Tiffany shlain, the power of unplugging one day a week. I am so happy to be here. Tiffany, its an interesting time to think about unplugging during this moment, the coronavirus pandemic, many of us find ourselves even more tethered to screens because we cant do things like meet people in person, go to our workplaces or schools or hang out at a cultural venue. So first, well hear more about the book from tiffany and then well have a discussion. Thank you. Its great to be here, i am from the bay area im glad we are still able to make it happen this way. Adapting literary adapting to this experience we are living in. This moment we are in feels very similar to a moment i was personally in around 11 years ago. Monday, 11 Year Anniversary of my fathers death and what happened was my father died of brain cancer, he is also an author. He loved bookstores and anyways, we are very close. He died of brain cancer within days of my daughter being born and it felt like a moment where life was grabbing me by the shoulders and saying, focus on what matters. My husband and i decided, with our kids, to turn off screens one day a week so its been the best thing ive ever done in my life in terms of a practice that keeps giving and brings balance and so many things that go into that. I love technology, i am not anti tech. Other six days i am in it, in the web. My background is in my 20s, ive always been very excited about the potential of technology to connect us and all these new ways and i spent my career in the running webby awards for potential of technology. This also occurs that we need to wrestle with. I was wrestling with ten years ago, a dramatic moment my life, i was feeling distracted all the time. I felt i couldnt get a complete thought out without my own blessing or notification and i felt like i was in a constant state of being distracted and i didnt like it. I think what i was seeking by doing this is some time to think and connect in an authentically screens off, it was too much. I should also tell you i am jewish but i am not a religious jew, i am more of a secular jew. I love a lot of things from the food and rituals, the ideas of shabbat is the concept of the day of rest. He started doing that ten years ago. Friday night, make bread which has to rise all day and usually make a beautiful meal and invite people over and its the best meal of the week because nobody has their phones out its a wonderful meal and then our favorite day of the week, our daughter is now 11 years old. Its a day for doing all the things we love to do. That was all before the pandemic. Then of course the last two months we both have to be online so much. I do feel its a very similar moment for the whole world in terms of grabbing me by the shoulders and telling me to focus on whats important. Right now, all of us are being grabbed by the shoulders and say focus on whats important, what matters . Is important, your health, family enough money to buy food, cooking food, being grateful, helping others . All these fundamental lessons i felt like to spend my time thinking about more on that than others. A lot of people have asked, it is a lifelong. The way speak connect, we often connect with our family members from all over the country on zoom that brings me to my second part, so many people say are you still think youre shabbat now that we are in shelter in place . Always stunned me because in doing it, it is my saving grace, there so many benefits to especially now. It magnifies benefits because ive been so stressed about whats happening, whats going to happen and it allows to take 1 foot in front of the other one week at a time, i look forward to something every week. It is weird because im a big planner and now we cant make plans. Every week, to his credit, we are going to make a little and it feels different from all the days. So i feel like doing screen free day or whatever you want to call it, it feels like so much more beneficial during the pandemic when everything is coming together time is running together, social and everything is going together, we are on the news so much more for bathing our bodies and cortisol and stress. Of course there so many beautiful things about the web right now. A couple of months ago, was a show was pulled from a lot of ideas in my book, 24 6. I was worried with my early optimism with the web that was going to connect us and collaborate and all these things in new ways that the Tech Industry and Business Model of manipulating our attention starting to bring out the worst in humanity. On the social media was making us compare ourselves and polarization and that was a lot of what it was about. The moment i ended the show and said what would it take to bring the web back to the web we want . But could we all focus on together . That was february 15, 2020. I was at home and within weeks, the whole country and different parts of the world shut down. And seeing the web use so many incredible miraculous ways. I have renewed faith of the web renewed faith in him every chance to look at the huge opportunity lesson im worried, like everyone else. My brother is a doctor whos been working in the front lines of covid and its been intense and wonderful, i am proud of him. And all the food donations ive seen to help people and gofundme campaigns, there are so many ways the web is rising to the occasion, allowing us to bring out the best of our human strength but we shouldnt be on it all the time, its even more, we are so craving human contact right now from other people, my biggest hope is when we emerge from this, we are going to finally be together and not be on our phone all the time. Prepandemic, it was at the front. A group of teens together are all at the front. Maybe we are going to be so hungry for true Human Connection after this maybe we will put down our phones, that would be a great thing to come out of this but the biggest ritual i say in the book, and ill share with you some of the benefits because i go deep on the neural science and historical reference and psychology of lights good and so many of the benefits that happen from us unplugging a day a week, right now with so much time on our hands, if you have the privilege of being able to be at home and youre not in a social worker youre thinking, how can i take this time and have somebody come out of it would be really good in sustaining the rest of my life . I think this day without scree screens, you will ill