Television: an experiment
I love TV.
I know, I know: TV is bad, evil, a waste of time, depressing, full of advertisements etc.
But, I like it.
I love watching live sports, films, documentaries, news, cartoons and other programmes.
For a while now I’ve been reading about how other people have ditched their cable and ditched their TVs in pursuit of a better and happier life. More power to you I’d think, but this is not for me. I’d persuade myself that my position was justified because I didn’t think that I watched that much TV anyway.
Who was I kidding?
And so it is that I am now catching up with those who have ditched their TVs (well sort of). I have decided to experiment with the way I watch TV.
There is no intention here to throw the baby out with the bath water. I am not getting rid of my TV. I am simply going to experiment with a “no TV day” once a week.
Finding time to read
The main reason I am experimenting with the way I watch TV is because I have another passion. That passion is reading. I love books. I love (old fashioned?) hard copy, paper books.
Finding time to read though can be difficult when you have a full time 9-5 (I wish!) job and other commitments. Something has to give and the obvious choice is TV.
So, for the next few months, I will not be watching any TV on Fridays. Instead I will be using that time to catch up on the backlog of books that I have that are waiting to be read (this will be in addition to the time I already find to read).
It’s that simple.
Subconscious rewards
In deciding to conduct this experiment I did some thinking around why I watch TV. As I said earlier the main reason is that I actually enjoy it. However, it has become a bit of a habit. If there is something good on then I am unashamed to say I’ll watch it. But, there are those times when I channel surf, when there is literally nothing on I want to watch, and yet I watch the TV anyway. This is not a good use of my time. So in addition to ‘no TV Fridays’ I’ll be mindful of this habit and hit the old ‘off’ switch and go and do something else instead.
Subconsciously I have been using TV as a ‘reward’ and I think that this stems from my childhood when watching TV was contingent on my behaviour. Even now, if I have a packed evening after work, I feel cheated if I don’t get to watch some TV before I go to bed. This is crazy and a habit that I am looking to break as part of this experiment.
Starting small
This experiment is all about seeing what happens if I don’t watch TV for one day a week. I’m starting small. Depending on how it goes I might then expand the experiment to more days per week or I might ditch the whole thing: I’ll just have to see.
Of course the other activity in my sights is being online but for now I’m sticking with this TV experiment.
I’m keeping it simple.
Afterword
I’ll write about my experience with the experiment in due course.
In the meantime however I’d love to hear about your experiences with TV: do you control how much you watch, have you ditched your TV altogether, do you have TV free evenings?
Answers on a postcard in the comments below.
I haven’t watched TV for over a decade, not from choice, but due to living in countries where it comes in a language/languages I don’t understand. In trying to live a minimalistic life, I don’t want to own a TV, nor many of the other trappings of modern life. I have Turkish carpets, some Chinese furniture and a small collection of ceramics and fabrics from around the world, that’s about it. Oh, and an old iPod, old laptop, old camera, old mobile ‘phone and old, small, battery-operated radio! In moving here a year ago, I bought a cheap kettle, toaster, hair dryer, iron and fan – all of which I will sell when I move on. I am continually experimenting with living with less. But back to the TV thing. I don’t miss it at all. I have more time for reading and writing and keeping in touch with my family and friends around the world – and going to the opera, ballet, jazz clubs, symphony concerts, art galleries, museums etc. TV sucks you in. So, yes, you like watching sport. But do a little experiment. Stop watching sport at home and only watch in, say, at sports bar, or at a friend’s place. This is what I do and it quickly sorts out what you really want to watch from what you watch just because it is right there on your TV. You could do this for all the things you like watching. If you had to make some effort in order to be able to watch it, would you still watch it?
Thanks Tessa. You raise a very interesting point about “what I really want to watch?” and I think your suggested method of experimenting with this is a good one – definitely something that I’ll try. In a way I already use this method when watching films – most of which I watch at the cinema i.e. I have to make an effort if I want to watch something. It will be interesting to try this out on other programmes such as sport and documentaries etc.
However, for now, I’m starting small and have decided to go with the ‘no TV Fridays’ – we’ll see how that experiment works first.
Steve
hi steve,
i on the other hand have my tv on, no matter what if im at home. i dont do well with silence. if i have silence im thinking of just to many things i could be, should be, want to, you get my point.
I know a number of people who use the TV or radio to provide background noise when they’re at home. Personally I really enjoy the silence, although I do understand that at first it can feel uncomfortable. Being able to sit with myself, in silence, and do nothing is a real gift. If you fancy giving it a try why not just try and sit for a minute in silence, maybe once a day. After a while you’ll find that those uncomfortable feelings and that racing mind will calm down. From there you can expand on the time you spend in silence as you wish.
Steve
My husband and I alternate watching TV nightly. One day on, one day off. This is to also catch up on our reading, read the paper and also have time to talk. We rarely watch live TV anymore as we have a PVR and we rely on our collection of British shows on DVD most of the time. Good luck with your experiment- you’re going to like it!
Thanks Jill. It’s been an interesting start. I have found myself spending more time online, which is not really the object of the exercise. The time is meant to be put aside for reading, so a little discipline is required me thinks! Love that you like British shows (being British and all) – are there any in particular that you enjoy watching? Steve