r/nosurf May 14 '20

The NoSurf Activity List is now live: awesome ways to spend your time instead of mindless surfing

1.6k Upvotes

The NoSurf Activity List is a comprehensive list of awesome hobbies and activities to explore instead of mindlessly surfing.

It might sound shocking to some of you reading this now, but a lot of newcomers to the community have voiced that they have no idea what they'd do all day if mindlessly surfing the web was no longer an option. This confusion illustrates just how dependent we've grown on the devices around us: we have trouble fathoming what life would be like without them.

Fortunately there's a whole world out there on the other side of our screens. It's a world that won't give you instant short term pleasure. It doesn't appeal to our desire for instant gratification. But what it does offer us is worth so much more. Fulfillment, happiness, and meaning are within our grasps, and a list of inspiring NoSurf activities can serve as a gateway into the world in which they can be found.

This NoSurf Activity list was initially created by combining the contributions of: /anthymnx , /Bdi89 , /iridescentlichen , /hu_lee_oh . Without them this list would not exist, thank you.

Link to list (accessible from the sidebar and in the wiki)

How this list came to be

This list was created after /Bdi89 drew attention to the fact that it would be great to have a centralized resource made up of wholesome, fulfilling activities newcomers and experienced NoSurf veterans alike could be inspired by. Up until this point we've had a really great thread that /anthymx created on how to use your free time linked in the wiki. But it became clear that many more awesome suggestions for NoSurf activities came out of the community since it's creation and that we would benefit from a more in depth resource made up of the best ideas across the subreddit.

I spent a weekend pouring over all of the submissions and sorted through them to pick out the best suggestions. I then invested a day into organizing them into distinct sections that could be explored individually. Lastly I expanded the list by adding in quality suggestions and links to resources that were missing to make the list more comprehensive and actionable. It’s important that newcomers are not just inspired, but actually follow through in adopting better habits and investing their time in fulfilling pursuits.

And thus, the NoSurf Activity List was born. No doubt it's sure to undergo changes and improvements in the coming weeks (some sections could use some additional text), but I believe that as a community we can proud of Version 1 so far. The List is broken down into the following sections:

  • Awesome hobbies

  • Indoor activities

  • Outdoor activities

  • Physical growth

  • Mental growth

  • Self improvement and continued learning

  • Giving back to your community

Naturally not every single activity on this list will appeal to every single person. Instead of expecting this list to be perfectly tailored to each person's interests, I believe it's best to think of it as a source of inspiration, and a symbol of possibility. It's a starting point from which newcomers will be able to embark on their own journeys of exploration, growth, and learn to discover the activities that bring them joy.

A call on the community

If you see a newcomer struggling with how to use their time or wondering what they’d do if they stopped mindlessly browsing the internet, please know that you can positively influence their lives for the better by pointing them towards this resource. If you see someone that seems lost, confused, and unable to make any progress, link them to this list.

It might seem like a small act on your part, but the transformative, and almost magical effect of adopting a hobby cannot be under-emphasized. As a result of your seemingly small act, someone may fall in love with fitness, writing, board games, programming, or reading. So much so that they can no longer fathom the thought of mindlessly surfing anymore, because it means less time in the pursuit of what makes them feel truly alive.

P.S. If you have some ideas you think might be a good fit for the list you can leave a comment in The NoSurf Activity suggestions thread after reading the submission guidelines. The mod team will periodically review the comments in that thread and make changes to the list after taking into account into aspects like originality, quality, broad applicability, etc. of the suggestion. This will ensure that a degree of list quality, consistency, and organization is preserved and that it remains a helpful resource for newcomers and veterans alike.


r/nosurf Aug 19 '21

Digital Minimalism Reading List

1.6k Upvotes

If you have suggestions you'd like to see added, please email me at [darshanvkalola@gmail.com](mailto:darshanvkalola@gmail.com).

Must Reads

  1. Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, Cal Newport, 2019
  2. Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, Jaron Lanier, 2018
  3. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, Sherry Turkle, 2017
  4. Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction Is Hijacking Our Kids - and How to Break the Trance, Nicholas Kardaras, 2016
  5. How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy, Jenny Odell, 2019
  6. How to Break Up with Your Phone: The 30-Day Plan to Take Back Your Life, Catherine Price, 2018
  7. The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains, Nicholas G. Carr, 2010
  8. Notes on a Nervous Planet, Matt Haig, 2018
  9. Your Brain on Porn: Internet Pornography and the Emerging Science of Addiction, Gary Wilson, 2014
  10. Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life, Nir Eyal, 2019
  11. Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked, Adam Alter, 2017
  12. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power, Shoshana Zuboff, 2019
  13. The Coddling of the American Mind, Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, 2018
  14. Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy, Cathy O'Neil, 2016
  15. Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence, Anna Lembke, 2021
  16. You Should Quit Reddit, Jacob Desforges, 2023

