Micro-Cramming: Our Thoroughly Modern Pursuit of Meaning
So first, the bad news.
We’re living in the supposed “superficial age,” wherein social media has rendered our interactions almost meaningless. Our friends are really just “friends,” and there’s no such thing as genuine conversation when you communicate in texts, links and posts. Meanwhile, we’ve had to create a whole new vocabulary to suit lives frantic with activity and complicated by an increasingly stratified media landscape. Consider: “hyper-tasking,” “transuming,” “second-screening,” etcetera, ad nauseam.
And trust me, having just written those terms in succession, I’m tempted to propose a permanent moratorium on all consumer behavior jargon. Unfortunately, while these descriptors account for our physical actions, they don’t speak to the desired outcome of those actions.
Thus, I present, for your consideration, “Micro-cramming” — namely, the act of jamming as much substance into small periods of time or physical spaces to deliver optimal impact. Think of it as psychological, mental or physical “bang for your buck.”
It’s true, media, content, and even people (remember them?) are lobbying for our attention every waking moment. But (and this is the “good news” part) we’re actually adapting to it. We can switch gears from one thing to the next with remarkable speed. Now it’s about proving that we actually get something meaningful out of each of those contracted experiences — say, an indelible memory, a resonant quote, or a physical souvenir.
For starters, micro-cramming quite aptly describes the way we’re consuming content. It started with the ubiquitous adoption of DVR, which rendered the commercial break non-existent. But Netflix and Amazon really upped the ante by gifting us the ability to binge-watch. Certainly daylong sessions of House of Cards or Transparent are not exactly “short,” but compared to the months it usually takes to consume an entire season of a TV series, binge watching requires a fraction of the emotional investment. And consumers have bought in. 40% of respondents to the 2014 Cassandra Report survey declared binge-watching their preferred method for consuming content.
Additionally, we can access content designed for when we’re not glued to the couch. The podcast market, which has been simmering for years, boiled over last fall with the release of Serial, NPR’s “Did he do it?” real life crime series, which was downloaded an average of 1.26 million times per episode[1]. Podcasts are also an easily digestible format for getting news and comprehensive analysis of pretty much any subject that floats your boat. Now passively listening to music while commuting or walking the dog seems a little lazy when you can spend that time sleuthing (albeit, virtually) or getting briefed on current events.
But micro-cramming isn’t just about content — it also has very real implications for our health. For years, fitness enthusiasts claimed “no pain, no gain” meant sustained rigorous activity that consumed hours of one’s week. Now, “pain” is still requisite to results, but methods like High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and Tabata prescribe short bursts of physical activity in 20–25 minute increments. These tactics prove effective because it’s easier for people to push themselves to the brink of physical exhaustion when they can see a light at the end of the tunnel. So if nothing else, micro-cramming could mean less time spent waiting to use machines at the gym.
The flip side of the wellness coin is nutrition. Or really, how much of it we can get in a sitting. Naked brand juices rely on micro-cramming as a communications strategy, touting a “pound of fruit in every bottle.” Meanwhile, consumers are attempting to create the same concoctions at home, and power blender companies like Vitamix have been the beneficiaries. The Cleveland-based outfit has been around since 1921, but saw a 52% revenue explosion in 2013 alone[1]. Restaurants are getting in on the trend as well by peddling nutrient-rich concentrates. New York hotspot Brodo sells immunity-boosting bone marrow broth out of a to-go window, and LA’s Juice Served Here offers a charcoal juice mixture designed to filter out impurities[2]. Whether these elixirs are appetizing is rather beside the point.
Making an impact is as much about where we live as how we live. To wit, the tiny house movement has gone from curious novelty to social phenomenon. (Intrigued? Catch Tiny House Nation on FYI.) Aside from the financial and environmental benefits, the philosophy presumes that by living in a smaller space, one is forced to purge unnecessary clutter and live a more mindfully and meaningfully. And the pursuit of meaning is certainly the driving force behind micro-cramming.
Yet, despite this real-world evidence of a trend, there is still the niggling premise I began with: that social media—one of our primary modes of communication—only promotes superficial interaction, not meaningful expression. But a closer analysis of leading platforms suggests otherwise.
Many Millennials are abandoning Facebook for Instagram, favoring one-image statements over lengthy written posts. Twitter’s 140-character limit is a built-in editor, forcing the user to be judicious. And Snapchat relies on the assumption that the present moment is all that matters — after all your thoughts and images disappear before they can get “old.” But all were precursors to the ultimate micro-cramming social network. This.cm states plainly on its homepage that it is “a place to find and share the web’s best stories, ideas and arguments. Each user can share just 1 link a day.” Hey, if you only get one link a day, it better be good. Currently operating in a beta phase and on an invite-only basis, it has people clamoring to join its ranks. The consumer message is clear, “We’re sick of seeing your “any old thing.” We want to see your best thing.”
The truth is that, while our social landscape and the tools at our disposal have evolved, our basic human desires have not. We are wired to imbue our lives with meaning however we can. Perhaps our interactions are short and we move quickly from one thing to the next, but we still want those things to count. As micro-cramming (or #microcramming) becomes a way of life, we are finding ways to make sure they do.
[1] http://www.wsj.com/articles/serial-podcast-catches-fire-1415921853
[3] http://www.cassandradaily.com/life/drink-to-your-health/
