Many of us have a love/hate relationship with technology. We love the power and possibilities it provides us. We love the flexibility it allows us for work, social plans, connecting with family. We love the games. We love the ease of use to do so many tasks. Let’s be real…we LOVE SOCIAL MEDIA!
But we HATE when it doesn’t work!
How can this be? How can this NOT be working? MY LIFE IS LITERALLY OVER!!!
While that may sound a little dramatic, have you ever had similar thoughts when your iPhone or computer wouldn’t re-boot? Or that time a few weeks ago when Instagram and Facebook had major outages for a majority of the day?
We thought this was a good topic for reflection and perspective. As an In Demand Woman, you are likely very reliant on technology. But we want to help you navigate life when technology doesn’t work so you don’t feel like your world is ending and have a nervous breakdown.
LET’S GAIN SOME PERSPECTIVE
If you are old enough, think back to the days before anyone had smart phones. Or, if you really want to be brave, think back before cell phones were even common! Isn’t that a scary thought? No…not really. Technology has come so far in the last 20 years. The amount of computing power that we hold in our hands, throw in our back pockets, constantly tap on cracked screens and sleep next to is really astounding. There is more computing power in those small devices than used to exist in machines that filled entire rooms!
But before we had all that computing power, we all got on just fine. We made social plans, we connected with friends and family, we were successful at work. Yes, it might be hard to imagine, but sometimes a life with less technology might be a bit less intense and anxiety-ridden.
If you do experience a moment, or a few days, when your technology isn’t playing nicely, think back to how you would have done “all the things” before you had these devices. You are innovative and creative. Enjoy the short respite from fast-paced life and just consider it to be like a flashback scene in your personal journey.
EXERCISE PATIENCE…or just EXERCISE!
When technology fails you for any length of time, it’s a great opportunity to practice your best patience strategies. What does that look like for you? Do some meditation? Practice some quiet breathing? Listen to music? Go for a run? If you can take some time to calm yourself, find your patient place, you are likely to come back to your technology refreshed, energized and ready to tackle whatever problem ensued.
REMEMBER THAT TECHNOLOGY IS JUST A TOOL
It’s very easy to get caught up in an emotional flurry when your technology doesn’t work. We have all done it. “I FUCKING HATE THIS PHONE”. “WHY DOESN’T THIS STUPID WEBSITE WORK???” In addition to exercising patience, remembering that these are just tools that have no personal connection to you (or against you!) can be helpful in navigating down-time. Yes, it is frustrating. Yes, it is inconvenient…but use this as an opportunity to say “LIFE HAPPENS FOR ME, NOT TO ME”. Take advantage of your situation to make the best of it and don’t raise your blood pressure unnecessarily. What can you do to continue manually? Is there something else you can focus on in the interim? Leverage the opportunity to make lemonade out of these lemons!
Technology is awesome and it is only getting better. As it becomes more prevalent in our lives, we have to make really conscious choices how to navigate our lives to work with the technology so it doesn’t control us. Ultimately, you are in control of your emotions and your reactions…
