By Colby Kultgen
The Slow Tech Movement, Don't Use AI to Write For You, and A Genius Tip to Be More Charismatic
Read online / Read time: 4 minutes
Today at a Glance:
• Post: A case for "slow tech"
• Study: Writing is thinking
• Tip: How to make people like you more
• Idea: Curate your inputs
• Funny: How your email finds me
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A case for tech that does less, not more
I can’t stop thinking about this Substack post I read last week:
I bought my kids an old-school phone to keep smartphones out of their hands while still letting them chat with friends. But it’s turned into the sweetest, most unexpected surprise: my son’s new daily conversations with his grandmothers.
This is how I keep finding him—stretched out on the couch, phone pressed to his ear, intently focused and listening to the matriarchs of our family. I hear laughter and sense a deeper connection blossoming in those conversations.
There’s no scrolling, no distractions, no comparisons, no dopamine hits to chase. Instead he is just listening to stories, asking questions, and having the comfort of knowing someone who loves him is listening on the other end of the line. Somehow, what was once ordinary in my childhood feels sacred today.
I’m seeing this more and more.
A shift away from hyper-connected, all-in-one devices and back toward simpler, distraction-free tools.
I've started referring to it as The Slow Tech Movement.
- Installing a rotary phone so your kids can call friends and grandparents without getting pulled into a vortex of notifications.
- Buying an old iPod because the effort of curating music and loading it manually makes the experience more fulfilling.
- Digging up film cameras because the slower pace forces you to be intentional with every shot instead of taking 100 photos you'll never look at again.
Personally, I feel like we’ve reached a tipping point.
Some of our biggest tech advances now seem to be delivering diminishing returns. Attention spans are shrinking. Emotional health, especially among young people, is in decline.
Slow tech is about recapturing the human elements we’re losing in the age of infinite convenience and constant distraction. It reminds us that sometimes the effort, the focus, and the slowness add to the experience of life rather than take away from it.
A brief article about why you shouldn't use AI to write for you
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7:34 PM • Jul 20, 2025
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As someone who writes for a living, this hit home.
I love using ChatGPT.
It helps me edit pieces that are too long.
It helps me quickly brainstorm content ideas.
It helps me break through writer's block when I feel stuck.
But I also know that it's a slippery slope.
When you start outsourcing the aspects of your work that require cognitive power, you slowly start to lose your ability to do them yourself (thinking included).
That’s why I try to treat AI like a spotter at the gym: It can help me lift more weight, but I still have to do the reps.
A genius tip for being more charismatic
It takes so little effort to make someone's day.
Seriously, the ROI on giving a genuine compliment is absolutely off the charts.
A case for curating your inputs
This tweet hit it on the head.
We've all heard the old saying: "You're the average of the five people you spend the most time with."
I think this was largely true a few decades ago, but times have changed.
We now spend more time consuming content than we do with actual people.
And most of us are consuming on autopilot.
I don't think you necessarily need to read timeless biographies and study iconic lectures. But it is a good idea to be more intentional about what you’re feeding your brain.
A few ways to do it:
1. Social media purge
Set aside 15 minutes every week to mute or unfollow anyone in your social media feeds who triggers comparison, outrage, or empty scrolling.
2. Choose creators you genuinely admire
Follow people whose work and character you’d be proud to mirror. If you wouldn’t want their habits, mindset, or outcomes in your own life, don’t let them shape yours through their content.
3. Try mediums that have more depth
Start making the shift from 10-second videos towards content and creators that go a bit deeper:
– Long form YouTube videos
– Substack articles
– Audiobooks (if you struggle to sit and read)
😂
Reply telling me what resonated most!
(I read and respond to them all)