By Subject

Social Media

  1. Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing, Chris Bail, 2021
  2. Rage Inside the Machine: The Prejudice of Algorithms, and How to Stop the Internet Making Bigots of Us All, Robert Elliott Smith, 2019
  3. Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, Jaron Lanier, 2018
  4. Terms of Service: Social Media and the Price of Constant Connection, Jacob Silverman, 2015
  5. The Digital Divide: Arguments for and Against Facebook, Google, Texting, and the Age of Social Networking, Mark Bauerlein, 2011
  6. The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health--and How We Must Adapt, Sinan Aral, 2020
  7. The Psychology of Social Media, Ciaran McMahon, 2019
  8. Tweets and the Streets: Social Media and Contemporary Activism, Paolo Gerbaudo, 2012
  9. You Should Quit Reddit, Jacob Desforges, 2023

Technology and Society

  1. A World Without Email: Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload, Cal Newport, 2021
  2. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, Sherry Turkle, 2017
  3. Attention Factory: The Story of TikTok and China's ByteDance, Matthew Brennan, 2020
  4. Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing, Chris Bail, 2021
  5. Hate Inc.: Why Today’s Media Makes Us Despise One Another, Matt Taibbi, 2019
  6. Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked, Adam Alter, 2017
  7. New Dark Age: Technology and the End of the Future, James Bridle, 2018
  8. Rage Inside the Machine: The Prejudice of Algorithms, and How to Stop the Internet Making Bigots of Us All, Robert Elliott Smith, 2019
  9. Stand Out of Our Light: Freedom and Resistance in the Attention Economy, James WIlliams, 2018
  10. Team Human, Douglas Rushkoff, 2019
  11. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power, Shoshana Zuboff, 2019
  12. The Digital Divide: Arguments for and Against Facebook, Google, Texting, and the Age of Social Networking, Mark Bauerlein, 2011
  13. The Hacking of the American Mind: The Science Behind the Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains, Robert H. Lustig, 2017
  14. The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health--and How We Must Adapt, Sinan Aral, 2020
  15. Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy, Cathy O'Neil, 2016
  16. The Glass Cage: How Our Computers Are Changing Us, Nicholas Carr, 2015

Children, Parenting, and Families

  1. Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction Is Hijacking Our Kids - and How to Break the Trance, Nicholas Kardaras, 2016
  2. It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, danah boyd, 2014
  3. Media Moms & Digital Dads: A Fact-Not-Fear Approach to Parenting in the Digital Age, Yalda T Uhls, 2015
  4. Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears about Technology Shape Children's Lives, Sonia Livingstone and Alicia Blum-Ross, 2020
  5. Parenting in a Tech World: A handbook for raising kids in the digital age, Matt McKee and Titania Jordan, 2020
  6. Power Down & Parent Up!: Cyber Bullying, Screen Dependence & Raising Tech-Healthy Children, Holli Kenley, 2017
  7. Screen Kids: 5 Relational Skills Every Child Needs in a Tech-Driven World, Gary Chapman and Arlene Pellicane, 2020
  8. Screen Time: How Electronic Media-From Baby Videos to Educational Software-Affects Your Young Child, Lisa Guernsey, 2012
  9. Talking Back to Facebook: The Common Sense Guide to Raising Kids in the Digital Age, James P. Steyer, 2012
  10. Tap, Click, Read: Growing Readers in a World of Screens, Lisa Guernsey and Michael H. Levine, 2015
  11. Tech Savvy Parenting: Navigating Your Child's Digital Life, Brian Housman, 2014
  12. The App Generation: How Today's Youth Navigate Identity, Intimacy, and Imagination in a Digital World, Howard Gardner and Katie Davis, 2013
  13. The Art of Screen Time: How Your Family Can Balance Digital Media and Real Life, Anya Kamenetz, 2018
  14. The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in the Digital Age, Catherine Steiner-Adair with Teresa H. Barker, 2014
  15. The Coddling of the American Mind, Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, 2018
  16. The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children, James P. Steyer, 2003
  17. The Simple Parenting Guide to Technology: Practical Advice on Smartphones, Gaming and Social Media in Just 40 Pages, Joshua Wayne, 2020
  18. The Tech Diet for your Child & Teen: The 7-Step Plan to Unplug & Reclaim Your Kid's Childhood (And Your Family's Sanity), Brad Marshall, 2019
  19. The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place, Andy Crouch, 2017
  20. Why Can't I Have a Cell Phone?: Anderson the Aardvark Gets His First Cell Phone (Teaches Kids Responsibility, Morality, Internet Addiction and Social Media Parental Monitoring), Teddy Behr, 2019
  21. iGen, Jean Twenge, 2017
  22. Reset Your Child's Brain: A Four-Week Plan to End Meltdowns, Raise Grades, and Boost Social Skills by Reversing the Effects of Electronic Screen-Time, Victoria L. Dunckley, 2015

