How much time to you spend alone in quiet?? Do you drive without the radio?? Do you take a walk or ride the bus with or without your iPod?? When your lunch companion leaves the table to use the restroom do you reach for your phone to quickly check your email or update your status with a photo of that amazing looking lunch or do you sit quietly and soak in your surroundings??
It seems that there are endless options of convenient technology that has us plugged in for business and or social reasons. Many of us seem to constantly be attached to something or other that is electronically connected and battery operated, and its filling the space that is meant to be for our personal expansion.
The original idea behind the mobile phone and the laptop was freedom. If your could answer your calls or your emails from the comfort and convenience of home, you wouldn't have to be tied to the office. You could go out and do and live. Some have figured out that balance. (Or at least their Facebook status updates lead me to believe that they have.) While others simply have been tied more tightly to their work. Work has invaded home and we are expected to be able to answer/ reply no matter what day of the week or hour of the day it is. And when it's not work, its Facebook. Oh how we love to use Facebook to fill the gaps and avoid the reality.
The Internet and mobile technology (a match made in heaven) has brought the world to our finger tips in a quick, get-to-the-point, information heavy way. Hollywood updates, breaking news from across the globe, status updates from across the room, the 140 charter tweet or something called Snap-Chat where words aren't even required.
We are a global community and we are connected like no other generation has been. But, we also seem to be more disconnected than any other generation has been.
Huge amounts of information can be shared in those 140 characters (especially when language, grammar and spelling are not made factors). Sure a picture can speak 1,000 words but when a Snap-Chat photo lasts for only 10 seconds where is the connection?? Heck we are so attached to our smartphones that there are official road rules required. You know there is a problem when one can't wait to reach a destination before checking the notifications on the tiny screen.
We are incredibly connected electronically speaking and we multi-task a plethora of different apps daily, but we seem to be neglecting the in person, emotional connection to those in the room with us, or even to ourselves.
Its become unconscious habit but our "plugging in" at every opportunity is robbing us of much needed silence. It is in that silence that we are able to be fully present with our world and see what is being shown to us. It is in that silence that we are able to hear our intuitive and emotional side speak to us. It is in that silence that we are able to feel the energy that is our being and find its much sought after balance.
Like anything, the more you practise the more skillful you become. Connecting to that feeling place and practising that connection is no different and is maybe even more important. Our emotions are what guide us through every decision. What sandwich to order, what college to attend, who to date.... Knowing how to understand what you are feeling is the way to know what you are creating in your life. Practising that connection is what builds confidence in following it and in yourself.
It feels good to unplug. We did at one time all survive without Facebook and the like or without being able to Google an answer on the spot. Don't get me wrong, I don't leave the house without my phone, I do spend my fair share of time lost in the News Feed and I have a special relationship w Siri, but I do enjoy the unplugging. More than that (and that is saying a lot because feeling good is super important), unplugging allows for space in your day. Space that is currently being eaten up status updates that are likely not shaking your world. Remember that
You can't have really awesome stuff show up in your life if you don't have room for it.
So let's put down the smartphone, step away from the laptop, turn off the radio and
unplug a little, allow the space, open up, pay attention to what is happening actually right in front of you, and make room for AWESOME to show up.
As always, here is where you get to be involved. If you enjoyed what you read, please do share this post with your friends. Leave a comment below or come on over to my Facebook page (for just a min before you unplug) and leave a comment in the thread there. Tell me what you think? Do you have any tips to share that help you to unplug from technology and plug into your Self and your world? How do you find the balance?
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