What would your life be like if you went one day without a cell phone? Do you think you could do it without experiencing withdrawal symptoms? Would the people in your life suddenly see your face in an upright position instead of only seeing the top of your head as you look at your phone while pretending to listen? Would people actually experience your smile, your facial expressions, or even hear your voice instead of receiving a text?
I facilitate a program where we take away the cell phones and then people can only use them during breaks or lunch. It is amazing to watch the reactions, the facial fatigue and the panic that ensues once the participants no longer have their phones. I saw not gentleman actually tear up as he was not sure how to handle not having his phone in his hand. By the end of the week he realized that he wasn’t as important as he thought, and that was a very good thing. Suddenly he could delegate with confidence, listen to what was happening in the room, and he could focus for the first time in years on the task and people at hand.
Technology is a great thing, when we control it and not the other way around. Unfortunately we have allowed technology to dominate and control our world instead of us controlling technology. What would happen if we took back our control and put it aside for one day, just as an experiment? Just to remember when we spoke to people and spent time with people instead of spending our time on our phones. And who knows, if we can do it for one day maybe we can do it for multiple days and watch a sunset without the urge to take a picture and post it for the world to see yet another sunset…maybe we could enjoy it simply to enjoy it. No one needs to know what you had for dinner, so put down the phone, enjoy the world you live in and the people you love without texting, or posting, or photographing every element of life…#justsaying!
Ann Art Gallery Blog 