Is Your Content Consumption Healthy?
Are you living a wise content life? [Koreans spend an average of 5 hours a day on their smartphones.] Most of this time is spent on YouTube, KakaoTalk, Instagram, Naver, and other content and social media platforms. [However, half of the Korean population does not read even one book a year.] Interest in reading, especially among younger males, is declining.
Literacy issues are also serious. The widespread use of foreign words and the decrease in reading populations are leading to a decline in vocabulary and the fragmentation of life. This can lead to a society where empathy is challenging.
Moreover, the flood of video content and short-form content is a significant problem. [According to a study, the average retention rate for lessons learned through video and audio is only 20%.] Short-form content users spend an average of 1.5 hours a day on short-form videos.
Why We Oscillate Between Content Binging and Energy Drain
Speaker Chang-Ok Kim says that life consists of three stages: passion, boredom, and maturity. Our relationship with content is similar. We become obsessively consumed with specific content, then grow bored and seek new content. This state leaves us mentally exhausted but with unmet inner needs.
[Content consumption can also be divided into three stages:] [intermittent binging, energy drain, and wise content living.]
- Intermittent binging is when we binge on specific content for work, study, or hobbies.
- Energy drain occurs when we lack the energy to intentionally choose, consume, and utilize content.
- Wise content living involves spending at least 20% of our content consumption time on purposeful ‘subscription’ and ‘relationship’ activities.
Three Ways to Restore a Healthy Relationship with Content
1. Form Relationships
[Choose curated content that keeps you updated on your areas of interest.] It’s even better if the content comes from experts, masters, or great figures in specific fields. Select a small, elite group of content to follow consistently. Create a reference list to dive deeper when needed.
Try This
- Write down the domains, services, or brands you want to subscribe to regularly.
- Create a list of your favorite experts, masters, great figures, creators, and channels.
2. Build Habits
[Incorporate new habits into your existing routines to make them automatic.] Allocate enough time daily or weekly for content habits. Use travel time or leisure time. Use reminders to update your calendar and stick to the schedule.
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- Calendar update: Secure short time slots in your daily or weekly routine for content consumption and save them in your calendar.
3. Record and Create
- Use tools to collect and revisit content (YouTube playlists, Naver Keep, Notion, Evernote, Pocket app, etc.)
- Archive and scrapbook content that stands out. Create your content, even if it’s brief (notes, building and sharing an SNS channel, etc.).
Try This
- Archive setting: Choose your preferred archiving software and content platform to create a ‘minimal’ system that you can frequently use.
Regain Control of Your Life with ‘Healthy Curiosity’
Neuroscientist Dr. Moon-Ho Park says that 80% of people gather money, 30% gather people, and only 5% gather knowledge. Regardless of what you gather, consistently collecting and creating something of your own, with a clear purpose and direction, can help you regain control of your life even in a complex and confusing era.
Wise content living provides powerful support for regaining control of your life, not just achieving success or promotion at work or accumulating wealth. Healthy curiosity makes life meaningful and can be a crucial element in creating unique or innovative results.