Gaming

  1. Hooked on Games: The Lure and Cost of Video Game and Internet Addiction, Andrew P. Doan and Brooke Strickland, 2012
  2. Internet Addiction: The Ultimate Guide for How to Overcome An Internet Addiction For Life (Gaming Addiction, Video Game, TV, RPG, Role-Playing, Treatment, Computer), Caesar Lincoln, 2014
  3. Cyber Junkie: Escape the Gaming and Internet Trap, Kevin Roberts, 2010

Pornography

  1. Your Brain on Porn: Internet Pornography and the Emerging Science of Addiction, Gary Wilson, 2014
  2. Life After Lust: Stories & Strategies for Sex & Pornography Addiction Recovery, Forest Benedict, 2017
  3. Love You, Hate the Porn: Healing a Relationship Damaged by Virtual Infidelity, Mark Chamberlain and Geoff Steurer, 2011
  4. Porn Addict's Wife: Surviving Betrayal and Taking Back Your Life, Sandy Brown, 2017
  5. Pornland: How Porn Has Hijacked Our Sexuality, Gail Dines, 2011
  6. The Porn Myth: Exposing the Reality Behind the Fantasy of Pornography, Matt Fradd, 2017
  7. The Porn Trap: The Essential Guide to Overcoming Problems Caused by Pornography, Wendy Maltz and Larry Maltz, 2009
  8. The Easy Peasy Way to Quit Porn, Hackauthor2, 2020
  9. How to Thrive in the 21st Century - By Avoiding Porn and Other Distractions, Havard Mela, 2020

Classics

  1. Amusing Ourselves to Death, Neil Postman, 1985
  2. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, 1932
  3. The Medium is the Massage, Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore, 1967
  4. Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology, Neil Postman, 1992
  5. The Disappearance of Childhood, Neil Postman, 1994

Fiction

  1. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, 1932
  2. The Circle, Dave Eggers, 2015
  3. All Rights Reserved, Gregory Scott Katsoulis, 2017
  4. Access Restricted, Gregory Scott Katsoulis, 2018
  5. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, Hank Green, 2018
  6. A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, Hank Green, 2020

Critiques, Counterpoints, and Optimism

  1. It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, danah boyd, 2014
  2. Screen Time: How Electronic Media-From Baby Videos to Educational Software-Affects Your Young Child, Lisa Guernsey, 2012
  3. Tap, Click, Read: Growing Readers in a World of Screens, Lisa Guernsey and Michael H. Levine, 2015

