How is your relationship with your phone? It’s a loaded question, but that makes it all the more important. This has been a common topic of conversation in my Communication and Technology class, especially after we were assigned to track our digital technology use over the course of 24 hours. I made the gross discovery that even when going for a hike, I used my phone to keep track of the trail, take pictures, and see how close we were getting to the destination. There I was, thinking I was out getting away from it all, but most of “it” was residing in my back pocket.
This led me to thinking, can we even find places anymore without using Google Maps? How do we know what time the bus will show up? How do we know how much money we have (or don’t have) if we can’t immediately check our balance through an app? The answer is that we’re used to having our hands held through all these apps, but people used to just keep track of their location and spending in their heads. I don’t anymore, simply because I’m enabled by a device designed in Silicon Valley and made by poorly paid people in a foreign country.
It’s everywhere and it’s spooky.
What I really want to know is if smartphones actually make our lives better or easier. It may be convenient to have full guidance to a destination, but what about the feeling of satisfaction when you find a place by yourself? And is it really that much better to listen to music than it is to hear birds chirping and the breeze in the trees? I guess that depends on the day, the person, and the surrounding environment.
Give yourself breaks and start small: go for a walk without listening to music. Watch the sunset without taking a picture. See what it’s like to ride the bus without looking at your phone or listening to it. Be in the moment where you are physically instead of where you are digitally.
As students we have enough on the go without having a buzzing, beeping attention-seeker in our pocket all the time. You deserve a break.