Your Digital World

Some time ago, I read a phrase that got me thinking:

Your relationship with technology is designed. You decide by whom.

I don’t remember where I first saw it, but I remember the feeling. It sounded simple. Almost obvious. And yet I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

If my relationship with technology is designed, how much of it have I actually designed myself?

A Slow Realization

Around that time, I started noticing things more clearly.

The steady rise in conversations about social media addiction. Moments when I’m with a friend and, almost unconsciously, their attention drifts to their phone mid-conversation. The number of mornings when I wake up and the very first thing I do is check notifications. Friends talking about buying dumb phones or installing lockboxes at home to create distance from their devices. And more recently, how naturally many of us have started relying on AI tools in our daily work and thinking.

None of this felt extreme. It felt normal. Which is exactly what made it interesting.

I work in tech. I build systems. I study AI. I understand how engagement is measured, how ranking systems are optimized, how incentives shape product decisions. I know a lot about how these things work.

And still, I began to notice new habits developing in my own behavior. Many of them not fully conscious.

Reaching for my phone without a clear reason. Opening an app “for a minute” and staying longer than intended. Trusting a confident AI response a little faster than I should.

Understanding the system did not automatically make me immune to it.

That tension did not make me cynical about technology. It made me curious.

I started reading more. Paying closer attention. Reflecting on how I move through my digital day. What I choose. What I inherit. What shapes me without me noticing.

Slowly, a bigger picture started to form.

Seeing the Pattern

As I kept reflecting, I started to see that these were not isolated habits. They were connected.

Our digital lives are not just a collection of apps. They are environments.

They are shaped by habits we repeat without thinking. By attention systems designed to keep us engaged. By business models that reward time spent and interaction. By data that quietly records what we click, pause on, and react to. And now, by AI systems that answer instantly and confidently, becoming part of how we think and work.

None of this is inherently good or bad. It is simply designed.

Platforms optimize for engagement because engagement sustains them. Feeds are ranked because ranking increases relevance and retention. AI generates answers because prediction at scale is now possible.

But design always carries incentives. And incentives shape outcomes.

The more I thought about it, the clearer it became: we are not just using tools. We are moving through a digital world that has structure, currents, and architecture.

Some parts of that world we intentionally shape. Others quietly shape us.

That realization is what led to the next step.

Your Digital World

All of that reflection eventually turned into something more tangible.

Your Digital World is a reflective, story-driven quiz designed to help you explore the different forces shaping your digital life.

It moves through six areas:

1. Habit Patterns and Unconscious Triggers.

2. Attention Drift and Engagement Loops.

3. Platform Design and how it shapes your choices.

4. Data Awareness and how your information is collected and used.

5. AI Usage and how it influences your thinking and work.

6. Intentional Design and how you can shape your own digital environment.

Each section asks simple questions. There are no right or wrong answers. You don’t see a score while you’re taking it. The goal is not evaluation. It’s awareness.

I chose to frame it as a journey through a landscape because that’s what it feels like to me. We move through this digital environment every day. It has patterns and architecture. But we rarely pause to look at it as a whole.

At the end, you receive a reflection, not a judgment. A snapshot of how you currently move through your digital world.

It also includes curated resources for each area, books, articles, and talks for anyone who wants to go deeper. The quiz is not meant to be the conclusion. It’s an entry point.

It’s meant to feel calm. Not urgent. Not moralizing. Just a structured pause.

If You’re Curious

I don’t think technology is something we need to reject or fear. I also don’t think awareness alone solves everything.

But I do think there is value in pausing.

In noticing.

In asking simple questions about how we move through the digital environments that now occupy so much of our waking hours.

Your Digital World is my attempt to create that pause. A small, structured moment to reflect on habits, attention, incentives, data, AI, and the boundaries we set, or don’t set.

If you’re curious, I’d love for you to explore it.

If it resonates, share it with someone and compare reflections. If something feels off, incomplete, or worth expanding, tell me. If it sparks disagreement, I’m just as interested in that.

This project started as a personal reflection. I’m sharing it in the hope that it might spark a few more.

After all, if our relationship with technology is designed, maybe the first step is simply deciding to look at it, so we can decide how we want to shape it.