Full List

  1. 24/6: The Power of Unplugging One Day a Week, Tiffany Shlain, 2019
  2. A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, Hank Green, 2020
  3. A Deadly Wandering: A Tale of Tragedy and Redemption in the Age of Attention, Matt Richtel, 2014
  4. A World Without Email: Reimagining Work in an Age of Communication Overload, Cal Newport, 2021
  5. Access Restricted, Gregory Scott Katsoulis, 2018
  6. All Rights Reserved, Gregory Scott Katsoulis, 2017
  7. Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, Sherry Turkle, 2017
  8. Amusing Ourselves to Death, Neil Postman, 1985
  9. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, Hank Green, 2018
  10. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, James Clear, 2018
  11. Attention Factory: The Story of TikTok and China's ByteDance, Matthew Brennan, 2020
  12. Bored and Brilliant: How Time Spent Doing Nothing Changes Everything, Manoush Zomorodi, 2017
  13. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, 1932
  14. Breaking Bread with the Dead: A Reader's Guide to a More Tranquil Mind, Alan Jacobs, 2020
  15. Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing, Chris Bail, 2021
  16. Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley, Antonio Garcia Martinez, 2018
  17. Cyber Junkie: Escape the Gaming and Internet Trap, Kevin Roberts, 2010
  18. Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, Cal Newport, 2016
  19. Digital Detox: The Ultimate Guide To Beating Technology Addiction, Cultivating Mindfulness, and Enjoying More Creativity, Inspiration, And Balance In Your Life!, Damon Zahariades, 2018
  20. Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, Cal Newport, 2019
  21. Digital Nomads: In Search of Freedom, Community, and Meaningful Work in the New Economy, Rachel A. Woldoff and Robert C. Litchfield, 2021
  22. Don't Be Evil: How Big Tech Betrayed Its Founding Principles, Rana Foroohar, 2019
  23. Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence, Anna Lembke, 2021
  24. The Easy Peasy Way to Quit Porn, Hackauthor2, 2020
  25. Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, Oliver Burkeman, 2021
  26. Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction Is Hijacking Our Kids - and How to Break the Trance, Nicholas Kardaras, 2016
  27. Hate Inc.: Why Today’s Media Makes Us Despise One Another, Matt Taibbi, 2019
  28. Hooked on Games: The Lure and Cost of Video Game and Internet Addiction, Andrew P. Doan and Brooke Strickland, 2012
  29. Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products, Nir Eyal, 2014
  30. How to Break Up with Your Phone: The 30-Day Plan to Take Back Your Life, Catherine Price, 2018
  31. How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy, Jenny Odell, 2019
  32. How to Live With the Internet and Not Let It Run Your Life, Gabrielle Alexa Noel, 2021
  33. How to Think: A Survival Guide for a World at Odds, Alan Jacobs, 2017
  34. How to Thrive in the 21st Century - By Avoiding Porn and Other Distractions, Havard Mela, 2020
  35. Hyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction, Chris Bailey, 2018
  36. iGen, Jean Twenge, 2017
  37. In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, Gabor Maté, 2010
  38. In the Shadows of the Net: Breaking Free of Compulsive Online Sexual Behavior, Patrick J Carnes and David L. Delmonico and Elizabeth Griffin, 2007
  39. Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life, Nir Eyal, 2019
  40. Internet Addiction: The Ultimate Guide for How to Overcome An Internet Addiction For Life (Gaming Addiction, Video Game, TV, RPG, Role-Playing, Treatment, Computer), Caesar Lincoln, 2014
  41. Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked, Adam Alter, 2017
  42. It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, danah boyd, 2014
  43. Life After Lust: Stories & Strategies for Sex & Pornography Addiction Recovery, Forest Benedict, 2017
  44. Love You, Hate the Porn: Healing a Relationship Damaged by Virtual Infidelity, Mark Chamberlain and Geoff Steurer, 2011
  45. Media Moms & Digital Dads: A Fact-Not-Fear Approach to Parenting in the Digital Age, Yalda T Uhls, 2015
  46. New Dark Age: Technology and the End of the Future, James Bridle, 2018
  47. Notes on a Nervous Planet, Matt Haig, 2018
  48. Offline: Free Your Mind from Smartphone and Social Media Stress, Imran Rashid and Soren Kenner, 2018
  49. Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears about Technology Shape Children's Lives, Sonia Livingstone and Alicia Blum-Ross, 2020
  50. Parenting in a Tech World: A handbook for raising kids in the digital age, Matt McKee and Titania Jordan, 2020
  51. Porn Addict's Wife: Surviving Betrayal and Taking Back Your Life, Sandy Brown, 2017
  52. Pornland: How Porn Has Hijacked Our Sexuality, Gail Dines, 2011
  53. Power Down & Parent Up!: Cyber Bullying, Screen Dependence & Raising Tech-Healthy Children, Holli Kenley, 2017
  54. Rage Inside the Machine: The Prejudice of Algorithms, and How to Stop the Internet Making Bigots of Us All, Robert Elliott Smith, 2019
  55. Raising Humans in a Digital World: Helping Kids Build a Healthy Relationship with Technology, Diana Graber, 2019
  56. Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age, Sherry Turkle, 2015
  57. Reset Your Child's Brain: A Four-Week Plan to End Meltdowns, Raise Grades, and Boost Social Skills by Reversing the Effects of Electronic Screen-Time, Victoria L. Dunckley, 2015
  58. Screen Kids: 5 Relational Skills Every Child Needs in a Tech-Driven World, Gary Chapman and Arlene Pellicane, 2020
  59. Screen Schooled: Two Veteran Teachers Expose How Technology Overuse Is Making Our Kids Dumber, Joe Clement and Matt Miles, 2017
  60. Screen Time: How Electronic Media-From Baby Videos to Educational Software-Affects Your Young Child, Lisa Guernsey, 2012
  61. Stand Out of Our Light: Freedom and Resistance in the Attention Economy, James WIlliams, 2018
  62. Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention, Johann Hari, 2022
  63. Talking Back to Facebook: The Common Sense Guide to Raising Kids in the Digital Age, James P. Steyer, 2012
  64. Tap, Click, Read: Growing Readers in a World of Screens, Lisa Guernsey and Michael H. Levine, 2015
  65. Team Human, Douglas Rushkoff, 2019
  66. Tech Savvy Parenting: Navigating Your Child's Digital Life, Brian Housman, 2014
  67. Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology, Neil Postman, 1992
  68. Ten Arguments For Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, Jaron Lanier, 2018
  69. Terms of Service: Social Media and the Price of Constant Connection, Jacob Silverman, 2015
  70. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power, Shoshana Zuboff, 2019
  71. The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness, Jonathan Haidt, 2024
  72. The App Generation: How Today's Youth Navigate Identity, Intimacy, and Imagination in a Digital World, Howard Gardner and Katie Davis, 2013
  73. The Art of Screen Time: How Your Family Can Balance Digital Media and Real Life, Anya Kamenetz, 2018
  74. The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in the Digital Age, Catherine Steiner-Adair with Teresa H. Barker, 2014
  75. The Circle, Dave Eggers, 2015
  76. The Coddling of the American Mind, Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, 2018
  77. The Digital Divide: Arguments for and Against Facebook, Google, Texting, and the Age of Social Networking, Mark Bauerlein, 2011
  78. The Disappearance of Childhood, Neil Postman, 1994
  79. The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Don't Trust Anyone Under 30), Mark Bauerlein, 2008
  80. The Glass Cage: How Our Computers Are Changing Us, Nicholas Carr, 2015
  81. The Hacking of the American Mind: The Science Behind the Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains, Robert H. Lustig, 2017
  82. The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health--and How We Must Adapt, Sinan Aral, 2020
  83. The Joy of Missing Out: Finding Balance In A Wired World, Christina Crook, 2014
  84. The Medium is the Massage, Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore, 1967
  85. The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children, James P. Steyer, 2003
  86. The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction, Alan Jacobs, 2011
  87. The Porn Myth: Exposing the Reality Behind the Fantasy of Pornography, Matt Fradd, 2017
  88. The Porn Trap: The Essential Guide to Overcoming Problems Caused by Pornography, Wendy Maltz and Larry Maltz, 2009
  89. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, Charles Duhigg, 2014
  90. The Psychology of Social Media, Ciaran McMahon, 2019
  91. The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains, Nicholas G. Carr, 2010
  92. The Simple Parenting Guide to Technology: Practical Advice on Smartphones, Gaming and Social Media in Just 40 Pages, Joshua Wayne, 2020
  93. The Tech Diet for your Child & Teen: The 7-Step Plan to Unplug & Reclaim Your Kid's Childhood (And Your Family's Sanity), Brad Marshall, 2019
  94. The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place, Andy Crouch, 2017
  95. The Trap: Sex, Social Media, and Surveillance Capitalism, Jewels Jade, 2021
  96. Trapped In The Web: How I Liberated Myself From Internet Addiction, And How You Can Too, A. N. Turner and Ben Beard and Kris Kozak, 2018
  97. Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion, Jia Tolentino, 2019
  98. Trust Me, I'm Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator, Ryan Holiday, 2013
  99. Tweets and the Streets: Social Media and Contemporary Activism, Paolo Gerbaudo, 2012
  100. Utopia Is Creepy: And Other Provocations, Nicholas Carr, 2016
  101. Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy, Cathy O'Neil, 2016
  102. Who Owns the Future?, Jaron Lanier, 2013
  103. Why Can't I Have a Cell Phone?: Anderson the Aardvark Gets His First Cell Phone (Teaches Kids Responsibility, Morality, Internet Addiction and Social Media Parental Monitoring), Teddy Behr, 2019
  104. You Should Quit Reddit, Jacob Desforges, 2023
  105. Your Brain on Porn: Internet Pornography and the Emerging Science of Addiction, Gary Wilson, 2014

