Or as it would be called back home in Australia, mobile-less.
Yesterday I broke my smartphone and a replacement is a few days away (thanks Google for the free repair). Having no phone, if only for 48 hours, has really shown how reliant I have become on technology and how distracting it really is!
I’m certainly burning through work far quicker without a buzz every time I get an email and a phone call every 15 minutes. Having a remote access voicemail lets me get back to people on my terms and focus on the task at hand and being unable to e-mail while walking or sitting on a bus is forcing me to stop and think far more.
Want to know what really scares me? In my pre-smartphone days I could remember things. I’ve become so reliant on using Google Maps / GPS that I now seem incapable of remembering basic addresses, calendar / diary commitments and details. It was far easier to just type it in as I went. It is certainly a challenge not being able to call people while out, return e-mails on the fly or even know the time (I’m an anti-watch kind of guy).
It’s a struggle to keep up with e-mails but it has forced me to be efficient and stop some of the garbage conversations I was having. It’s only been two days but the only thing I have missed is the convenience. I still get my calls done. I get more work done. I find my way to every meeting. I stop and smell the roses a little more. We already know cell’s are terribly bad for your health and this experience has shown how little I really need it.
When it is all said and done I’ll be plugging my cell back in as soon as I receive it. But, next time I need to figure out my priorities flicking the cell off for a day may be the easiest way. Trust me, anything important will still have a way of finding you.
