Digital Byte 76: Get a Little Lost Finding Your Way
March 24th, 2026
I spent Friday morning playing the MTA Olympics. I timed my exit to the second, caught the Express just in time, and sprinted the transfer at Union Square.
I saved exactly two minutes , and I felt like I was winning a real-life video game. Then I stood on the sidewalk staring at a pile of trash bags, waiting for the light to turn green.
In 2026, we’ve optimized the soul out of the day. We use AI to summarize the book so we don’t have to read it. We check three apps to find the perfect bagel so we don't risk a mediocre one. We’ve removed the friction, but we’ve also killed the serendipity.
When you cut the detour, you cut the happy accident. You stop being a person experiencing a city and start being a data point moving through a grid.
Efficiency is great for survival, but it’s a death sentence for creativity.
So next month, I’m challenging myself to be intentionally inefficient. I’ll walk into a restaurant I haven’t Googled. Try the risky bagel. Take a notebook to a park bench and sit with the messy thoughts I’m usually too occupied to hear.
The goal isn't to be productive in the traditional sense. It’s important to remember that your best ideas come from the gaps in your schedule that you usually try to fill with a scroll.
You aren't losing time. You are reclaiming your perspective. If you’re feeling stuck, maybe it’s because your path is too straight. Go get a little lost finding your way.
Stay inspired,
Sydney