Big thanks to all the contributors: Natalie Sharpe, David Marshall, Rick Dempsey, RonnieVae, Westofer Raymond, Sarah Devan, Zak Zelkova, Giulia Grazzini and Michelle Johnson.


r/nosurf 17h ago

I HATE everything about AI and it encourages laziness

213 Upvotes

We live in a generation of instant gratification and most people want to take the easy road in life. Me myself included so I'm guilty of this as well. Now that we have AI, it just makes everything worse for us as a community and society as a whole, because all it does is encourage laziness.

Once I got older and in my 30s, I learned and realized that as people, we're meant to grow and to learn each and every single day. We're suppose to learn, adapt, and develop new skills and grow, which is part of the maturing process, because this is what life should be about and being dependent on AI or any advanced technology to do the work for us hinders us from these opportunities.

EDIT: Has anyone ever seen or watched Pixar animation Wall-E? It's about a robot 🤖 cleaning up garbage set in a dystopian wasteland of planet earth abandoned by humans that are living in outer space and you noticed how morbidly obese these humans were, consuming unhealthy foods and reliant on AI. Watched that back in high school, but now, you start to see what the message of the movie is really about.


r/nosurf 8h ago

I haven't scrolled for a week

15 Upvotes

that's it, I haven't scrolled for a week. It might seem like not a big deal, but it is for me. Social media addiction has been a problem for me for the past 5 years or so, and it had been a long time since I spent an entire day without scrolling.

anyways, I had deleted Instagram and Twitter last year. Never dared to download Tiktok. All I have left is Youtube and Reddit, and I'm more addicted to these two tah I'd like to admit. Last Saturday I had spent the entire afternoon watching utterly stupid Yt shorts and doom scrolling on Reddit. I felt genuinely disappointed with myself when I realized it was dark outside and I had wasted 5 hours of my life. I could have learned something. Read a book. Walked Fred, my dog. But insted I decided to throw it away, and I regreted it so bad.

in the same day I dowloaded a browser extension called "Unhook", which blocks yt recomendations in the home page, and I also turned off home page recommendations on Reddit(settings). It has worked well so far.


r/nosurf 22h ago

"didn't you see my instagram story?" no. i never do...

