A person’s most valuable asset is not his or her inventory of possessions, money, skills, or experience. It’s time. Time is irreplaceable. Without time, none of these other things would exist. Time is essential for our lives on earth. When our time is gone, we’re gone.
It’s no wonder managers, workers, and others are all reluctant to waste time. That’s why you see people working on airplanes, in waiting rooms, on subway cars, and in coffee shops. It also accounts for the success of fast-food companies, couriers, taxis, and the hundreds of businesses who offer to relieve you of repetitive, but necessary activities – from cutting your grass to walking your dog.
That’s also the reason technology advanced so quickly. Imagine being able to instantly contact someone whether they are next door or in another country. Or having any question answered in seconds. Information at your fingertips. The Internet, e-mail, artificial intelligence, social media, smartphones, iPads, eBooks, and ad infinitum. Technology allows us to do things instantly – whether meeting virtually on Zoom or sending flowers to your loved ones.
But wait. Something’s missing. Not only do we save time, and increase the number of activities we can handle, but we also have inadvertently squeezed out of our lives time to enjoy life itself as we once knew it. We have replaced being with doing.
We never used to send flowers to our loved ones. We used to deliver them in person. We never emailed a friend. We used to write a letter or pick up the phone and call them. We never used to meet on Zoom, but in person. And so on.
Who didn’t enjoy eating lunch in the park with a friend from work instead of ordering it through a car window? Or receiving a birthday card in the mail with a personal note inside and a happy face drawn on the envelope? Or being able to discuss a personal problem with your boss?
Relationships are being reduced to a quick call on Facetime or a line or two on social media. Kids spend more time with their digital devices than they spend with their parents.
We haven’t saved time over the last few decades. We have simply shifted our time to other things. Facetime versus face-to-face time. E-mail versus snail mail. Internet versus interaction. Netflix versus movie theaters. Self-interruptions versus distractions. We don’t have more time at our disposal. We simply have more ways to dispose of our time.
Life has not become more enjoyable. It has become more complicated. It’s not necessarily worse. But It’s necessarily different.
The important thing is that your life can be either what you make of it, or what you make it. I choose the latter. I make my life by “mix and match.” I choose some new stuff but retain some old stuff.
You have a choice. Follow the crowd or follow your own purpose in life. My purpose involves people over platforms, high touch over high-tech, and personal relationships over video conferencing platforms. This means I limit my use of social media, write most articles and books longhand, and meet people in person if possible. Not only are they personal preferences, but they are also healthier choices as well.
That’s my opinion, anyway.
Recent Comments