Another test you can use is: always produce. For example, if you have a day job you don't take seriously because you plan to be a novelist, are you producing?
In the last few years we have witnessed a flurry of perosnal production, mostly fueled by the digital revolution. People take pictures. People film videos. People develop non-commercial software. People write snoozers... And more.
The affordable production and distribution tools are perhaps the most important contribution of computers and networking to civilization. In the TV age people were relegated to consumption. In and of itself there is nothing wrong with being a consumer; society, however, needs a healthy balance between consumption and production. Video games, while being interactive, may develop quick thinking and problem solving skills but still don't directly facilitate creation; they are just TVs on steroids. And as disappointing as it may be to some parents, board games are not much better.
For it is creation that makes the difference, not activity, interactivity, or hyperactivity. And nowadays creation is no longer confined to the realm of governments and corporations, but is finally within the reach of billions of individuals.
Perhaps there is hope after all.
Zzzzz...
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