Not so long ago, certain moments seemed naturally protected from smartphone intrusion: sleeping, driving, biking, being in the water. Swimming, by its very nature, imposed a form of disconnection. The body in motion, breathing, rhythm, and the sensation of water all invited full attention and presence.
Until this video.
Filmed in an Australian swimming pool and quickly going viral, the clip shows a woman floating on her back while scrolling on her phone, as if she were lying on a sun lounger. The comments range from amused to alarmed: “Humanity is doomed,” “The world has gone mad,” or simply, “The ultimate proof of our smartphone addiction.”
Beyond the buzz, this scene and the worldwide reactions to it deserves a closer look.
Why this video is unsettling
What disturbs us is not just how incongruous the situation is. It is what it symbolizes.
The video illustrates a form of dependence that goes beyond excessive phone use. We are no longer talking about checking our screens too often, but about a growing inability to be satisfied with a single experience at a time.
We eat while looking at a screen.
We walk while checking notifications.
We listen to someone while replying to messages.
And simply swimming is no longer enough.
When attention can’t settle anymore
This type of behavior reflects a broader phenomenon: the increasing difficulty of being fully engaged in a single activity at a time. Multitasking has become the norm, even though cognitive science clearly shows that it fragments attention, increases mental fatigue, and reduces the sense of genuine satisfaction at the end of the day.
Why? Because the brain has become accustomed to constant stimulation and dopamine. Every small moment of emptiness now feels uncomfortable and boring. Scrolling acts as a fast, accessible, automatic dopamine fix, even in contexts where it is objectively useless or absurd.
This is not a matter of individual willpower; it is conditioning. Videos like this capture small moments, but the strong resonance they create shows how many people are affected by this content. This only motivates us further to continue our work at Attentive Club.
Reconnecting with what matters: the Attentive approach
At Attentive, we do not aim to demonize technology. We aim to rebalance our relationship with it.
Our approach starts with a simple idea: time freed from screens only has value if it is reinvested in activities that genuinely make us feel better – and this can actually be as simple as looking out of the window.
Focusing on one activity at a time.
Rediscovering the pleasure of sustained attention.
Transforming automatic scrolling into chosen moments: creating, moving, resting, learning, connecting with others in a real and meaningful way.
Attentive supports this shift with practical tools designed for everyday life, not to control, but to help people reconnect with what truly matters, without being constantly pulled away by screens.
Because ultimately, the real question to start better phone habits is: What truly matters to me and makes me happier than scrolling? And this doesn’t have to be a profound, life-changing answer. Looking out of the window and letting our thoughts drift by can actually be a good start.