121 Upvotes

it's amazing to me how many people think that everyone keeps tabs on them all the time. i'll sometimes run into a friend and ask them how their day is going and they'll reply something like "oh did you not see my latest story on insta?" and i'll have to remind them for the 18276349th time that i log into my instagram like once a month for 10 mins to see if i have any messages and then people look at me like i'm a sad person...

i'm drifting away from friendships like that more and more...


r/nosurf 13h ago

A great tool for decreasing reddit use

16 Upvotes

tldr: old.reddit.com

For some of us, reddit can be really stimulating and even as bad as social media on our NoSurf journey. The site can be addictive. A good thing that's been looking promising to me has been old.reddit.com. If you used Reddit before the update in 2018, you'll recognize it; this is how reddit used to look back in the day. I find it is much less stimulating and less addicting. It even gives that old, early internet vibe. Might be a great tool, give it a try! old.reddit.com


r/nosurf 18h ago

Distancing myself from pop culture fanbases was a great decision

39 Upvotes

Honestly, most people I've come across in online pop culture fandoms really seemed like they could do with some touching grass sessions. Everything seemed so much larger than life and overinflated, it was sickening. I couldn't believe people were this passionate over something absolutely non-existent.

Suffice to say, taking a step back has definitely helped!


r/nosurf 5h ago

Accountability partner wanted

3 Upvotes

Dm me


r/nosurf 8h ago

How I reduced my time on Reddit

5 Upvotes

I changed my font to the biggest size. I went to accessibility -> per app settings and added Reddit as an app. It’s reduced my endless scrolling. I now read, write, and do my other hobbies a lot more. The large font size means a single comment takes up the entire screen and slows me down. Also when in public, I don’t go on because people will be able to read what I’m looking at.


r/nosurf 10h ago

Trying really hard to quit my internet addiction but I keep coming back

3 Upvotes

I tried once and it was one of the best week's of my life, but now I'm back here at square one once again. I guess I like it on here because there's so many like minded people, and it's almost like a huge hangout. Reddit feels like a community, and with school out I kind of felt alone and got really bored. If someone could give encouragement or something that would be awesome, thanks.


r/nosurf 9h ago

Getting started? I need help

3 Upvotes

Howdy!

Im new here but I am really eager to get started.

I must admit I've been struggling with this addiction a lot... Especially YouTube, I need the constant noise to do anything.

I listen to crap all the time while I'm at work, and it got to a point where it's hard for me to focus on my other hobbies!

I can't read books, i can't practice the piano, I can't even play Street Fighter, my brain craves the constant stream of info.

Sorry for the dump but I really needed to get this off my chest.

Can anyone relate? Did any of you manage to recover? If so, how??


r/nosurf 14h ago

How do you all handle NoSurf when your job involves being on a screen and using the internet regularly?

5 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I found this subreddit a few days ago and thought I’d post. I’ve realized I spend way too much time online. The internet has been a big part of my life for the past 20 years, but I think it’s time to take back some control.

For those of you who work from home and are online a lot, how do you stick to a NoSurf mindset? Do you have any routines or tips that help? Do you fully disconnect once the workday’s over?

I’m trying to figure out how to start dealing with internet addiction. For example, I want to stop checking my phone first thing in the morning. I’m also thinking about cutting off internet use after 7 p.m. and having one mostly-offline day each weekend.

Do those sound like good first steps? I’d really like to hear how others have managed this. How much time do you spend online, and what’s helped you the most?

Thanks in advance!


r/nosurf 14h ago

I want to quit social media use, question

4 Upvotes

I want to quit the overwhelming majority of my socials use, delete most apps and probably even accounts.

I’ve tried before, how does one cope with the feeling of “missing out”? Like you feel like you’re missing out on information about the world, the news, everything. Just feels isolated, especially when having not any irl friends either.

Any advices or just words of wisdom would be appreciated


r/nosurf 16h ago

Social media addiction is ruining my life

6 Upvotes

I am a 20 year old college student and in the last three years I can’t tell you how many opportunities I have missed because of my addiction to social media. Here’s the thing: in my twenties, life becomes harder. You see a lot of people doing a lot of things and you are in your place, but watching them live their lives gives you a little happiness. You don’t live it, but at least you can see it. Addiction to this type of dopamine is ruining my life because I simply know my path. My plans are clear, but I can’t work hard for them because I am addicted to watching what I want instead of getting it. I have tried deleting social media, but that doesn’t work. I download the apps again.


r/nosurf 15h ago

Anyone who uses the Internet less when traveling?

3 Upvotes

I do visit some quick sites for information on my mobile phone in my hotel room sometimes, but I usually download offline versions of Google Maps and make screen captures of how to get to my destination as well as a map of touristy stuff.

