Friction maxxing means deliberately allowing some effort or inconvenience into experiences that technology could make easier. Writer Kathryn Jezer-Morton introduced the term in an essay for The Cut. In a KQED discussion with Jezer-Morton, examples include ordinary encounters and errands that put people in contact with the world.
For a journaling practice, the interesting question is where a little extra attention changes the experience. You might describe a place in your own words, try a drawing before searching for a reference, or sit with an unfinished thought long enough to discover what you mean.
Choose effort for a reason
Making something harder is not automatically worthwhile. Convenience and accessibility can create the time, energy or independence needed to participate at all. Dictating an entry, using navigation or relying on a delivery service can be the appropriate choice.
Start with a particular experience you want more of. If you want to notice your neighbourhood, a short familiar walk may be useful. If you are exhausted and need dinner, complicating the meal may achieve nothing you care about.
Four small experiments
Describe before you photograph
Look at a scene and write three details: a sound, a movement and a colour. Then take a photo if you want one. Later, compare the image with the description. What did the words preserve that the camera did not, and what did the image capture better?
Let a thought remain unfinished
Write “I keep coming back to…” and continue for a few sentences without searching for a polished answer. You can finish with a question. The exercise is about articulating your own view, not producing an impressive paragraph.
Draw an ordinary object
Choose a mug, a shoe or a plant. Spend a few minutes noticing its shapes. Record one detail you had overlooked. You can use our drawing prompts if choosing a subject becomes the obstacle.
Take part in a conversation without documenting it
When it is appropriate, leave your notes until afterward. Listen, ask a follow-up question, and later record what stayed with you. You do not need a transcript or a public post for a conversation to become part of your story.
A three-question reflection afterward
- What did I notice because I stayed with the experience?
- What was merely inconvenient, with no value for me?
- Would I choose this again in the same circumstances?
This is our suggested exercise, not a tested intervention. No improvement in attention, memory or mental health is guaranteed. One experiment gives you an experience to consider, not evidence of a transformed brain.
What an entry might look like
Fictional example: I walked to the bakery without listening to anything. I noticed someone practising piano above the corner shop. The traffic was irritating and I missed my podcast on the way back. I would like an occasional quiet walk, not a rule against headphones.
The mixed result is useful. It tells the writer which part of the experience they value and which part they do not. You do not have to turn a worthwhile afternoon into a daily challenge.
Keep the journal easy enough to use
Choosing effort in one activity does not require adding it everywhere. Capture the result with a short note, a sketch or a voice entry. In memoir, sketching and voice notes offer different ways to preserve what caught your attention.
If you want ideas beyond the screen, explore our screen-free activities. Choose an experience you actually want, and leave the rest available for another day.