Digital wellbeing & productivity researcher | speaker | author | consultant
We’re living in an age of digital distraction and dependence. Our daily lives are swamped by screens. We’re tethered to our tech. This is having a major impact on us physically, psychologically and cognitively.
None of us are immune to the ‘digital pull’- toddlers, teens and adults all succumb to screens. Our wellbeing & performance is being shaped (and often stifled) by technology.
Technology is not the enemy, but in the modern world we face a few digital dilemmas:
There’s little doubt that technology plays a fundamental role in our lives.
But are we in control of technology, or is technology controlling us?
Have you ever worried about the impact of your child/teen’s digital obsession on their physical and mental wellbeing? Are you worried about it stunting their learning, or derailing their development?
Have you paused (& looked up from your phone) to consider the costs of your digital dependence and distraction on your wellbeing and productivity?
For most of us, adults and kids alike, digital devices have become an integral part of our lives. We find it so hard to unplug. This is no accident. The reason lies with our brains. Basically, we’ve got ancient brains operating in a high-tech, fast-paced world. Our brains simply haven’t evolved to cope with the incessant demands digital devices pose.
Popular technologies
For some of us, our digital behaviours have become problematic (most parents have endured their child’s or teen’s #technotantrum and we know many adults partake in ‘toilet tweeting’, i.e. using your phone in the bathroom). But we don’t have to be tethered to our devices and nor do our kids. We can form healthy & sustainable digital behaviours that enable us to use technology in healthy & helpful ways.
I’m Dr. Kristy Goodwin
and I’m on a mission to help parents & professionals (educators, health professionals & corporate employees & executives) tame our toxic tech habits (and stop being a slave to the screen). I’m passionate about providing research-based, yet realistic advice & strategies so we can use technology in productive & purposeful ways and counteract its negative consequences...without reverting to phone bans or constant digital detoxes.
I’m a speaker, author & media commentator fascinated by how our always switched-on, digital culture is compromising our wellbeing and is counter to optimal and sustainable performance and learning.
Most of my professional career I’ve researched and spoken about the ways in which technology shapes children’s and teens’ wellbeing, health and learning.
However, in recent years I realised that digital wellbeing wasn’t an issue exclusive to kids and teens. It’s an issue impacting adults too.
There was a time when I also struggled to digitally-disconnect & tame my digital distractions… If I’m really honest, technology was controlling me! My digital behaviours had (really) detrimental impacts on my wellbeing (late-night social scrolling was sabotaging my sleep) and mental health (yes, I suffered from #technostress, #digitaldementia and #compareanddespair syndrome) . I also began to observe that my digital behaviours were also diminishing my performance when I worked. I’d open my laptop to work and the incessant ping of email alerts, the buzz of social media notifications & my constant (failing) attempts to multi-task severely compromised my productivity & efficiency.
That’s why I now I help corporations and workplaces promote employee digital wellbeing and performance.
Every day there’s a new headline warning us of the harmful effects of technology on children or teens. Increasingly, we’re hearing more about the costs of our always-on work culture on employee wellbeing & efficiency.
The scare of the “digital apocalypse” makes us feel guilty and fearful about our kids’ digital behaviours. We’re also seriously questioning our own digital infatuation. Most adults are now no longer more than one metre proximity away from their phone for most of the day and 80% of adults check their phone within 15 minutes of waking.
But there’s no need (or time) for #technoguilt. We face a digital reality and banning or avoiding technology isn’t a viable solution.
So I want to help you make informed choices about your digital habits (or your family’s tech time), based on the latest neuroscience, developmental science, organisational psychology and technology research.
Whether we love it or loathe it, technology’s here to stay. The genie’s out of the bottle.
We have to find healthy and helpful ways to use technology & mitigate its potential pitfalls.
I’m Dr. Kristy Goodwin
I’m a researcher, speaker and author, delivering keynote addresses, seminars and workshops to parents, educators, health professionals and employees throughout Australia. I’m on a mission to disseminate the facts and dismantle the fears about young children’s, teens’ & adults’ digital wellbeing & productivity.
I provide practical, evidence-based information about what we really need to thrive both online and offline.