Paying Attention Is Expensive

While scrolling Facebook, I saw an ad for a ramen noodle bowl cat bed (photo below).

This is something I would not have proactively searched for, but The Algorithm is trained on me, knows me. It was love at first click! Previously not even a remote thought, now seen, I must have. I immediately bought it (and the cats love it).

As algorithms become more sophisticated, our ability to be sold to will be immense. Our unsurfaced desires can be cleverly targeted in exquisitely personalized ways to get us to click, to buy. Increasingly effective social engineering to convert us from impression to sale.

So how is attention currency? Currency is a medium of exchange. I want a dozen eggs. I have money. In the grocery store I use my credit card to exchange value from my account to the store's account and in turn, now I have some eggs.

Our attention is precisely that. When we engage with anything – people, ideology, projects, social media – we give a unit of our time and hope to get something in exchange.

Currency is also a store of value. When we have attention, it is our cash-on-hand, our dry powder, that we can use to spend on wherever we want. We must spend wisely – parsing what serves us and what is not worth the price of our attention.

There are innumerable things constantly shouting at us, imploring us to pay up. Once we make that payment, we no longer have that attention to use on something else (opportunity cost!). So, we must prioritize. Ignoring distractions. Unapologetically saying "No".

Just as we budget money and track expenses with care, so too we should think of our attention. Investing in what nourishes us and avoiding squander on the saccharine, demoralizing, and toxic.

Be mindful of who and what you pay your hard-earned attention to – it is your currency.

 - Jeremy