UNITED STATES—Rarely do many Americans take a digital detox, but it is something we all have to do sometimes. I recently had a vacation, and I did something I cannot recall doing in years. I went nearly 2-3 days without turning on my desktop/computer. Yeah, for those who are known to utilize a computer on a daily basis, going a day without using the computer, or even 2 to 3 days without a computer is almost foreign. However, when I say it was absolutely the best thing for my mind, I absolutely mean it America.
My computer probably hasn’t had this much rest in years. No wonder the battery doesn’t stay charged long if not plugged into a socket. Not to mention the fact that it is not running at the speed that I would like for it to run at. This might be controversial, but we are consumed by technology and the digital sphere when it comes to our daily lives. For some, it is part of daily operations when it comes to work.
For others, it is a way that we pass the time, for others, it is what they’ve always known. For those of us who grew up in the 70s, 80s and even early 90s, we know what it is like to operate without cell phones, social media, streaming and so many other new forms of technology that have come to dominate our orbits. We don’t know how to detach from the mayhem and the madness, but sometimes, every once in a while we are forced to detach because the power goes out, cell phone service is not applicable in certain regions of the country and we find new ways to pass the time.
Reading a book, cooking a dish, doing some cleaning, organizing your closet, destroying junk mail, donating clothes, watching a movie, the list goes on and on. There is more to life than a desktop computer, a laptop, a cell phone, an Apple Watch, an iPad or tablet, we allow technology to consume us, not the other way around and we become so reliant on it, it is beyond crazy.
We have this fear if we don’t check our cell phone, our email or social media that we’re going to miss something vital, something so important it will be life altering. Here is the secret America: you’re not going to miss something at all! That phone call that you think you’re going to miss, guess what: no one is calling you. That email that you think is so important: it can wait till tomorrow. The social media hoopla: it is nothing that is going to massively change your life.
What I’m getting at is when you detox from the digital universe you begin to live life a bit more. You get to take a moment and actually smell the flowers and see all the greatness out there in the world that we sometimes ignore or completely forget about because our energies are so focused on other things that do not matter or have a direct impact on our lives as we suspect people. We can go a few hours, hell a few days without being in the thick of the digital sphere and guess what: you’ll be just fine, if anything you might feel better that you did it.
Written By Jason Jones
