Why Your Attention is Worth More Than You Think & Who’s Buying It

About this lecture

Our attention has become one of the world's most valuable commodities—and we're paying for it in ways we rarely notice. In this Focal Point, Imam Tom Facchine explores how the attention economy grew from a simple business model into an industry built to capture our focus, shape our habits, and keep us distracted. More importantly, he asks what all of this means for Muslims trying to live with presence, purpose, and khushoo'. This episode looks beyond social media addiction to the deeper spiritual consequences of living in an age of constant distraction. In this episode: — How the attention economy really began — Why social media and modern apps are designed to keep you scrolling — What surveillance capitalism is and why it matters — How distraction affects our worship, focus, and relationship with Allah — What Islam teaches about attention, time, and guarding the heart — Practical ways to reclaim your attention in a world competing for it 00:00 The People Who Built Our Phones Won’t Let Their Kids Use Them 01:36 Why Willpower Isn’t the Real Problem 03:15 The Birth of the Attention Economy 05:32 How Media Became Concentrated in a Few Hands 08:05 Your Phone Was Engineered to Be Irresistible 10:14 Surveillance Capitalism: What’s Really Being Sold 12:20 Technofeudalism: When Algorithms Control the Marketplace 13:15 When Surveillance Becomes a Matter of Life and Death 15:37 Addiction, Surveillance & Technofeudalism 15:52 How Algorithms Control What We Notice 16:56 What Social Media Is Doing to Our Attention 18:07 Why Islam Takes Your Time So Seriously 18:56 The Slow Descent We Don’t Notice 19:21 Why We Keep Scrolling Even When We Don’t Enjoy It 19:54 What Constant Scrolling Does to the Heart 20:43 How Social Media Can Affect Our Sincerity 21:31 We’re Losing the Ability to Pay Attention 22:12 Why We Can’t Be Alone With Allah 22:59 When Our Homes & Masjids Lose Their Sanctuary 23:52 How to Rebuild Your Attention 26:02 3 Questions to Ask Before You Scroll or Post 26:31 The Prophet ﷺ & the Power of Full Presence 26:48 Everybody Worships Something 27:18 What Are You Really Obeying? #attention #fitna #distraction Click SUBSCRIBE and hit the 🔔 icon to receive the latest updates from Yaqeen! Visit http://www.yaqeeninstitute.org for full access to all research publications, infographics, and videos. Join the conversation on UpScrolled, X, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook @yaqeeninstitute!