When we fidget with our gadgets in the presence of others, we are essentially saying “your presence, time, and the attention I am devoting to both are less important than what is happening on my phone.” I am now seeing it as an extension of the axiom that to arrive late to a meeting is to say that your time is more valuable than the other person’s—spending time on your phone while meeting with others is like standing in the doorway most of the time.
Once I had made the decision to give up the iPhone, my next task was to choose a suitable dumbphone. It seemed easy enough: sell the iPhone on eBay to the considerable market of domestic and international buyers who will pay $500+ for an unlocked/jailbroken phone to use on any network, choose a new AT&T phone that was cheap-to-free, and pocket the difference. Unfortunately, I fully thought out my remainder of the service carrier’s subsidy.
When I got my first iPhone (also my first smartphone) in December of 2007, I texted my brother who had sprung for one a few months earlier when they first became available. His response was “Welcome to life after iPhone.” Was he ever right.
Although this whole tech-life downgrade/simplification concept has been brewing for a few months, I’ve really only been practicing it for about a week when I started this blog and came up with some ground rules for myself. I’ve got to say, I have been pleasantly surprised with how immediately and extensively the changes have sunken in to all aspects of my awareness, continuity of thoughts, and just overall feeling. It’s really quite astonishing.
For me to start changing my behavior and many habits regarding the internet and—until I replace it—my smartphone, I needed to lay down some initial ground rules for myself. These parameters are a daily work in progress, but have shaped up as follows in daily practice.
After sharing this blog and first entry with friends, I got a positive response, but also skepticism as to whether or not I was on the right path. A few friends pointed to the blog or iPad ideas as antithetical. Fair points.
Smart phones are everywhere. In meetings, they are placed on the table like revolvers in a saloon. After meetings, people stare into them like crystal balls. They are a futuristic Swiss Army Knife of adaptable goodness: music player, camera, calculator, day planner, and on and on. What a couple of years ago were a luxury have become—at least among my friends and colleagues—a must-have possession, much like a car or computer or refrigerator. Constant use is not only accepted. It is expected.
