This year has been a year of change for me. A year in which I decided to really dig into my work practices as an author and publisher and discover the ‘why’ behind my daily activities. Some of the discoveries I made along the way have been surprising.
One of the light bulbs that sparked and continues to dismay me is recognising my addiction to being stroked into a false sense of importance through the gentle art of digital ego massage.
By that I mean the emails that queue in your inbox, the likes and shares (ohhh, a share!), the comments and the requests – every one of them an elixir for my bruised soul.
But what happens when I move away from looking to these things to affirm my worth on the planet? What if I unsubscribe from every program and newsletter that no longer serves a real purpose in my life and future progress? What if I quit flooding walls and feeds with every thought and moment, and instead take those thoughts to the incubator of something more significant, and decide to live those moments freely instead of capturing them?
It’s a strange transition. A move away from framing my world by how others react, to a world where I own my own responses to the seconds and minutes I have been granted.
At one time any white space in my day, a snatched few minutes waiting in line, a fifteen minute break in the flurry of my calendar – all of them would be filled with a scroll through the feed. Check email. Check messenger. Check the post on Facebook. You know what I mean.
All the while the sun is shining. Birds are singing. God is speaking.
Maybe it is time to put aside the devices, no longer bow to their incessant demands, and discover a life beyond the screen.
Maybe instead of measuring my importance by the number of new emails or messages or likes or shares or comments or whatever I could learn to slowly prise myself away from these modernities and go retro.
Actually speak to people.
Go for a walk.
Sing.
Dance.
Delight in small things.
Take a moment to be thankful.
Ponder my days and my purpose aside from the noise.
