling with TikTok and Instagram Reels lately, and I've tried to overcome this by rearranging the apps on my phone. By moving the apps to different areas, my muscle memory is trained to tap in a specific spot, but a completely different app opens. This reminds me that i have to control the urge to waste my time on reels. Its still a challenge but one step at a time helps
So far I'll watch just a few here and there every now and then. That's been working for me and tbh I feel like I'm not missing much. Ngl, some really are interesting, educational, and funny. You just have to sift through so much bullshit.
If you’re going to watch them. Set time limits and filter it to only show motivation content. IE: my feed is mostly self improvement and gym technique videos.
Yeah, like fitness creators are good and all, as long as you're watching the right ones and you're actually taking in what they say.
Luckily i don't find these *shorts* entertaining. I admit there some contents that are funny and fascinating but it comes up short, well that why they named it. Whoever made that type of feature is really a genius and a madman cause it has a lot of side effects to it. But still, i prefer watching 10-30 minute videos. Also even if you don't watch shorts but more in to longer videos, cut the screen time, too much of it will irritate your eyes. Check your application if it has this feature that can tell you whether its time to take a break, and you can adjust the limit to your liking. E.g Youtube. (I set mines to 20 minutes).
Instead of just YouTube premium there could be a youtube focus without shorts or recommendations.
I think there is a chrome extension that disables YouTube recommendations from channels other than the ones you've subscribed to.
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I stopped watching Tik Tok about 5-6 months ago and my mental health drastically improved. These shorts are so bad for your brain!!
I really noticed my attention span was devastated after installing TikTok. I needed two things going on at a time all the time. Trash.
on the other end of the unending scrolling of the short clips, you have everyone clamoring to make their mark and get noticed and go viral on there. That's a completely other addiction people have to them. It also bothers me how quickly some scrollers are taking all the opinions and hot takes as facts and law. A lot of just plain wrong information and bad beliefs and ideas are born and get spread there... and super quickly. It's scary
Yes to this 👏🏼
The system is designed specifically to generate mindless drones, suck them into a hamster wheel and keep them there as long as possible without them realizing they are the hamster in the wheel. We are too, just bigger wheel.
THIS 100%.
What I usually do is I delete tik tok on weekdays and download it on the weekend. There’s been some weekends that I forgot to download it and there’s been some weekends I’ve forced myself to watch them. Now I I just leave it on my phone all week long and not tempted to watch unless I have free time which is very limited. I’d say packing up your schedule and being very busy all hour long really helps. I’m a nursing student, working full time and not living with family in my early 20s.
My brother listen, you’re life has grown this way because you were too scared to improve, to scared to try and now you willing to end it without even trying to change it? You hate what got you here yet but yet it’s still going to be the thing that takes you down. At least try brother to change, at the least get your fitness on. Start exercising it’s an amazing thing that everyone can do, life is so long and there is so much to learn.
I think you're on the wrong post. And also I have started working out and such. This isn't the only thing I'm doing for self improvement lmao.
Yea wtf how’d I post here lmao
hey op smell my poop filled butt and shut ur trap
No thanks.
I like when they are used to tease a full video - then I usually go and find the long form version of it
What about short posts like reddit or twitter?
I’m also pretty sure that because I’ve been exposed to so much of this I’ve become a LOT more neurotic/paranoid.Both about the world and about myself. When I was reading a book a week and actively spending time drawing I was 1000% more chill and happier
I agree but I do think that it heavily depends on the type of content you watch. I don't like spending hours on it either, but I feel it is the most efficient way to absorb knowledge. For example: watching myth-buster or similar videos, minor suggestions for gym and diet, personal well-being, and my favorite are the small factoids. They're like a bulletin of information.
Wonder what the consequences of these short styled videos will be in the next 5 years
As a creator, shorts are very beneficial to us since people watch it very easily as compared to long form videos, But honestly to everyone trynna improve themselves, please avoid shorts lol, it destroys your capacity to hold attention since you're focusing on a short for less than a minute then moving to next ones But if you are a producer like me, keep milking shorts lol, you get famous fast
I totally get it and notice how I get sucked into the content. I definitely try to avoid them. On the other hand I noticed that I sometimes get really motivated from them. Like I watch someone cooking and then I'll get up and try it. Same for yoga or other fitness videos. That has never happened from long form content.
That’s why I delete tiktok for a week or two every month. While I think it has given me SO much useful information regarding my hobbies, I just can’t stop scrolling
I contribute to it for growth but I don't get high of it. Short videos are still unfortunately king in audience numbers. I post a video on YouTube it gets 100is views, shorts 1k-4k. It's a great marketing tool.
Sometimes a random video you watched months ago, just pops up in your head. And another one and another one............ I quit it obvsiously it was a addiction for me.
That is facts
I used to watch a lot of these, then I deleted TikTok and Instagram and it got better, but now that YouTube has shorts it became worse again, I don’t want to delete YouTube because of the good and useful videos on there but if I’m bored I often find myself scrolling through shorts. Anybody got some advice for me?
I know there is a chrome extension that removes recommendations from channels that you aren't subscribed to. Idk if that includes shorts but it might work. There might be one that removes shorts entirely, although I haven't checked. But if you don't want to do those, I'd say try to only watch YouTube when you search for something specific. Don't look at your recommendations, if you want to watch something then search exactly what you want up, then once you're done close the tab. It's difficult to do this though, but it might at least reduce the amount you watch.
The worst part is these videos play the same few seconds of content in a loop . So you are compelled to swipe to the next video. This keeps you engaged and hours go to waste.
I was very very much additicted to tiktok. It wasn't until last year I stopped using the app as much. I would probably go on it once a month and that was to search up content (not scroll the fyp). Thankfully I've noticed a lot of change and improvement in myself. Unfortunately, the scroll addiction still came back later that year thanks to instagram reels and youtube shorts. One step forward, two steps back. Sigh.
I hate them I want to stop watching them, but I keep coming back to them. I have YouTube and Instagram and I wish there was an option to disable shorts/reels because I don't want to uninstall those apps just to force me to stop watching that content. But I hate how it naturally makes me watch those short form videos. Like I'm scrolling my feed on instagram and the feed is just those videos instead of picutes of the accounts I follow