ATTENTION - INTERRUPTED

Sparked by interviews of Jonathan Haidt, the author of “The Anxious Generation”on the @NewYorkerRadioHour and other media,I have been motivated to talk and write about the condition. And in today’s world, even Gen X and Baby Boomers have caught the anxiety bug from the adult world of overwhelm. We are constantly distracted, even working at home. For me, working at home is even more distracting than outside. I am hit by a litany of things that kidnap my attention from work or from juggling my daily priorities.

Our late friend Alice March had a radio show about attention on which I was privileged to appear once as a guest. It grew an audience for several years. And she continued it into her 90s.

SMB owners and CEOs are now expecting the unexpected to deter them from day-to-day activities. Some are so concerned that they are leaving their passwords and vital info with trusted people to enable their business to continue in their absence, even in their wills, with available technology to keep their businesses functioning.

“The Anxious Generation” author cites some ideas to reduce the severity  and endurance of the anxiety for the younger generations and stop it rising from social media and smartphones usage. I think that’s not enough because anxiety has been rising for ALL generations, so solutions are needed to combat all types, including parental anxiety and pressures. My thoughts follow.

The Anxious Generations: Look to the Anxious Parent Generation

The Gen X and Millennial parent cohorts have brought additional anxiety to their kids with pressures from an early age to get into top colleges and to seek high paying careers rather than exploring fields they may be more interested in. That also has led to overwhelm and mental exhaustion for parents and their demand for mental health and wellness solutions and benefits from employers and workplace culture.

In giving kids smartphones before age 12 so they can be in touch at all times, they are training them to be tied to their phones rather than allowing the freedom to explore and play. They are seeking perfection in appearance which leads to lack of confidence, anxiety from higher pressure to compare and compete among each other even more than previous generations did.

Technology and online convenience have greatly reduced in-person contact at work, in stores and even when paying cashiers. All of this in the face of the results of almost universal studies and interviews that CONNECTION is the most desired human desire and the best way to build and nurture both personal and professional relationships  on the youcantgoogleit.com web site and LinkedIn.

I am regularly hearing this Pain and Want from the younger generations, but they are not being taught how to avoid and conquer it. It’s a roadblock to career success and job satisfaction and a significant factor in cross-generational conflict.

Are you experiencing this conflict?

Call to Action: If you want to change the situation, contact me and join our ANXIETY ATTENTION movement.


©  Phyllis Weiss Haserot   2025