Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention--And How to Think Deeply Again
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- Create Date：2023-01-04 07:51:32
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Johann Hari
- ISBN：0593138538
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Summary
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Our ability to pay attention is collapsing。 From the New York Times bestselling author of Chasing the Scream and Lost Connections comes a groundbreaking examination of why this is happening--and how to get our attention back。
"The book the world needs in order to win the war on distraction。"--Adam Grant， author of Think Again
"Read this book to save your mind。"--Susan Cain， author of Quiet
LONGLISTED FOR THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD - ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Wall Street Journal
In the United States， teenagers can focus on one task for only sixty-five seconds at a time， and office workers average only three minutes。 Like so many of us， Johann Hari was finding that constantly switching from device to device and tab to tab was a diminishing and depressing way to live。 He tried all sorts of self-help solutions--even abandoning his phone for three months--but nothing seemed to work。 So Hari went on an epic journey across the world to interview the leading experts on human attention--and he discovered that everything we think we know about this crisis is wrong。
We think our inability to focus is a personal failure to exert enough willpower over our devices。 The truth is even more disturbing: our focus has been stolen by powerful external forces that have left us uniquely vulnerable to corporations determined to raid our attention for profit。 Hari found that there are twelve deep causes of this crisis， from the decline of mind-wandering to rising pollution， all of which have robbed some of our attention。 In Stolen Focus， he introduces readers to Silicon Valley dissidents who learned to hack human attention， and veterinarians who diagnose dogs with ADHD。 He explores a favela in Rio de Janeiro where everyone lost their attention in a particularly surreal way， and an office in New Zealand that discovered a remarkable technique to restore workers' productivity。
Crucially， Hari learned how we can reclaim our focus--as individuals， and as a society--if we are determined to fight for it。 Stolen Focus will transform the debate about attention and finally show us how to get it back。
"The book the world needs in order to win the war on distraction。"--Adam Grant， author of Think Again
"Read this book to save your mind。"--Susan Cain， author of Quiet
LONGLISTED FOR THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD - ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Wall Street Journal
In the United States， teenagers can focus on one task for only sixty-five seconds at a time， and office workers average only three minutes。 Like so many of us， Johann Hari was finding that constantly switching from device to device and tab to tab was a diminishing and depressing way to live。 He tried all sorts of self-help solutions--even abandoning his phone for three months--but nothing seemed to work。 So Hari went on an epic journey across the world to interview the leading experts on human attention--and he discovered that everything we think we know about this crisis is wrong。
We think our inability to focus is a personal failure to exert enough willpower over our devices。 The truth is even more disturbing: our focus has been stolen by powerful external forces that have left us uniquely vulnerable to corporations determined to raid our attention for profit。 Hari found that there are twelve deep causes of this crisis， from the decline of mind-wandering to rising pollution， all of which have robbed some of our attention。 In Stolen Focus， he introduces readers to Silicon Valley dissidents who learned to hack human attention， and veterinarians who diagnose dogs with ADHD。 He explores a favela in Rio de Janeiro where everyone lost their attention in a particularly surreal way， and an office in New Zealand that discovered a remarkable technique to restore workers' productivity。
Crucially， Hari learned how we can reclaim our focus--as individuals， and as a society--if we are determined to fight for it。 Stolen Focus will transform the debate about attention and finally show us how to get it back。
Reviews
Dan
