Technology...Not Quite All That

The twenty-first century has come with an abundance of new technologies. From personal devices, to military, to medical, people sometimes cannot fathom what life would be like without the new amenities that we have only had for a couple of years. As great as the advances in technology are, many of the negative aspects are being overlooked. Everyone is rushing to become as connected as possible by constantly checking social media sites, texting friends, and seeing the latest updates in the world. Becoming hyper connected is what people are striving for, but how often do people look at the downsides of such actions? When people are constantly paying attention to the screens at their disposal, quickly switching from task to task, we lose the depth and focus that are so crucial in our lives.

When I first started writing, I had seven different tabs open on my laptop, music playing on my iPod, and my phone was buzzing with text messages. After I realized how long it took me to write the first paragraph, I decided to disconnect myself from the internet and turn my phone off (I kept the music on because I feel like I work better with a background ambiance). Even though it may seem like it would be stressful to be out of touch, it feels liberating. I do not have to worry about what my friends are eating at restaurant X or what the score is in football game Y. And with my focus solely devoted to writing, I am writing faster and thinking more about what I am writing down. But how often do we take advantage of our ability in such a manner? It seems as though there is a never-ending screen in front of our faces that is bombarding our minds with updates. How can we expect to produce our best work if our attention is not solely devoted to our goal? When a different distraction is just a click away and can be gone in a second what does it matter? It actually takes about five to ten minutes to regain focus on a task after a person gives into a distraction according to William Powers, author of Hamlet’s BlackBerry: Building a Good Life in the Digital Age. Even though it seems like that one second check of the e-mail is not harming your work, it may actually be having a larger effect that you think. In today’s society, it would be near impossible to stay away from screens entirely, unless you go out into the deep wilderness of Montana. Many people and businesses have taken advantage of the great benefits that technology has created. Thus it is important to be able to use the various applications that our screens can do for us. And there are some jobs which are impossible to do without the assistance of computers or cell phones. But there needs to a balance between staying connected and disconnecting. Not all of the time a person spends on their screen needs to be with multiple tasks running. Right now people want to be constantly available for updates, but it causes them to miss experiences that the screens cannot replicate.

While watching a show with my family on TV, everyone was in the room, but at the same time we weren’t. Our physical bodies were occupying spaces on the couch and chair, but our minds were elsewhere. My dad was working on his laptop; my brother and I were on our cell phones texting our girlfriends; leaving my mom to be the only person really watching the show. We lose depth of experience when we are buried in the lights of our screens. Watching a video of a baby taking its first steps is extremely different than actually being there to watch and encourage the baby as it grows. When we are flitting from task to task, we are not able to take much time out to think about what we are doing. How often does a lyric in a song cause you to meditate on that thought long after the song has finished playing? Usually we just move on to the next song without giving much thought. With the busyness of today’s society, it seems as though we are losing the best experiences of our lives as we are absorbed in our screens. Although the screens are often a source of our greatest inspirations, people often do not take the time to think about the things we see or hear. Without taking this time to think about different philosophies or ideas, it is as though we are automatons simply absorbing information without knowing what it really means.

Without a doubt, technology has changed the modern world for the better, allowing progress in nearly all aspects of life. Medical procedures are safer, police and protection agencies are able to get more information quickly, and science is moving at an unprecedented rate. But for all the advantages that technology has provided, the negatives are often overlooked. People are increasingly becoming aware of the potential dangers that surround the screens we love so much. Focus and depth are two of the biggest aspects of our lives that are being affected by the surrounding screens. It is imperative that people find a way to strike a balance between connection and disconnection to lead a life of fulfillment.