Young and Profiting (YAP) with Hala Taha

Johann Hari: Stolen Focus, Why You Can’t Pay Attention and How to Think Deeply Again | E217

Apr 3, 2023

01:14:57

When Johann Hari was a teenager, he told his therapist that he felt like pain was leaking out of him. After he received medication to fix his brain's chemical imbalance, he still found himself feeling lost. Johann made it his mission to educate people about depression and anxiety as a bestselling author and speaker. In this episode, Johann discusses how we can overcome disconnect with one another. He also breaks down his newest book Stolen Focus, the war on distraction, multitasking, and how we can maintain our attention and focus in the modern age.

Johann Hari is a New York Times bestselling author, journalist, and speaker. He has written 3 best-selling books that have been praised by a broad range of people, from Oprah To Elton John. Johann studies topics like depression, addiction, and anxiety, and in his latest book, Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention, he discusses how we – as individuals and as a society – can get our focus back.

In this episode, Hala and Johann will discuss:

- Why Johann became a writer

- How a cow cured a man’s depression

- Why depression and anxiety doubled during Covid

- The “switch-cost effect” of multitasking

- Johann’s thoughts on ADHD

- How the food we eat affects our attention

- Why Johann uses a phone “jail”

- Fighting the War on Distraction

- And other topics…

Johann Hari is the author of three New York Times best-selling books that have been translated into 40 languages and been praised by a broad range of people, from Oprah to Noam Chomsky, from Elton John to Naomi Klein. He is the Executive Producer of an Oscar-nominated movie and an eight-part TV series starring Samuel L. Jackson. His latest book, Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention, was published in January 2022 and received rave reviews everywhere from The Washington Post to the Irish Times to the Sydney Morning Herald. It has been a best-seller on three continents.

Johann’s TED talks have been viewed more than 93 million times. The first is named ‘Everything You Think You Know About Addiction is Wrong’. The second is entitled ‘This Could Be Why You Are Depressed or Anxious’.

Resources Mentioned:

Johann’s Website: https://johannhari.com/

Johann’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/johannhari101

Johann’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johann.hari/?hl=en

Johann’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JohannHari.Page/

Johann’ Book Stolen Focus: https://www.amazon.com/Stolen-Focus-Attention-Think-Deeply/dp/0593138511

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