Attention is your scarcest resource (2020)

ADHD, Hyperfocus, and Task-Dependence

• Several ADHD/ADD commenters say “single-task only” is unrealistic; they rely on concurrency and context-switching to stay functional at work.
• Attention isn’t always scarce: some report abundant attention but misaligned with what “needs” doing; hyperfocus appears for urgent/interesting problems, but boring tasks (docs, calls) feel impossible.
• Research roles and open-ended knowledge work are seen as particularly compatible with neurodivergent attention patterns.
• Some question whether their struggles are ADHD or consequences of heavy social-media use; others describe diagnosis as “hand-wavy” but still useful for self-understanding and coping.

Time vs. Attention as the Real Scarcity

• One camp insists time is the fundamental scarce resource: it’s finite, always depleting, and everything else (including attention) is how we spend it.
• Others argue attention is distinct and more important: time passes regardless, but only directed attention gives time value; people routinely trade life-years for immediate pleasures, so time clearly isn’t their top priority.
• Some note that we can measure time but not attention, and how we deploy attention reshapes our experience of time and output quality.

Phones, Doomscrolling, and “Just Living”

• Strong sentiment that advertising and many apps exist to “hack” and steal attention; ad-blockers and personal “attention hygiene” are recommended.
• Debate over whether phone time is “real living”: some see mindless scrolling as leaving them drained and regretful, unlike crafts, reading, or conversation; others say phone-based activities can be just as valid if done intentionally.
• Multiple people frame attention as literally equal to life: what you pay attention to is what your life becomes.

Work, Focus, and Management

• Some managers agree attention is their scarcest resource and say lack of context harms everyone.
• A long counterpoint argues engineering managers who “only manage” and don’t read or write code lose crucial signals about technical quality, promotions, and team health.
• Tools like AI coding and speed-reading enable more throughput but are seen as diluting depth and solution quality, mirroring the article’s warning about shallow attention.

Motivation, Depression, and Life Structure

• One commenter describes being unable to care about anything due to deep disappointment with life; others label this as likely depression and suggest therapy, travel, volunteering, and exercise.
• Big subthread on family and intellectual life:
  • Some over-40s feel kids and marriage permanently displaced their intense intellectual hobbies, or that age eroded “mental strength” to use time and attention.
  • Others report the opposite: children forced better prioritization, didn’t kill curiosity, and brought deeper meaning.
  • Several warn against telling young people to avoid family purely for productivity; they note most fulfilled, high-performing people they know do have families.

Training and Using Attention (and “Productive Waste”)

• Meditation (Samatha/Vipassana) is mentioned as a direct way to train attention.
• People note that high-quality ideas often emerge in the shower, on trains, or in the hypnagogic state before sleep; these are tied to the brain’s “default mode” rather than deliberate focus.
• Some argue that not all “idle” or unfocused time is waste; you can’t or shouldn’t try to consciously aim every minute, and background cognition is often where insights form.

Meta-Reflections on Knowledge Work

• Several comments generalize the article’s thesis: in knowledge work, focus problems are often structural (job design, responsibilities, environment) rather than purely individual willpower failures.
• A recurring theme: a certain amount of apparent “waste” (rest, wandering attention, side projects) may be necessary to sustain creativity, avoid burnout, and keep any scarce resource—time, attention, or energy—usable in the long run.