What is "Audio Only Media"
I came up with it on the fly and too lazy to research if there's a proper term. What I mean is media we obtain that relies 100% on listening and nothing else. The specific examples I'm talking about would be - Podcast and Audio Book. Maybe radio. However, other media can be consumed in this form if you forego the visual aspects (listening to a youtube video or w.e show on without watching).
As a disclaimer, I only started to become an avid audio book listener thanks to my new book reading habit - I do both, traditional and audio, or particularly, Audible (man Bezos' everywhere). But today I want to focus on the topic of just listening to something, not the value of reading a book. Podcast vs audio book is discussion for another time akin to reading a book vs reddit / online news articles. Today - only audio vs visual.
As a disclaimer, I only started to become an avid audio book listener thanks to my new book reading habit - I do both, traditional and audio, or particularly, Audible (man Bezos' everywhere). But today I want to focus on the topic of just listening to something, not the value of reading a book. Podcast vs audio book is discussion for another time akin to reading a book vs reddit / online news articles. Today - only audio vs visual.
Changed your life? Really?
It may be a bit of an exaggeration by the degree which it has, but it has opened doors to me which I have never before. It sounds contrarian considering people in the past had, for a time, relied on radio for entertainment and news, and it was so obviously worse than what we have today - big time movies, Netflix and chill, social media, etc. The reason is simple: A massive amount - about one third - of the neurons in the brain[1] are dedicated to visual processing and something like half to two thirds of electrical activity in brain is for visual processing. Yeah. We are visual based alright.
But consider all the information we've learned and expressed, how much of it is auditory? From the very first day of school learning in class to interacting with every other person. We rely a lot on talking, and half of it is listening. For a kid in 2019, it may sound kinda weird to be listening without any visuals like talking on a phone raw instead of snap chatting what's going on or face timing for an intimate exchange. My simple realization is this: we rely so much on visuals everywhere, any alternative to get extra stuff in is not only a good change of pace, but can help me stay productive in times where I wouldn't be. Let me explain.
The Usual Suspects
Current avid podcast listeners or audio book fanatics ain't my target audience. But why do they do it? The usual suspects are people who are forced to deal with massive amounts of unproductive (or simply boring) time with other visual demands. For example commuting 2-3hrs a day unable to watch a movie while driving, or spending most of the day doing simple manual work which requires visual input, but otherwise boring and repetitive.
Now the question is: I don't have 2-3hrs of time where I can't use my phone / computer, and I don't do mindless manual work. Wtf is it that I will benefit from? Tons, apparently, for me.
No Easy Manual Work, are you sure?
Depending on age and life style, some may not apply and others not included, but here's a list of possible examples where you may be wasting the auditory system.
- Doing laundry
- Cooking non-intensive stuffs
- Cleaning the room
- Going out for a walk - maybe for dog or to a library
- Light jogs / workouts - no need to bring out big gun musics every time, cmon
- Shorter public commutes - many have motion sickness watching on bus or trains
- After reading "Why We Sleep" by Matthew Walker, staying in darkness without electronics 30min before bed and can't see shit (maybe that's just me)
Many people use music because they don't have an alternative and have gotten used to it since the tasks aren't overly wasteful like a 3hr daily commute. I used to be one. However I suggest trying other audio based media instead of thinking "yeah music is best". You may find that sometimes, music is simply not the worst.
How is it better than music bruh that's subjective
I love music. I love consuming music, writing music, playing music, exploring music. But a lot of the day-to-day listening of music is simply not productive or even that rewarding. I can't argue about the "entertainment value" of music against a purely for-fun podcast, but what I find is some people, me at least, require a daily "quota" for each type of brain stimulation. Music can get old after some time, and other times I just gotta watch that 1hr of youtube, namsayin? It isn't replaceable by music because it isn't giving me that type of "information-based entertainment", ones that make me go "LMAOZ" or "WTF" or "damn I feel like I've learnt a lot (even if just garbage memes)". Podcast can probably achieve that though I've never tried. Instead, I pushed my new book reading habit greatly by replacing all of this with audio book.
Ultimately, what is the most rewarding or productive can only be determined by you. But how can you determine that, if you've never taken the time to look for podcasts with topics that interest you or audio books with materials that you enjoy? I'm not covering podcast as well as I should with good recommendations due to a lack of experience, but I'm aware podcasts can be anywhere from stand-up-esque comedy talk show, to extremely educational, philosophical discussions. There's a lot out there, just gotta look until you find the one that makes you say "ahh ha haaw, ah that's hot, that's hot."
So what is it really that "changed my life"?
The real change came from the opposite direction after my adoption of fitting audio book everywhere in my day. It was so rewarding and different from my normal routines that are competing for visual resources, I started to proactively go down the lists of things which can utilize this. Instead of pushing off my laundry and daily walk to read more reddit posts, I excitedly initiate them so I can start the next chapter of the book. Suddenly, cleaning my room or washing dishes is not a chore, but a rewarding and productive activity which I pursue. If I find a favorite podcast, it's probably similar.
Imagine one of the most desired leisure activity every day being purely audio - you are going to make time for it just like you already do for netflix or reddit, then you will realize you can do a lot more during that time which you could never watching netflix or redditing. Oh yeah, I also started stretching which is serious shit for people sitting a lot.
Imagine one of the most desired leisure activity every day being purely audio - you are going to make time for it just like you already do for netflix or reddit, then you will realize you can do a lot more during that time which you could never watching netflix or redditing. Oh yeah, I also started stretching which is serious shit for people sitting a lot.
Music never did that for me, unfortunately.
On top of the "emotional priorities" which is surely subjective, I have gained extra knowledge and skills by listening to amazing books I otherwise wouldn't have (or will take much longer to get to). I would say this is at least somewhat "life changing". If we are being cheeky, everything we do in life is "life changing", thus it's not a click-bait title. Heh.
Last Words
There's isn't a deep message to conclude here other than "Hey guys and gurls who aren't often listening to podcasts or audio books, why not give them a real chance and spend some effort in trying to adopt it into a daily routine? It worked out real nice for me"
Cheers, and Happy New Year!