I’ve been away for a few days – nine in total.
I had precisely two bits of “tech” with me as I was more than happy to shed the need to connect. In reality, I could have reduced the tech to one – my iphone as it has a GPS built in and thus makes my Garmin surplus. Well not yet it doesn’t – that is not until the battery life improves and the accuracy gets locked down.
But I digress.
In the nine days we were away as a family I seriously used my tech once – and that was the GPS when we did a day of geocaching around Saundersfoot and Caldey Island.
Other than the very rare phone call or text message I checked my emails once a day at the most.
We enjoyed, as a family, getting away from the TV, from the computers, the Nintendo DS, the xbox, the … well you get the picture.
It’s good to detach, de-stress and recharge (oh look, a tech play on words).
Whilst I don’t think we need to go as far as committing Seppukoo it is important that we identify the distinction between real life and online.
Equally it’s important we take time to detach ourselves from the addiction that online life can so easily become.
Don’t get me wrong – there is great value in our online personas and one hopes that the person I meet online is the same as the one I’d meet in real life.
There is great value to be had online and great stores of knowledge to be tapped but let me ask this:
For those of you, like me, who are over 40 – how much did you rely on technology as a child?
My fear is not that we over-utilise the tech or get caught up in it (though that is a genuine concern as a parent) but it’s what being online might be doing to our creative selves.
I refuse to let my two youngest (the same for the eldest but he’s an adult now) ‘play’ with or via tech all the time. I make them ((horrid dad that I am) go outside or build something with lego or play a game with cards or … again, you get the point.
I come across so many young children these days that are listless or agitated or hyper or angry or bored or … and whilst I don’t have any facts to back it up (do you?) I do have a very strong belief that most if not all of this is caused by being too connected.
Or as I’ve seen it said – hyper-connected.
Let me ask you this:
- Are we sometimes too hyper-connected?
- Do we not spend enough time away from technology?
- Have you ever passed up opportunities in real-life due to your online activities?
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this one so please dive in and comment – especially if you are a first time commenter or vehemently disagree with me.