tell you why i think a day. This is a think that 3000 years old. Sabbath, shabbat, its different. Everybody has a day of rest, only the most observant and religious people in the faith will do it. The seventh day for christians, sabbath. For juice, a day of rest but i havent met anyone, except the one orthodox jew i knew in california but other than that, anybody who does a shabbat, they will maybe light candles or a nice dinner occasionally but most do a full day of rest. The experience by doing this the power is in the full day of rest. There is serious wisdom it takes a whole day to truly reset and reboot and turn off the outside world you can tune into yourse yourself. If youre alone, i still highly recommend it. To your kids and really more, right now we are online all the time. There with our family and connected with our friends, we are in a constant state of reacting and connecting. Theres a lot of good right now but what i a lot of times on saturday as i do my very best thinking. I think. And i think weve created a society and culture that doesnt value flexion because we leave no space for it. I do a lot of writing on saturday at dinner with friends and family a lot of talking about the week, everything is about the week. His great wisdom in that but saturday i do a lot of writing, generally and doing nothing which is a really important thing to be able to do, to do nothing. We value so much conductivity and optimizing every second of our lives these days. Washing dishes and learn a new language, theres value in just letting your whole life follow. Even in farming, every seven years, youre supposed to let the earth rest, no new crops. I think every seven days, you need to let your life follow so you can have the necessary nutrients to grow and build things. One of the benefits we talk about, of many is theres so much more productive after giving ourselves a full day of rest. We are not giving ourselves a full day of rest right now, even relaxing if your posting on social media and it suddenly starts to feel like work. The other thing ive noticed after doing this ten years, i am a filmmaker, most of the time im making, putting myself in the most creative state, they are like what can you do . But if i look back on the last ten years, i have my best ideas on saturday. There is neuroscience behind this that during the week, youre doing all this input and stimulation but its when youre daydreaming or washing dishes going for a run but you put things together in an unusual way of the Default Network and thats where creativity comes from, unusual connections happening. One of the places that we were so much more productive was by taking a day off. I have problems sleeping, that just started. In my 40s, i started having problems. Friday nights are my deepest sleep of the week. I think im more patient and pretty impatient, for the long term. They are more patient is saturday, its good to teach our kids how to move forward how to not need to be stimulated every second, theres so much research. Its like weight in your seat, its exciting. Every second on your phone to distract yourself right now during a pandemic, we need distraction also but not at every moment and every in between moment entertaining or distracted or productive, its good to just be do the mostly on our shabbat but it has really led to practices i do the other six days like i no longer look at my phone when i wake up because thats my most creative thinking time and looking on the book 24, i recognize thats my sweet spot. I get up before 5 00 a. M. , before the kids right from five to seven and then the whole world came out. If you just look at your phone right when you wake up, i do use my phone as an alarm clock that works for me but whatever. I keep it on Airplane Mode in the morning, i calmed down and have my coffee and what am i thinking about . What is this day going to be like and 15 minutes, start my day with where i am instead of where the world, a stressful email stressful news headline, its my own framing of the day. Before i go to sleep, have my nighttime rituals go back and read and write in a journal again about what happened in the day, what was great about the day, something i wish i did differently about the day and what i hope for tomorrow so the sandwich to my day doesnt involve the phone. Super important. I also do know screens at the table when we are eating unless its during the pandemic and its a zoom meeting with family. I also tried to do a walk with the family. The plethora of benefits that happened from this one complete day off and a lot of people have said to me, like six months and its been fun because it changed my life, and i have tried a lot of strategies, you might be psyched to do this but maybe your husband or wife or partner or kids, and i talked a lot about the best way to approach it because its not like youre going to turn off screens for a bit, it wont go over very well. If you say to them, but you wish we did more together and pretty much make the day filled with that, thats our favorite day of the week, its a day of joy. Having, reading, biking, nothing can involve the screen. Find things that dont involve screens. I think during the pandemic, i know everyone is so exhausted from zoom, i thought a couple from, ive got shooting pains from sitting in different positions in the house on my screen but its even more of a reason you should create space and i think that day of the week, one full day a week to reset. Its brought me such comfort when ive been so anxious during the week. I completely, shutting off the outside world for day and think about what youre grateful for and it quiets all of the anxiety. Think about the things you do have instead of the things you dont have. Its brought an amazing sense of balance and resetting for me personally so i was excited about the book before because its like anybody can do it and you dont have to believe, have a lot of christians during an idea from judaism but again, i have Great Respect for people who have a religion but i come from it as a secular practice and i want to liberate it and make it a practice like meditation, its great things for people from all different backgrounds but think the concept of a text shabbat and bring more joy and balance peace to people especially right now during the pandemic. Id love to bring going back in because i am excited to talk to her and here what questions you might have had about