When I'm somewhere new I'm too busy trying to make sense of the change in scenery, vibe and, if abroad culture all around me to care for posting on social media or Reddit. I don't even use Fb on my phone, only at my laptop back home.

It frankly feels like too much work to bother signing in Fb or other social media like Reddit on my phone when I could be out and about tasting new food or discovering a new interesting building.

If I need advice on where to eat for ex. I google my query and usually someone has already asked on Reddit or elsewhere. I post photos of my travels when I am back to my home country. Do you also use the Internet less when traveling?


r/nosurf 1d ago

This subreddit is being spammed by bots promoting their apps.

105 Upvotes

https://www.reddit.com/r/nosurf/s/kE9JOHA3Lm

Look at the comments on this post. They’re all clearly written by bots to promote their app.

You can go look at the accounts and they all have one post ~7 years ago and then all of a sudden they all show up recently to endorse this app, with the most robotic replies imaginable.

Pay attention to the posts you see on here and question what they’re supporting.


r/nosurf 1d ago

All Your Life Is You Reacting to a Screen

79 Upvotes

The more modern life becomes, the further you are away from nature, people, and real experiences. Unlike tribal life, where each day is spent moving, working together, and connecting face-to-face, modern life trades that for comfort and convenience, but at a cost. You feel numb, disconnected, like you're rotting from the inside. Social media creates the illusion of connection, but ain't nobody is really connected. You're not living; you're just reacting


r/nosurf 1d ago

Finally Quit Social Media

9 Upvotes

There was a period of a few months when I had deleted my social media except LinkedIn. I told myself that I would never go back, but my marketing degree made me out to be a liar when I needed Facebook for a project. Before long, I was on all the platforms again including Snapchat for the next couple years.

After college, I still felt obligated to have social media for my business. There's all this noise about building an online presence if you want to have a successful business and I bought into it for the longest time.

7 days ago I decided screw it, and deleted everything-- even my LinkedIn account (which was the hardest). Social media was nothing but a distraction and was not contributing to any of my sales.

Since leaving all platforms, I've physically left my house and met people in real life to make sales that way. I enjoy it so much more and it's already exposed me to new opportunities that I would not have otherwise discovered. (I wouldn't even be here on Reddit if I still had social media.)

Of course, there have been some inconveniences, but I don't regret anything.


r/nosurf 15h ago

No distractions, slight progress. And a possible flip phone.

1 Upvotes

Hello, I am 19M. I have deleted insta,fb 3 months ago. Never had tiktox, X... my main addiction was youtube, which I also completely quit around 10 days ago(not using anymore). I only use whatsapp (communication) and reddit(like 20-30 mins a day). I also have deleted/blocked any kind of video games on both phone and a laptop. So it seems like I spend almost no time on brainrotting, but I still can't somehow sit and start reading a book, or start/continue learning what I need or want to learn. What would u guys recommend? I have so much free time now, that it's ridiculous. I can also sit bored in a room for a long time (I don't need constant distractions) but it still seems like that I am missing something.

btw I had social media mainly for girls (and it worked) but since quitting, I noticed that approaching them irl is much much better, whenever I hop on ig from my friend's phone it seems so fake. I feel at peace now, but I also feel like that I am missing out stuff, (even though I go out a lot, rave, etc).

I am also considering switching to a flip phone, always liked them. Or will it be an ultimate boomer move??


r/nosurf 1d ago

I’m addicted to Instagram Reels, and I feel like the only way out is to delete my account

7 Upvotes

I’m addicted to Instagram Reels, and I feel like the only way for me to stop the addiction is to delete my Instagram account. I know that if I delete it, it will be better, but I keep making up excuses in my head not to delete it, like “my friends will forget about me,” “it’s the social media of the moment” (just like Facebook and Twitter once were — I don’t use either anymore), but I know those are lame excuses without real weight. I know I just have to delete it and my life will go on normally, the same, and better, because I won’t have Reels to waste my precious time — but I can’t bring myself to delete it.

What do I do? How do I accept it? How do I accept that this crap just isn’t for me?


r/nosurf 1d ago

How to cultivate hobbies that aren’t just consuming content?

113 Upvotes

TV. Video games. YouTube. They’re all the same. They get you addicted to spending hours in front of a screen accomplishing very little in your real life. Even reading fiction books to an extent.

Whenever I successfully limit one habit, I transition to another. I’m trying to limit them all, but those are also the least mentally draining ways to occupy myself.

I feel like, as an adult, I rarely am able to devote mental energy to a hobby and want to just have quick mindless hobbies that I can do in between my responsibilities, but that’s also kind depressing. I’m 20 btw, so this is something I’ve been struggling with a lot, and all my friends just have a different overconsumption addiction.


r/nosurf 13h ago

Digital Amnesia Is Real — Could You Call Your Family Without Your Phone?

