Hi-de-ho, friends. Allyn Bryce here, and welcome to my DAOpunks cohort_3 update video #4.
Today, we are going to take a quick detour from expanding on the train idea I mentioned in the last video. Actually, you know, it might work. Let’s see where we get.
I will keep it short today, so let’s get right into it, continuing to explore the idea of DAOpunk—freeing yourself from the drudgery of default work. For me, I have expanded that out with freeing yourself from the default.
This video is on the default connection.
Now, this is a topic that can be polarizing and divisive, and a lot of you might have strong opinions on; I know I do. So we will just kind of put it out there and then leave a little room for thought on everyone’s part.
Again, with our framework, keep in mind… Are you playing the right game? If not, change the rules or change the game.
Oh, and if today’s location is a little lackluster, well, I was originally going to record from the rodeo, but it was too early in the week and I didn’t have enough time to get a script together. Then, I was going to record from the trampoline park, but I was having too much fun. Like way too much fun. Today, well, it has been quite rainy, so here we are in a brief break in the rain, close to where I am staying.
To kind of illustrate, I want to share a story from yesterday that started in that very trampoline park I just mentioned.
You see, yesterday was a day of harassment. Yes, I was being harassed by several different small children:
Block Face Kid
My Drink Now Kid
FU Kid
I Don’t Play Football Kid
Watch the video to learn firstand of the 4 Tales of Harassment.
Nowadays it feels like most people would grab that magic rectangle out of their pocket—assuming they weren’t on it already—and take to the net to share the harassment. But I didn’t. These were my moments with those who were there with me.
For me to escape the default life, I need to protect these moments. I need room to think, room to reflect, room to take it all in. This flies in the face of trends for the last ten or so years, and especially the last two or three.
But just because most of us are working online, operating out of Discord and Twitter, doesn’t mean we have to be online most of the time. Yet most of us are. All waking hours. Connected. But to what, really?
And I get it. The FOMO is real, so do stay connected. Stay connected to what is important, what’s truly important, but remember to disconnect from the rest. Disconnect some of those “freight cars.” How about that? I did work it in.
Everyone has their phone, their watch, their headphones, never without one or all. We are rapidly losing our ability to be alone with our own thoughts. The new default is perpetually scrolling, perpetually distracted, perpetually anxious, perpetually tired, perpetually on edge, perpetually connected. Frankly, it's scary. It seems nobody wants to be where they are right now. Everyone wants to be someone else, somewhere else, doing something else. If this is you…
Sounds to me like you are playing the wrong game.
And I know what you are saying. “These tools are what make how we (or at least a lot of us) work possible,” and you are right. But the key word is tools; they are just that and should be treated as such, in my opinion. And what about all the other garbage that is not doing you any favors?
Which one is the real tool in this relationship? You or your ability to connect.
Now I don’t want to be a complete Debbie Downer here, so go ahead and enjoy the fruit of what technology has brought us. But again, maybe every once in a while ask yourself…
Am I playing the right game?
Later taters,
AB
Allyn Bryce