the book or anything. Thank you for sharing so much. I know you are a practicing jew, as i am myself. You are . Your name did not give a little. My grandparents came from Eastern Europe and so yeah that was kind of my upbringing, too. Im curious about how with your family, how it compares to the shabbat traditions when youre growing up. I didnt grow up with shabbat. Im glad you brought that up because there are ways that are different from people who are really truly living shabbat. Rabbi said to me once, your the most religious and nonreligious person. And i do a lot of similar rituals. They always had a beautiful thing, we do that, too. The homemade challah, its a beautiful meal. We also do that. If youre really observant orthodox jew, not supposed to even write, do my best writing, journaling on shabbat. For me, is about trying to take the essence of the shabbat which i think is about presence, gratitude, joy, family, sanctuary of home, cooking, really being present. I was to me, what i was trying to do. Did you read the shabbat . My aunts in particular, the desire to be with family and that sort of thing its interesting because growing up, my parents got divorced so it was, i think in many ways, doing shabbat, and before they got divorced, there was a lot of rituals. We always went to the movies every sunday night and when i was eight, they got divorced so it was hard. For me and in many ways, i do write about this in the book, when i really went deep in the book, i think in a lot of ways, i understand how important ritual is for families and what happens when that breaks and im sure i was on a therapy couch, a lot of my understanding of how profound its been for our family although, i think it can be meaningful if youre not married or without kids but for me, its brought an important ritual that ties us back together each week. During the week, we are off doing our separate things and friday night to saturday night, we met ourselves back together and this really connected way. The closest i feel to everyone in the family, friday night and saturday night. That is my grandmothers name. We are doing a big festival. I know a little bit about y you. One thing i talk about in the book, as soon as the pandemic started, whatever, nine weeks ago, we decided to do our holiday on his zoom, now every week, anywhere from 50 to 150 people on his zoom from our kitchen, and today its been such a fun part of the pandemic. There is a funny moment today where somebody was asking about the dough and we were saying about how keep meeting, thats how you get the dough right. It is so symbolic to this. We are in right now, we just have to keep meeting the dough minutes so much about processing about whats going on. A lot of learning the great lessons from this period is about being present for whats going on and not just living in a state of distraction from whats going on which is easy to do. You can be on netflix and reading the news but theres a real opportunity to also be present to whats happening right now. I was a very long answer but i really enjoyed hearing about these things to generate. So apart from zoom, im curious about how the stayathome orders and the coronavirus pandemic has changed your practice. We dont have people around friday night. We missed that. I loved it because youre having wonderful conversations as a family, normally we have new people here are families here but if you like it happens in the zoom, its very social. That part was very social but so we dont have people over which was a big difference but the saturday part is pretty similar. Weve managed to do it when our kids have had sports and we had to go to a Basketball Court but we try not to make plans saturday. A lot of plans are happening right now so in that way, it feels very similar. 5 00 p. M. Saturday night, the girls go back online, we used to go for dinner, thats not happening. We go upstairs now we are excited to go back online and that is an important component, turning it off one day a week thats you we appreciate technology in a new way because its this miraculous tool, thank goodness we have the web right now. Living without it for one day helps you we appreciate it in a new way when you go back on. I cant wait to turn it off, then i cant wait am excited to know whats happened in the world. Everything happens without you, what if people cant get in touch with you . I should mention we do have a landline and that is a really good thing to have in california for earthquakes, fires and natural disasters but if you really need to get in touch with them, they will call on the landline. But i hardly ever brings. Saturday is about going out, it is more inward. All week long we get texts and calls and facebook and zoom but i feel really good to have that boundary of not being available. Related to this in the present days today, obviously some people would say pandemic makes it more important than ever before how would you respond to those that taking a day off from the screens seems ludicrous and impossible how. I would ask, to me, it is valuing time with or without a pandemic to listen to you for a day. But i feel like, it would be the same argument i would get people couldnt imagine turning them off but it feels so good. If you fill the day with im going to write, read and cook, take a long walk, im going to do water coloring, all those things, i would think you dont realize how much you need a break. We are designed to be on this. If you dont over stimulate, i think we are living in such a state of overstimulation all the time, we forgot what it feels like to not have it its so nourishing and rejuvenating all the things i mentioned that i think i would just offer to any one who says to just try. Think about all the things you want to think, i hope, i watched a documentary about the spanish flu, my favorite part was the journal entries of people during that period and it was an opportunity to write about how we are feeling right now and what we are thinking about and its really important to create space for that. Look at your calendar for four weeks, we got a lot of time but it is about the repetition of the ritual so some people say a call on vacation and turn off my phone for a week or couple of days and thats great but the power of unplugging one day a week, its really about the ritual every week, its a full reset. Anyone practiced shabbat, around the globe, how would it be different if everyth