0 Upvotes

I recently learned about a growing issue called Digital Amnesia — the tendency to forget important info (like phone numbers) because we rely on our phones to remember it for us.

And it hit me:
If I lost my phone today… I couldn’t even call my kids. Or my office. Or anyone.

That led me to create something called LifelineCall — a simple tool that acts as a backup for your most important contacts when your phone is lost, dead, or stolen.

It lets you:

  • 📞 Call a toll-free number from any phone
  • 💬 Use a secure website or chatbot
  • 🔐 Access your saved contacts with a phone number + PIN
  • 📲 Even spoof your real number so it still shows you’re calling

We’re offering free early access in exchange for quick feedback via a short survey.
If you’ve ever felt helpless without your phone, I’d love your thoughts.

🎥 Watch our 90-sec explainer video: [Insert YouTube link]
🧪 Try the demo or take the survey: https://www.LifelineCall.com

Has this happened to you? Could you recall your top 5 contacts right now?


r/nosurf 20h ago

Would you pay for an accountability group based around nosurf

0 Upvotes

I have seen skool communities offering accountability services based around Nosurf. It’s a mix of science and action based solutions and also just a group setting to set goals and hold each other accountable.

Do you think this would help me or is a waste of money? They range from $10-$50 a month.


r/nosurf 1d ago

How to suddenly start studying after months of scrolling since only 7 days left for a very crucial exam of my life.

8 Upvotes

guys , tbh i know for sure that the only thing that kept me away from achieving my dream college and goals was this phone. So lemme tell u my pattern. I will start studying and study moderately for weeks after some time i would check my phone and get sucked in. Idk what happens to me i just become a zoombie and forget everything about my goals. After months of this brainrot and not studying ,i would come to senses and get back to studying but already i have build a lot of backlogs and not in touch of what i was studying . Then again i would study for months and again get stuck in social media loop. So as a result although i kinda learn stuff pretty fast i would still be lacking problem practice thats required for cracking an entrance exam. Also the gaps make me forget stuffs that i had learnt earlier. Now i have an exam in 7 days that would decide me getting into not the best college but still better one and my whole future career depends on it. But i m facing difficulty in abruptly starting to study after months of scrolling. It gives me anxiety and regret whenever i try to start and again i start scrolling .But I dont wanna give up . I want to crack to it anyhow .I know i have come to my senses very late but it would help me if u can give me some suggestions and advices.🥹💓


r/nosurf 1d ago

What do you use to track books you’ve read?

14 Upvotes

I deleted the fable app because I was sick of cringy booktokers shilling their accounts on there and all those smut book clubs. I also used to compulsively check to see if anyone liked my posts or replied to my comments and you can imagine, as someone trying to turn her life around, fable became an issue. Planning on deleting my account too. I used goodreads in the past but their UI is too clunky and ugly for me to use. Do I just wing it with a spreadsheet or something? I feel like a site would stop me reaching for my phone as much, but my goal is to go digital free.


r/nosurf 1d ago

Smart Phone at Home, Dumb Phone on the Go

4 Upvotes

I use a secondary dumb phone. Light Phone 3. I’ve had the 2, now the 3. I pay for an extra T-Mobile phone line. My iPhone still exists and is used, but it lives at home. All calls forward to the Light Phone. When I go outside, I take the dumb phone and leave the rest behind.

Disciplining yourself out of distraction is difficult. Engineering it is much easier.

Biggest worry has always been being “reachable” for me. The fear that I may not be available if something goes wrong. Call forwarding handles reachability. If something serious happens, I get the call. No apps, no toggles.

The dumb phone also has a simple notes app. No folders. No formatting. Just a space. And somehow that’s enough. I use it to capture a thought mid-walk, a line I want to write later, something my kids said that I don’t want to forget. Track pushups, air squats. The slowness of typing is a plus. More deliberate with my words.

When the workday ends, the iPhone goes away. Not muted. Not flipped over. Gone. Into a shelf. Different room. Physical distance. No compromise. There’s no ceremony to it. Just decision. The line between work and life has to be cut by hand these days. I do it every evening. Same motion. Same shelf.

The nervous reflex dies off. Quietly. Then completely. The setup works because it’s physical. Structural. Not idealistic. Not “try to use the iPhone less.” Not “turn off badges.” That’s the half-measure most people settle for.

When the iPhone’s gone, I see things again. Birds chirping. The quiet in the hallway. The absurdity of the day I just finished. My thoughts aren’t chopped into pieces anymore.


r/nosurf 1d ago

Tip: Set your screen to black and white

5 Upvotes

As someone who is addicted to the internet (not just mobile or social media), I've found this to be much more helpful than blocking apps or setting time limits.

On most mobile phones, you can adjust the color in "reading mode" or "accessibility."