Join 60,000+ seasoned professionals who are done with the corporate world. Epic Encore is an almost daily newsletter with inspirational stories from leading experts. Your Epic Encore is about turning your lifetime experiences into the cornerstone of the rest of your life. It represents your audacious leap into entrepreneurship, fueled by the wisdom and tenacity you've garnered in your successful career. This isn't about playing catch-up in business and building a 7-figure business. It's about forging a unique path, using your distinct perspective, seasoned judgment, and invaluable insights that can only come from years of life experience.
Digital panic attacks: The invisible stress of scrolling
|
I have an app on my Apple Watch that tells me when I'm stressed. Of course, I don't need an app to tell me when I'm stressed. The app measures a million data points, including my heart rate variability (HRV). Sometimes I'm alerted I need to slow down or mediate when I'm chilling in my La-Z-Boy. I feel relaxed, but my HRV spikes. The other day, I figured out what caused my HRV spikes. I'll be scrolling social media or scanning the news headlines when I receive an alert.I don't feel the spike but my Apple Watch detects a spike in my HRV. Most of the time, a few deep breaths and the alert disappears. Is this a case of too much information or is it good to know when your heart is being triggered? We live in a world of too much information, most of it designed to trigger us. It's working. I scan through my inbox and it's full of "Last chance. 33% off expires tonight" or "5 signs you're headed for burnout". Every story on the news is BREAKING NEWS. Big Pacific storms used to be called a Pineapple Express. Now they are Atmospheric Rivers. No wonder my Welltory app is going crazy. While my Apple Watch has become yet another source of alerts in my life, it's also revealed something valuable: our bodies often register stress before our minds do. Those HRV spikes are like early warning systems cutting through my conscious denial. So I'm trying something new - using these alerts as reminders to pause and ask myself what I'm really consuming. Is this content serving me, or am I serving it? Perhaps true relaxation isn't just about sitting in my La-Z-Boy, but about being mindful of what I allow into my attention space. What about you - do you have any digital wellness practices that work well? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Ted |
Ted Prodromou
Join 60,000+ seasoned professionals who are done with the corporate world. Epic Encore is an almost daily newsletter with inspirational stories from leading experts. Your Epic Encore is about turning your lifetime experiences into the cornerstone of the rest of your life. It represents your audacious leap into entrepreneurship, fueled by the wisdom and tenacity you've garnered in your successful career. This isn't about playing catch-up in business and building a 7-figure business. It's about forging a unique path, using your distinct perspective, seasoned judgment, and invaluable insights that can only come from years of life experience.
I fixed computers when they filled entire rooms. I was there when computer networking was invented, not learned about it, watched it being built. Employee number 40 at Cellular One. Fewer than 10,000 cell phone subscribers in all of the San Francisco Bay Area. By the time I left, they had over 1,500 employees and 500,000 subscribers. I was working on the internet in 1992. Before browsers. Before anyone had a name for it. I say all that not to impress you.I say it because I need you to...
I'm still enjoying the high from today's Peloton ride and pondering the nugget shared by Alex Toussaint. The Peloton instructors not only give your body a workout, they share inspirational thoughts that stretch your thinking. Today Alex shared something simple but powerful. "If you're making big changes in your life, don't make one big change. Take micro steps." Micro steps. Not one giant leap. Not some massive transformation overnight. Just small steps, one at a time. Seems pretty obvious,...
Whether you climbed the corporate ladder, built your own business, or spent decades making things happen in your job, your worth was measured the same way. By what you completed. Finish the presentation. Close the deal. Hit the numbers. Get to the next meeting. Every day was a race to complete things so I could move on to the next thing. And here's what nobody tells you about your next chapter: You bring that mindset with you. Last week, I caught myself feeling anxious because I'd only...