Screened In: The Art of Living Free in the Digital Age

by Anthony Silard

Overview

Have you ever asked yourself why you are spending less time interacting with people in person and more time sitting alone behind a pixilated screen? As we furiously type into our keypads in search of the Holy Grail - an empty inbox - our happiness and well-being dissipate. Through eye-opening studies, interviews with some of our world's most captivating thought leaders and stories gleaned from his 25+ years as a leadership trainer and professor, Anthony Silard will help you realize what many of us are losing in the digital age-ourselves and our most important relationships-and provide a roadmap to reclaim them.

"The game of life was thrown a major curve ball when the first iPhone was released in 2007. If loneliness, anxiety, and depression are the indicators-as Anthony Silard compellingly makes the case, with a raft of largely unknown research to back him up-then most of us are striking out. If you want to get on base in the field of meaningful, supportive human relationships, this is the one book you can't do without.  Buy it and adapt!"

-Marshall Goldsmith, New York Times bestselling author of What Got You Here Won't Get You There

"Once we've had the honesty to admit we're hooked on our screens, we can make the courageous choice to free ourselves. Screened In is a clear, strong, and important book for our times that shines a fascinating and revealing light on our societal addiction, and offers inspiration and practical strategies to reconnect with this creative, vibrant, and precious life."

-Tara Brach, international bestselling author of Radical Acceptance

Screened In is a sharp, readable, and savvy guide to making the most of those weapons of mass distraction in our pockets. Silard shows why we are so addicted to screens and-even more important-how we can kick the habit to live richer lives. Put down your phone and read it!"

-Carl Honoré, international bestselling author of In Praise of Slow

"Ever since the first iPhone was released in 2007, lamentations, protests, and cries of despair about our increasingly disconnected world have been everywhere and workable solutions have been nowhere-until Screened In. It's an essential book for reducing screen time and embracing authentic relationships in the digital age."

-Harriet Lerner, New York Times bestselling author of The Dance of Anger

"Armed with a prodigious volume of research, Screened In invites the reader to question their fundamental assumptions about how much technology and social media usage is safe. Through our device obsessions, we are creating a very lonely world! Dr. Silard provides us with a fascinating and well-researched book that will help us to end this addictive cycle."

-Philip Zimbardo, former President, American Psychological Association, and New York Times bestselling author of The Lucifer Effect

"Although the Earth is not spinning any faster than a hundred years ago, the world is coming at us faster. We suffer from not just information overload, but emotional overload from never getting a break. Anthony Silard has captured the subversive and damaging aspects of the gift of the technological age. The research is clear-it causes us to be on alert and defensive all of the time. It also fools us into thinking we are more connected when in fact we are more socially isolated. Fortunately, as Tony suggests, the remedies are within your grasp-if you wish to use them. Ignore his message at your peril!"

-Richard Boyatzis, New York Times bestselling co-author of Primal Leadership

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780981785332
Publisher:	The Center for Social Leadership
Publication date:	05/19/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Anthony Silard has provided leadership development coaching and training to thousands of CEOs and senior executives of Fortune 100 companies, small businesses, and the world's largest nonprofits, including GE, Disney, Nokia, Bank of America, IBM, CARE, Save the Children, and the American Red Cross. He has also coached political leaders, including G-20 cabinet ministers. He has taught leadership at various universities around the world, including IESE Business School, Claremont McKenna College, California State University San Bernardino, the Monterrey Institute of Technology, INCAE Business School, and the International University of Catalonia and has lectured on leadership at Harvard, Stanford, Georgetown, the University of California at Berkeley, George Washington University, Cal Poly Pomona, and ESADE Business School. Anthony has received numerous awards for his work, including Harvard's Robert F. Kennedy Public Service Award, was named Visionary of the Year by the PBS series The Visionaries, and was featured at the Presidential Summit for America's Future and America's Promise. Anthony holds a PhD in leadership from IESE Business School, which he received with First-Class/Excellent Distinction, a Master's in Public Policy focused on leadership from Harvard University, and a BA from the University of California at Berkeley. He also served in the Peace Corps in Kenya for two years. Anthony is CEO of the Global Leadership Institute and President of the Center for Social Leadership. He lives with his wife and two children in California.

Table of Contents

PART ONE: DISCONNECTED 11

1 | A History of Praising and Criticizing a New Technology 13

2 | The Bait-and-Switch of the Internet 31

3 | Social Information Versus Social Connection 49

4 | The Brogrammer Brigade 62

5 | You Are the Crash Test Dummy 78

6 | Your Digital Identity 94

7 | The Kids Are Not Alright 114

8 | Digital Drift 130

PART TWO: THE NEW WORLD ORDER 143

9 | The Meta-Democratization 145

10 | The Brand Is You 153

11 | Convenience over Enjoyment 162

12 | Your Netflix Time 173

13 | So Much Information, So Little Wisdom 181

PART THREE: RECONNECTED 195

14 | Direct Your Use of Technology, Not the Other Way Around 197

15 | Downgrade Social Media, Upgrade Your Relationships 211

16 | Digital Limiting Strategies 225

17 | The Heart of Darkness 243

18 | Contain Your Phone, Expand Your Life 256

Commencement 268

Appendix A: Heart of Darkness Challenge Journals 270

Appendix B: Netflix Versus Blockbuster 299

Acknowledgments 301

Notes 302

Editorial Reviews

“The game of life was thrown a major curve ball when the first iPhone was released in 2007. If loneliness, anxiety, and depression are the indicators—as Anthony Silard compellingly makes the case, with a raft of largely unknown research to back him up—then most of us are striking out. If you want to get on base in the field of meaningful, supportive human relationships, this is the one book you can't do without. Buy it and adapt!”

—Marshall Goldsmith, New York Times bestselling author of

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There

“Once we’ve had the honesty to admit we’re hooked on our screens, we can make the courageous choice to free ourselves. Screened In is a clear, strong, and important book for our times that shines a fascinating and revealing light on our societal addiction, and offers inspiration and practical strategies to reconnect with this creative, vibrant, and precious life.”

—Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance

“Screened In is a sharp, readable, and savvy guide to making the most of those weapons of mass distraction in our pockets. Silard shows why we are so addicted to screens and—even more important—how we can kick the habit to live richer lives. Put down your phone and read it!”

—Carl Honoré, author of the international bestseller In Praise of Slow

“Ever since the first iPhone was released in 2007, lamentations, protests, and cries of despair about our increasingly disconnected world have been everywhere and workable solutions have been nowhere—until Screened In. It’s an essential book for reducing screen time and embracing authentic relationships in the digital age.”

—Harriet Lerner, New York Times bestselling author of The Dance of Anger

“Armed with a prodigious volume of research, Screened In invites the reader to question their fundamental assumptions about how much technology and social media usage is safe. Through our device obsessions, we are creating a very lonely world! Dr. Silard provides us with a fascinating and well-researched book that will help us to end this addictive cycle.”

—Philip Zimbardo, former President, American Psychological Association, and

New York Times bestselling author of The Lucifer Effect

“Although the Earth is not spinning any faster than a hundred years ago, the world is coming at us faster. We suffer from not just information overload, but emotional overload from never getting a break. Anthony Silard has captured the subversive and damaging aspects of the gift of the technological age. The research is clear—it causes us to be on alert and defensive all of the time. It also fools us into thinking we are more connected when in fact we are more socially isolated. Fortunately, as Tony suggests, the remedies are within your grasp—if you wish to use them. Ignore his message at your peril!”

—Richard Boyatzis, New York Times bestselling co-author of Primal Leadership

From the Publisher