I got bored in my two-hour-long class today. This comes as no surprise. However, what did come as a surprise was how I naturally responded. I was taking notes on my i-pad and decided to quickly pull up Facebook to check for notifications. Nothing. So I pull up my email and check for new messages. Nothing. So I pull up Facebook to check for notifications. I toggled between my Facebook and email three or four times before I realized what I was doing.
Yeup. I'm addicted to notifications.
I'm not even interested in Facebook feeds. I check my Facebook dozens of times every day just to see if I have a new notification. If I don't see a notification, I don't spend any more time on Facebook. Sometimes I'll try to think of an extra-clever status so that the next time I check Facebook I will have a new notification.
It's not just notifications on Facebook. I check my phone all the time, even if I haven't felt a vibration. I check my email all the time. When I feel bored, I automatically turn to social media. I am still trying to figure out why. I think it comes from an inner desire to feel connected with people. Though having someone like my status doesn't help me become best friends with that person, it still facilitates some kind of connection. Checking all the time for notifications, emails, and texts goes beyond just looking for something to do. It comes from a desire to connect.
I think the same principle applies to others. The other day, out of pure curiosity, I decided to count the number of cell phones I saw on the way to class, whether people were talking on them, texting, or simply holding their phones in their hand. During my ten minute walk to class I counted 105 cell phones. A lot of those cell phones were not being used, they were simply out. Why do people cling to their phones? Because they love feeling connected. We tend to get hooked on media that allows us to communicate and connect with others. We just need to make sure that these types of social media do not take over our lives to the extent that they actually inhibit our ability to connect with others.
On that note, comment on my blog so I can get a new email. :)
Haha here's a comment: enjoy the email! :)
ReplyDeleteI think that's way cool what you did, counting cell phones. 105!? That's nuts! But I could've easily been one of them. It leads to that way we feel "naked" when we don't have our phones on us - it's weird! And I do sort of the same thing. I'll get on my phone for something else, but without thinking, I get on the Facebook App, out of habit. So lately I've been trying to tone that down.
What's scary to me is that maybe part of why we cling to our phones is because now, we're expected to! Not too many years ago, if someone sent you an email, they could wait a few days, or at least one day for a response, and that was normal. Now, if you don't respond right away, you could out of the loop you're expected to be in! The company my husband works for gave him a phone, because he has to have a smart phone and he HAS to respond to emails right away. Or even in school, a teacher may send out an email the night before, and would expect that everyone has read it. If you didn't have a smartphone, you might not have seen the email before class, and then you're not prepared. Lame! As technology advances more and more, I worry that we won't be able to "disconnect" because we will be expected to constantly be accessible, which leaves no time to ourselves. Scary...
This is me too! When I was doing the media fast, I found myself (in the middle of homework) opening up new tabs to check facebook, my bank account, my email, news stories, etc. For me, I'm not even looking for a connection, I just want to be distracted! I also found myself looking around my desk every so often for my phone, until I would remember the fast and that it was tucked away in my backpack. It's ridiculous how much my mind loves being distracted and thinking about multiple things at a time.
ReplyDelete