The Numb Podcast

Dec 05 2023 41 ep. 33 mins 35
The Numb Podcast artwork

The Numb Podcast is a fun exploration of life in the Information Age, focusing on social media, cable news, dating apps, porn, and all of the other apps and devices that push and pull on our attention on a daily basis. Hosted by Dr. Charles Chaffin, The Numb Podcast includes researchers, therapists, sports and political figures, and guests from all walks of life who offer commentary and solutions for managing our attention in such a noisy world.

  Education  News  Society & Culture
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Your Attentional Wallet

Dec 05 2023 40 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show by talking about 1972 Eastern Airlines Flight 401 and how it demonstrates the limits to our attention. He then talks about how we tend to be the genesis of many of our own digital distractions. He then outlines how to address and limit our distractions in our work and lesiure. Finally, he spends time answering listener emails.

The Productivity Episode

Oct 23 2023 33 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show talking about the challenges and misconceptions as it relates to productivity. He then shares several components of the new Productivity Resource document, walking through ways to address Email Overload and unproductive and expensive meetings for both you and your team. He then closes with a "thrilling" song reference and answers some listener emails.For

The Distracted Organization

Feb 02 2023 35 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show by addressing some of the emails related to holiday arguments. He then outlines how costly distractions are for organizations, outlining some of the primary causes for both office employees and those working from home.He then shares several steps both employees and organizations can take to be more focused and productive. He then quotes a song, tells a st

If being wrong is wrong, I don’t want to be right

Dec 23 2022 33 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show discussing common family arguments during the holidays. He then discusses why being wrong is valuable to our growth and how focusing on our weaknesses leads to better productivity in our work and personal lives. He then answers some listener emails.

Distraction and the "Productivity Pirates"

Dec 13 2022 31 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show outlining the costs of distraction to both corporations as well as employees and how it impacts both our professional and personal lives. He then outlines 6 things we can do to be more focused in our work and fight-off the "productivity pirates." Finally, he responds to multiple listener emails.

STRESS!

Oct 27 2022 30 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show talking about how people are so stressed these days and then dives into some of the root causes of this stress as it relates to the Information Age. He then talks about five ways we can better manage all of this stress. He tells an awful joke as an aside and then ends the show by quoting an old song and answering some listener email.

The Psychology of Texting

Sep 13 2022 30 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show answering some listener emails regarding goal setting. He then talks about texting and some of the challenges that come from it...including coining the phrase, "trash-texting." He then closes talking about texting etiquette and answering listener emails.

What's your motivation?

Aug 25 2022 30 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show discussing the different forms of motivation and how they impact almost all aspects of our lives. He talks about good and bad phlebotomists before talking about how social media can help (and sometimes impede) our motivation to engage others as well as meet our health/fitness goals. He then answers a few listener emails and talk about confirmation bias.

Smoking two packs of Instagram a day...

Aug 02 2022 23 mins  
Dr. Charles opens the show discussing the historic 1964 Surgeon General's announcement of the dangers of smoking and draws a comparison between the negative impacts of smoking and social media use, specifically as it relates to regulation. He talks about potential paths forward in finding a balance between capitalism and protection. He closes with another quote from a country music

The Attention Economy

Jul 06 2022 23 mins  
Dr. Charles discusses how we are currently living in an attention economy, the currency associated with it, and ways that we can thrive in this age when it seems as if everything is designed to hijack our attention. He then answers some listener email and for the first time ever, quotes a country music song.