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 First book of 2022 done and wow it certainly grabbed my attention that I finished it in two days。 Highly enlightening book which confirmed many assumptions and opinions I had before about how our attention spans are waning。 It also got me thinking about the environment which future generations are being brought up in with social media wanting to keep them online for longer， office environments and numerous connections and how children live in highly controlled environments at school and home wer First book of 2022 done and wow it certainly grabbed my attention that I finished it in two days。 Highly enlightening book which confirmed many assumptions and opinions I had before about how our attention spans are waning。 It also got me thinking about the environment which future generations are being brought up in with social media wanting to keep them online for longer， office environments and numerous connections and how children live in highly controlled environments at school and home were everything is structured and geared towards testing and they lose their ability to let their minds focus and be creative。Main takeaways for me are:1） to stop scrolling and also multi-tasking and out my phone away and other distractions out of sight 2） try get into the flow state when on a task 3） less social media 4） mindfulness， good sleep and letting the mind wander。 Highly recommend to anyone worried about their attention spans。 。。。more
Sinem Ayan
，
Aslında okurken her sayfasında dehşete uğramıştım ama sonrasında gerek yorumlarda gerek de Twitter'da yazar hakkında yazılanları okuyunca biraz gölge düştü。 Genel olarak sevdiğim bir kitap oldu， teknolojiyle ilgili hiç bilmediğim şeyler okudum， bu da beni hem endişelendirdi hem de korkuttu。 Yazarın sunduğu çoğu yöntemin fazla iyimser bir noktadan geldiğini düşünüyorum， mesela gözetim kapitalizmini ortadan kaldırmalıyız diyor ama bunu yapmak için de yetkiyi devlete vermemiz， onların yasal düzenle Aslında okurken her sayfasında dehşete uğramıştım ama sonrasında gerek yorumlarda gerek de Twitter'da yazar hakkında yazılanları okuyunca biraz gölge düştü。 Genel olarak sevdiğim bir kitap oldu， teknolojiyle ilgili hiç bilmediğim şeyler okudum， bu da beni hem endişelendirdi hem de korkuttu。 Yazarın sunduğu çoğu yöntemin fazla iyimser bir noktadan geldiğini düşünüyorum， mesela gözetim kapitalizmini ortadan kaldırmalıyız diyor ama bunu yapmak için de yetkiyi devlete vermemiz， onların yasal düzenlemeler yapması gerektiğini söylüyor， faşist rejimlerin revaçta olduğu şu günlerde bunu yapmanın topuğumuza sıkmak olduğunu düşünüyorum。Kişisel gelişim çılgınlığının dayattığı sorun sende， sen değişirsen her şey değişir anlayışının aslında bir düzmece olduğunu burada sorunların kişisel 'kusurlardan' çok büyük bir sistem sorununun olduğunu göstermesi hoşuma gitti。 Evet biz de bir şeyler yapabiliriz ama toplum olarak ses çıkarmalıyız diyor yazar ve feminist hareketten， Britanya'da Greenpeace'in kömür madenlerinin kapatılmasına yaptığı katkıyı falan örnek gösteriyor da şahsen feminist hareketin kazanımlarını teker teker elimizden almaya and içmiş hükümetler altında yaşarken ben çok motive olamadım bu sözlere， aksine insanların şevkinin kırılması işten bile değil。 Bir de son olarak özellikle erkek çocuklarından bahsettiği çok yer olmuş， kız çocuklarını araştıran yok mu yahu？ 。。。more
Shelley Parr
，
I believe this is a book everyone should read。
Marc
，
Wahrscheinlich mit das wichtigste Buch， was ich seit langem gelesen habe。Mit dem Prädikat "Pflichtlektüre" sollte man nicht vorschnell um sich werfen， aber hier ist es wirklich mehr als angemessen。 Wahrscheinlich mit das wichtigste Buch， was ich seit langem gelesen habe。Mit dem Prädikat "Pflichtlektüre" sollte man nicht vorschnell um sich werfen， aber hier ist es wirklich mehr als angemessen。 。。。more
L
，
Great book， I loved how rather than being a typical self-help book it addressed the broader implications of global issues that are taking away our attention。 It caused me to self-reflect。 I had been reading this book at 3x the speed while solving a crossword。 Trying to multitask and go so fast- while losing on the comprehension like a machine。 I felt ashamed。 It’s my New Year’s resolution to try and slow down。 By the end I was listening to the book at 1。75 and for me that’s a massive improvement Great book， I loved how rather than being a typical self-help book it addressed the broader implications of global issues that are taking away our attention。 It caused me to self-reflect。 I had been reading this book at 3x the speed while solving a crossword。 Trying to multitask and go so fast- while losing on the comprehension like a machine。 I felt ashamed。 It’s my New Year’s resolution to try and slow down。 By the end I was listening to the book at 1。75 and for me that’s a massive improvement。 I also began to take notes and re listen to parts if I felt I was missing the point。 。。。more
Vashti Zerlinda
，
