By: Danielle Morgan
“If I’m struggling with this at the ripe old age of 102, what are our six-year-olds experiencing?” That question from Michael Davis, cybersecurity expert and founder of MindfulBytes.io, gets to the heart of why he’s reshaping how young children think about technology.
Davis is a decorated Navy veteran and cybersecurity specialist who once built algorithms for the Pentagon. Today, his mission is different. He’s helping children—and the adults around them—develop a healthier, more conscious relationship with digital devices.
A Military Technologist Turned Mindful Educator
After 22 years in the U.S. Navy and a career working with organizations like Boeing and Los Alamos National Laboratory, Davis had what he calls a personal reckoning. He was waking up to an alarm clock on his phone, checking social media, doomscrolling, and spiraling through his day—every day.
He created MindfulBytes.io, a K–5 curriculum focused on digital self-awareness, mindfulness, and emotional regulation. It’s not about banning screens. It’s about teaching kids to notice what’s happening in their minds and bodies when they reach for more.
The Emotional Cost of One More Hour
“What are our six-year-olds experiencing when they’re getting a phone or a device handed to them from an adult in the room who also might be going through their own journey in digital addictive spaces?” Davis asked during his interview on Wandering with Reanna Ritter.
His curriculum doesn’t shame kids for wanting more screen time. Instead, it asks them to pause, breathe, and ask themselves: Why do I want this? What do I feel in my body right now?
Davis says kids often can’t name it as “loneliness” or “anxiety”—they just know something big is happening inside. “Call it Sam. Call it something. But give it a name,” he tells students.
Teaching Kids to Trust Their “Spidey Sense”
One of the most impactful exercises in his classroom is identifying what he calls the “spidey sense.” That internal signal that something feels off online—whether it’s a suspicious link, inappropriate language in a game, or a stranger’s message on social media.
“If you ask yourself, what if I just took a deep breath before I logged into anything… Am I in a good mindset?” Davis said. “That’s what we’re teaching kids to do.”
MindfulBytes doesn’t stop at the classroom door. It also addresses the habits children pick up from their parents. One fourth grader told Davis she knew the best time to ask her mom for candy: “When her mom’s on her phone, she doesn’t look up.”
From Shame to Self-Awareness
Davis’s message isn’t just for children. It’s for the parents and educators shaping their world.
He recalls a moment from his own childhood in South Carolina. A teacher, Ms. Sharon Merek, caught him dimming his academic performance to avoid making his parents feel left behind. “I see you dimming yourself,” she told him. “I’m not going to have it.” Years later, he named his cybersecurity firm, Merek Security Solutions, in her honor.
He’s applying that same philosophy to today’s kids: stop shrinking to fit in. Start paying attention to your body, your thoughts, and your needs.
Why This Work Matters—Now More Than Ever
Cyberbullying is on the rise. Digital addiction is affecting kids at younger and younger ages. And Davis believes our current approach isn’t enough.
He’s not trying to scare anyone. “Technology is both good and bad in that regard,” he said. “The only thing that’s challenging is our response to the technology that we’re using.”
His work is gaining traction. Schools across New Mexico have adopted his curriculum. In pilot programs, MindfulBytes reported a significant increase in student engagement rate and a huge drop in cyberbullying.
But for Davis, this is just the beginning.
“We’re all individuals. We all have an individual responsibility to our habits—no matter what we see in the room.”
Published by Joseph T.
