Imagine waking up alongside a river or a lake to the sound of nature and the warmth of the sun shining down. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. No rush to get somewhere by a certain time.
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No need to juggle more than one activity at once. And absolutely no messages from a cell phone going off or your child’s eyes locked on a tablet.
“Impossible”, you say? Ahhh…it’s completely and utterly possible. Why? Because the QUALITY of your life is dependent on what you prioritize and value.
It’s incredibly easy in our culture today to think that if we disconnect from technology for a weekend, we somehow fall into a black abyss of non-existence. New research shows we check our devices well over 80 times a day because somehow our world will crumble if we miss a call, email, message or post. We depend on our mobile devices to connect us to the world, increase productivity, and make us happy. Instead, the glowing screens are doing the exact opposite. We have become less connected emotionally, less productive and less happy. There are even a multitude of books explaining that our obsessive compulsion to read text messages and check our social media statuses have turned us into Zombies who can’t communicate or look another person in the eye.
So, what can we do to get our QUALITY of life back to the positive end of the spectrum? The answer is simple – prioritize blocking tech free times into our daily lives. The execution, however, is not as simple because most us are already addicted to technology. Therefore, we must put ourselves into recovery by practicing contrast and setting doable, attainable tasks.
Contrast refers to creating an opposite experience for your body physically, mentally and emotionally than what it has been submitted to throughout the day. It can be achieved by setting doable, attainable tasks that start small and build into a larger goal. Prioritizing small doable tasks in your day leads to an increase in follow through because procrastination about the execution is lessened.
So, what does this look like in practice? If you are a person that immediately checks their phone upon waking instead set a timer for an hour after you wake up to check your device. By setting a specified time, you are creating a concrete action that can be tracked and checked off. Once you have mastered achieving that goal, you can add onto it until you can achieve tech free nights throughout the week and drumroll please…..a tech free weekend!
Don’t let the fear of dropping into the black abyss be stronger than prioritizing time away from technology. Allowing yourself to recover from technology will reverse your zombie like state and create a better QUALITY of life leading to better communication, increased productivity and happiness. Remember, we lead by example. If we allow it, our dependence on technology will negatively define our relationships with our children, significant others, family members, co-workers…and ultimately the world. Now is that the kind of life you want?
Elizabeth Sindelar-Loy is the Community Outreach Coordinator and Functional Medicine Assistant for Dr. Curtis Baird at Main Street Chiropractic in Edwardsville. She has worked in holistic health care for over 3 years. Ms. Sindelar-Loy is also the owner of Excitare Potest Etiam, a motivational company teaching people how to brand themselves on social media in order to achieve their personal and professional goals. As a single mom to an ambitious little girl, she understands the importance of practicing self care to achieve balance in personal and professional growth.
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