Insights from ‘Stolen Focus’ by Johann Hari

Question 1

What are the three types of focus necessary for fulfillment according to Johann Hari?

Answer 1

Spotlight, Starlight, and Daylight

Question 2

Fill in the blank: ‘A steady ____ allows us to focus on a task long enough to gain meaningful progress or insights.’

Answer 2

Spotlight

Question 3

True or False: According to the text, the capacity of the human brain has significantly increased over the past 40,000 years.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

What is the ‘Great Acceleration’ and its effect on focus?

Answer 4

The Great Acceleration refers to the increased speed of information exposure, leading to impatience and a reduced desire to engage in deep, challenging work.

Question 5

How has the average sleep per night changed over the past century?

Answer 5

It has dropped by approximately 20%.

Question 6

According to Reed Hastings, what is Netflix’s main competition?

Answer 6

Netflix’s main competition is sleep.

Question 7

Why is REM sleep particularly important?

Answer 7

REM sleep is when we process and organize information from the day, essential for mental clarity and focus the next day.

Question 8

Describe the ‘book first’ habit recommended by Johann Hari.

Answer 8

When unlocking the phone for new content, first read a few paragraphs from an eBook to promote deeper, linear focus.

Question 9

Who studied the ‘flow state’ and found reading books as a common way to achieve it?

Answer 9

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Question 10

Application: What is one strategy you can use to prevent technology from affecting your sleep?

Answer 10

Use an app-blocking program to limit app usage two hours before bedtime or set a rule for turning off devices by 8:00 PM.

Question 11

Fill in the blank: ‘Slowness nurtures ____, and speed shatters it.’

Answer 11

attention

Question 12

True or False: Chronic sleep deprivation does not significantly impair performance unless you sleep less than five hours a night.

Answer 12

False

Question 13

According to Johann Hari, what fundamental question must we ask ourselves about focus and attention?

Answer 13

Do we value attention and focus enough to actively fight for it for ourselves and future generations?

Question 14

Comparison: How does reading a book differ from other forms of content consumption according to Hari?

Answer 14

Books encourage linear, deeper focus, unlike social media or news which promote rapid, fragmented content switching.