I can do this. I can conquer this addiction. I know it’s for the best.
But my e-dealers – PC, iPad, iPhone – keep tempting me. Their beeps and buzzes whisper seductively, “check us, check us, you might have missed something really important.”
Emails. Tweets. Facebook messages. Texts. Linking In. The urge for a hit can take over rational thought. It impacts relationships, impedes concentration, limits careers, costs money.
But let’s face it, it is really fun. Who knows what’s coming next? Likely work, but maybe an online bargain or social titbit… And they make us feel needed.
With our collective attention span heading in gold-fish direction however, I believe it’s increasingly important to resist the e-urge.
Plus it’s seriously impacting our social intelligence. Out for dinner with friends? Spend the time texting those who aren’t there. At the movies? No-one will see your bright screen light.
Texting while driving is also common. Recently I have witnessed a driver giving into the e-urge on a freeway at 100kms (in the fast lane, obviously) and another on a moped. Darwin’s theory at work there.
At our recent staff love-in, the suggestion was made to disable the “new message” popups and check our emails only at set times of the day, in the interests of managing distractions. Radical!
Now, this concept is raised at every course and in every article dealing with time management, so why was it such a revelation to the Currie team?
For the consultant, it’s a fine line between being responsive to client needs and bouncing between them like a pinball. Instinctively we all know that focusing attention on one task at a time gives a better result for all, but in the technology age, considerable self-discipline is required to execute this policy.
At the end of our Currie love-in, the team committed to group rehab – that is, turning off our emails for short periods during the day so we can concentrate on specific job tasks.
iThink iCan.
The post Conquering the e-urge appeared first on Currie.