Always On to Fully Present
Matt Yao puts on his product designer cap, ideating new features and products that could bring us into better relationship with our devices. He identifies specific design principles that make the status quo difficult and then imagines new types of consumer technology evolved from different principles that are more aligned with well-being.
Why the Defaults Aren’t Working
Throughout history, humans have managed to worry about the newest technology. In Ancient Greece, Socrates warned that writing would erode memory. With the printing press, the Church worried it would unleash a mass production of lies and heresy. With each new invention, from the telephone to the radio to the television, there’s always been a new critique and a new flavor of the same fear—that we’re losing ourselves and our human relationships in the technology.
There’s never been an era where we have spent so much time staring at screens. Remote work may have peaked during the pandemic, but the digitization of work is an expanding trend. Tasks such as caring for patients or designing a building, once done with paper or equipment in the office are now carried out virtually. As more people spend more time behind screens, blurring the boundary between work and non-work, it becomes natural to drift into an 'always-on' state.
Tech Band-Aids Aren’t Enough
In response to the symptoms caused by the frictionless, engagement-maximizing design of smartphones and laptops, new products and businesses have been created to add constraints. An Amazon search for “phone lock box” yields over 2,000 results. A company like Brick sells a 3D-printed plastic cube with an NFC chip inside that blocks apps. They charge $59 for it, and although their sales aren’t public, they have nearly 100,000 Instagram followers, indicating a hunger for solutions. Big Tech seems to be taking notice—Apple has introduced features like Focus Mode, Screen Time, and App Limits. But these are just bandaids.
The most effective action is to simply delete the apps and deactivate accounts, but that feels like a nuclear option. Although I care very little about keeping my Instagram followers updated with my life, and likes no longer have so much weight on me, I still like to know what people are up to and sometimes I use the app to message people. I feel similarly for LinkedIn and X, I enjoy and get value from these platforms, but I also get sucked in easily, waste time, and often see content that I don’t care for or find nourishing.
So I’ve kept experimenting, trying to find a sustainable middle ground. I’ve used Brick, deleted apps, switched to black-and-white mode to dull the visuals, and even installed a Chrome extension that blocks all feeds. What seems to work best is staying signed out of all of these platforms and only logging in when I have something specific to post or check, but even then, it’s so easy to get sucked in. I tell myself that I’m re-downloading Instagram just to share photos from a recent backpacking trip, and 20 minutes later I’m lost in Reels.
It seems like we’ve been given two bad options: perma-delete and reclaim our attention, or try to use tech intentionally, but eventually cave.
Principles for Healthy, Humane Tech
If we were given the opportunity to reset the playing field and reimagine a healthier tech landscape, then it would start by reflecting on what we truly want as users. Crucially, we would want to think through these design principles and desired outcomes from a mindful, well-resourced place, rather than while we’re mid-doomscroll. In the following section, I outline some principles for designing tech products that I would want myself, as I seek to cultivate a healthier relationship with technology.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 2025
To read Matt’s specific suggestions, check out our collection: Life in the Scroll Age.