One of the best read that talked about how we gradually lost our ability to pay attention， and the actual importance of being able to set our focus in the long term。 More people should voice out their concern on our society's way in pointing our attention problem as individual issues instead of a societal / cultural mess that got to be fixed together as a community。 One of the best read that talked about how we gradually lost our ability to pay attention， and the actual importance of being able to set our focus in the long term。 More people should voice out their concern on our society's way in pointing our attention problem as individual issues instead of a societal / cultural mess that got to be fixed together as a community。 。。。more
Chakshu Khanna
，
The author has done a spectacular job at balancing the book。 It's not too much details but isn't lacking at the same time。 Well written; definitely recommended。 The author has done a spectacular job at balancing the book。 It's not too much details but isn't lacking at the same time。 Well written; definitely recommended。 。。。more
Jesse Snyder
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Lots of good info here， as well as some good questions。
Iliana Yanes
，
An urgent and important read
Sarah
，
Required reading
Kate
，
Every new year I set a few goals for myself， and a big one for this year is less screen time。 When I saw this title included on someone's top 5 books of 2022 recap， I used my monthly credit on Audible to get it。 This is an incredibly interesting， although admittedly terrifying， in-depth look into the many reasons all of us may be losing our ability to focus。 Hari did an astounding amount of work， and presents all of his research in a very easily consumable but also honest way， exploring factors Every new year I set a few goals for myself， and a big one for this year is less screen time。 When I saw this title included on someone's top 5 books of 2022 recap， I used my monthly credit on Audible to get it。 This is an incredibly interesting， although admittedly terrifying， in-depth look into the many reasons all of us may be losing our ability to focus。 Hari did an astounding amount of work， and presents all of his research in a very easily consumable but also honest way， exploring factors we already know about （technology， social media， stress， etc。） but also factors I never even considered （diets， pollution， how our schools are currently set-up， etc。）I would highly recommend this book for anyone who has or works with children， but also to anyone who is looking for how to improve their ability to pay attention。 。。。more
Kailey & Chandler
，
Great book about how technology， social media， processed foods/chemicals， and 40+ hour work weeks affect our ability to focus。 Also includes thoughts on how the structured school system affects kids ability to focus。 Discusses how psychology （BF Skinner） is heavily used in the tech industry to keep us addicted to their products。KJT
Awarewolf
，
This is both a very well written book and definitely delivers an important message。 I believe everyone should read it。 However， try to keep an open mind when reading it。 I notice Johann uses the words “climate change” a lot and strategically tries to debunk certain conspiracy theories all under the guise of trying to keep us focused on not losing focus。 It makes you wonder if his intent， after all， is to help humans out or is he just another pawn here to push the narrative？ Furthermore， it’s nev This is both a very well written book and definitely delivers an important message。 I believe everyone should read it。 However， try to keep an open mind when reading it。 I notice Johann uses the words “climate change” a lot and strategically tries to debunk certain conspiracy theories all under the guise of trying to keep us focused on not losing focus。 It makes you wonder if his intent， after all， is to help humans out or is he just another pawn here to push the narrative？ Furthermore， it’s never a good sign when you see a “Heathers Picks” sticker on it when buying it at your local Chapters / Indigo。 We know which narrative she pushes considering she attends all the same meetings bill gates and Klause Schwab attend。 Johann could very well be writing a book on stolen focus with the intent on stealing more of your focus if you don’t read it with an open mind ！ 。。。more
Eleanor
，
This is a must read
Matthew Tilling
，
I wanted something more "self-hep'-esq but this was a bigger picture book。 But some good ideas I wanted something more "self-hep'-esq but this was a bigger picture book。 But some good ideas 。。。more
P
，
