Who owns your attention?

A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention - Herbert Simon

Our attention, like our time is limited and we must make a conscious decision to use it to better ourselves. We are constantly feed information meant to capture our attention, regardless of the harm it may cause our minds in the process. Shock and anger inducing content are the easiest methods used to steal attention. Corporations and governments are experts at capturing our attention but they have their own agendas that may conflict with our personal goals and well-being. If we passively let our attention flow to whoever grabs it, our minds will be shaped by the agendas, desires, and goals of others. The remedy to this dilemma is to consciously direct attention towards our own priorities.

Attention and short term memory

As UX and product designers we must respect people's limited time, attention, and mental energy and create experiences that are clear and focused on helping them achieve their goals without distraction. This also reinforces the importance of studying and knowing your users, if you don't know them you cannot understand their goals. When designing an experience remember that short term memory is limited. "The potential of our short-term memory is limited, and the brain cannot process an infinite number of 'things'. Although hard to accurately measure, the cognitive load refers to the amount of strain your processing unit (brain) is under, at that moment." - Peter Ramsy

We should be championing our people's priorities not stealing their attention for our benefit. We should aim to empower users to reach their goals as quick as possible without overwhelming them options.