Note: unlike most 1-2 star reviews， this review has NOTHING to do with the author's treatment of the ADHD issue， or the author's own controversies。I simply give this book a 1。5/10 because of a number of reasons。 First and foremost， half of the damn title is "How to Think Deeply Again。" The "How" is around 5% of the book at most。The rest？ The vast majority of it are stories， and the scholarship behind his somewhat broad and obtuse findings seems very weak。 All in all， this is a book that describe Note: unlike most 1-2 star reviews， this review has NOTHING to do with the author's treatment of the ADHD issue， or the author's own controversies。I simply give this book a 1。5/10 because of a number of reasons。 First and foremost， half of the damn title is "How to Think Deeply Again。" The "How" is around 5% of the book at most。The rest？ The vast majority of it are stories， and the scholarship behind his somewhat broad and obtuse findings seems very weak。 All in all， this is a book that describes some extremely obvious reasons （and some not quite so obvious to many I suppose， like diet and pollution） why we have trouble focusing。His solution？ Throw your phone into a safe。 Seriously。 That's the solution。 He has some other tips， but almost seems to give up and say "hey， this wasn't a self-help book so I think I'm just gonna stop now。"I would not recommend this book at all。 Just google the topic and you'll get just as much from 10-30 minutes of searching and reading。1。5/10。 。。。more
Shelley Louthan
，
This book is a must read for educators and parents！ It is going to take everyone to understand and advocate for change。 Meds are not the answer！ This is a fight for all of us because it affects us as well as each generation to come！
Rachel
，
A good book to start the year！ I've become more easily distracted as I grow older I thought this book would give me some tips。 Did it ever！From diet to technology， Johann Hari speaks to experts in various fields to understand how the human race is losing it's ability to focus， and more importantly， the impact this has on society。 Covering topics such as diet， sleep， stress， ADHD， technology and free play， the author uses many stories and studies， to demonstrate techniques that can lead to improv A good book to start the year！ I've become more easily distracted as I grow older I thought this book would give me some tips。 Did it ever！From diet to technology， Johann Hari speaks to experts in various fields to understand how the human race is losing it's ability to focus， and more importantly， the impact this has on society。 Covering topics such as diet， sleep， stress， ADHD， technology and free play， the author uses many stories and studies， to demonstrate techniques that can lead to improved focus in adults and children alike。 After listening to this audiobook I no longer feel bad for letting my mind wander aka daydreaming as an adult， and I feel empowered to use some of these techniques to improve my focus。 。。。more
Dylan Teut
，
A necessary book for all adults in the world right now。I am grateful a friend recommended this and allowed me to borrow his copy。
Sowmya
，
It is a very good book to read。 It discusses the factors affecting our ability to focus and some self help tips
Ol
，
Not only does this book cover a huge amount of ground， it does it in a engaging way。 The science and interviews with prominent people are woven within an autobiographical tale of discovery。One thing I liked in particular was that Hari was not afraid to highlight the potential flaws and counter-arguments in what he was presenting。 Whilst it is clear where Hari stands on each topic， this trait makes it feel like a very well-rounded and thoughtful piece of work。I started reading this book because o Not only does this book cover a huge amount of ground， it does it in a engaging way。 The science and interviews with prominent people are woven within an autobiographical tale of discovery。One thing I liked in particular was that Hari was not afraid to highlight the potential flaws and counter-arguments in what he was presenting。 Whilst it is clear where Hari stands on each topic， this trait makes it feel like a very well-rounded and thoughtful piece of work。I started reading this book because of my own degraded attention and inability to focus， but the scale of the problem is vastly greater than I had imagined。 Hari says this is not a self-help book and I agree。 Nevertheless， there are many useful takeaways at a personal level。 I’m not being flippant when I say I wish everyone had to read this book because it will not be possible to ‘fix’ these issues at an individual level。It’s rare that I’ve read a non-fiction book that continues to deliver new and interesting insight right up until the last page。 This book is one of those gems。 It is so absolutely and completely brilliant - so much so that I feel I ought to downgrade all my other star ratings because this book is on a different scale。 6/5！ 。。。more
Byron Flores
，
Simple pero con principios para aplicar en estos tiempos de tanta distracción。 Nada fuera de lo normal pero tampoco un mal recurso。
Katelynn
，
Extremely enlightening which made it incredibly jarring to read。
Adam Fereday
，
An unintentional satire about how Cambridge HSPS undergraduates such as Hari use their subject to claim expertise about anything （"It's Capitalism， people！"）， substantiate it with plagiarism and deliberate misconstrual of evidence， and go to the greatest lengths to explain how their summer holidays （Cape Cod in Hari's case） played a pivotal role in their scholarly development。 An unintentional satire about how Cambridge HSPS undergraduates such as Hari use their subject to claim expertise about anything （"It's Capitalism， people！"）， substantiate it with plagiarism and deliberate misconstrual of evidence， and go to the greatest lengths to explain how their summer holidays （Cape Cod in Hari's case） played a pivotal role in their scholarly development。 。。。more
Jennifer Baugh
，
To be honest I only made it halfway through before it was returned to the library。 It had some profound points that made me reevaluate some areas of my life。 It also had some irritating bits that felt unrealistic for the masses。 If I ever check this book out again I will get a print version so I can look for the topics that most interested me and skip other parts。
Sara
，
This is my Must Read for the year。 It has one of the best summaries of the most popular brain science being discussed。 For all the ADHDers out there， screen users， social media users—100% a must read。 It’s the most accurate and most convincing summary of our attention problems and solutions Ive read。 We really have some problems we need to address and figure out。 Give this a read！
Peter Hinkins
，
There are many things in this book worth reading。 His diagnosis of there being a big attention problem is quite interesting and I think very relevant。 However， there is much misinformation that contradicts with the current scientific consensus （to his credit he does mention that he's doing this in a few cases）。 The main case of this is in regards to ADHD - where he parts from the mainstream view and was told by the top 30 experts that the view he was promoting was harmful， but he continues to pr There are many things in this book worth reading。 His diagnosis of there being a big attention problem is quite interesting and I think very relevant。 However， there is much misinformation that contradicts with the current scientific consensus （to his credit he does mention that he's doing this in a few cases）。 The main case of this is in regards to ADHD - where he parts from the mainstream view and was told by the top 30 experts that the view he was promoting was harmful， but he continues to promote that opinion regardless。 It's difficult to decipher in many chapters where he is making an 'intuitive' case where he has joined his own dots or he is promoting a consensus view from the relevant experts。 He quotes doctors talking about economics and other experts making assertions about areas where they are not experts。All in all the first few chapters are worth reading but from that point on it feels more like an opinion piece that is put forward as peer reviewed science。 The overall thrust that we have an attention problem is important and should be discussed but I think there is a lot more work that needs to be done to make the book more robust。 。。。more
Kim Thompson
，
I want to recommend this book to so many people - it really brings into focus our inability to pay attention and the societal factors that affect us
Kelly （The Happiest Little Book Club）
，
My Rating: 4。75/5This was an extremely interesting book。 I worry for us。 We are a distracted society。 I know my attention span gets tested daily and I know my triggers （usually my phone - which I have such a love/hate relationship with）。I like how Johann talked about how a lack of focus and attention affects a person。 He delved into interesting studies and outcomes。 I have a lot to digest。At the end of the book he went off on a bit of a tangent （climate change， etc。 which is of course important My Rating: 4。75/5This was an extremely interesting book。 I worry for us。 We are a distracted society。 I know my attention span gets tested daily and I know my triggers （usually my phone - which I have such a love/hate relationship with）。I like how Johann talked about how a lack of focus and attention affects a person。 He delved into interesting studies and outcomes。 I have a lot to digest。At the end of the book he went off on a bit of a tangent （climate change， etc。 which is of course important but didn't really fit the narrative of the books）。 Aside from that， I highly recommend reading/listening to this one。 It is going to drop a lot of harsh truth bombs。 。。。more
jacquelyn
，