By Dean Marriott
What would happen if you were to die tomorrow? Would the world end? Would your work colleagues be unable to recover from your absence? Or would people simply learn to cope without you?
I don’t usually start a blog with such a sombre thought, however, I think that sometimes we need a kick to wake us up: a short, sharp reality check. Life and work can continue without you – whether it’s for an hour, a day, a week or longer. So learn to accept, embrace and enjoy this freedom from time to time.
Freedom from work and the chores of daily life has become a luxury today. Technology in our pockets mean that there is little escape. Just look around you. Whether it’s at the train station or on the train, walking in the street or by the lake, in fact where ever you go, people are looking down, obsessively checking emails, Facebook or other social media. The modern day drug called the internet has created nations of addicts with a need to be connected. But what is this inability to switch off doing to us mentally?
In a competitive world, many employees feel the need to outshine their co-workers by responding to emails at lightning speed, even outside of normal office hours. Others like to believe, or at least want others to feel, that they are indispensable, and therefore, oblige themselves to answer emails during their free time and holidays, often at the expense of time with family and friends. I know that I have been guilty of this.
Internet Use Disorder (IUD) is being studied very closely by The American Psychiatric Association who have identified this as a problem similar to other types of substance abuse, including cocaine and heroin. It has been found to create the same type of brain reactions during use and following withdrawal.
So are you an internet addict? When was the last time you went for a walk or travelled by train, without connecting to the virtual world via your mobile phone?
Earlier this year, I forgot to take my mobile phone with me when I went to work. I felt panicked and anxious when I realised. However, when I boarded the train and sat looking out of the window for the first time in a long while, I started to relax. I observed the trees, birds, houses and people, and noticed things that had previous passed me by. I felt that I had entered into a new dimension — one that actually felt quite nostalgic. I suddenly found myself looking through the eyes of my teenage self, before mobile phones were the norm and certainly before the explosion of the internet I felt a sense of peace that I hadn’t known for a long time… and I loved it. And that is when I decided to be free of 3G.
I gave notice on my mobile phone contract and purchased a pay-as-you-go SIM card. I convinced my partner to do the same. With this particular pay-as-you-go SIM card we get unlimited free calls to other mobile users on the same network. I have Wi-Fi at home and work, so getting an internet ‘fix’ is never an issue. With free Wi-Fi available in all main Swiss railway stations and most cafes, bars and restaurants, an internet connection is never far away if really needed. In addition, the pay-as-you-go SIM card does allow connection to 3G, should an urgent need arise, at very competitive rates (my provider offers a capped rate of CHF2 per day or pre-purchased 3G allowance at CHF10 per month).
Nowadays I find myself really profiting, both financially and psychologically, from my extended leisure time. Walks by the lake are relaxing again. I spend time taking-in and appreciating my surroundings as well as engaging with people, face-to-face — it’s amazing how eye contact can trigger a wonderful conversation with a stranger. My spontaneity in French has rocketed since switching off 3G!
Breaking a habit is never easy and I must admit that I didn’t find this simple at first. But now I would never go back to a mobile phone contract with 3G. I feel free again. I used to find myself saying that there just aren’t enough hours in a day. Well, I was wrong. If you challenge yourself to be free of 3G (or 4G) you will discover that there are enough hours after all.
Are you ready to face the challenge in 2016? Try it for one day. The results may surprise you.
Author's bio
Dean Marriott was born in London and educated in the UK and Germany. He retired from a career in finance, aged 33, and subsequently retrained as an actor and teacher. From an early age, his passion for languages has underpinned both his professional and social lives. In his quest for leisure activities, Dean keeps one key thought in mind: if Shakespeare’s words are true and ‘All the world's a stage’, we shouldn’t have to look far in order to be entertained. We just have to make the time to appreciate it.
If you are searching for an element of entertainment in your leisure pursuits and have a desire to look beyond the obvious, then Dean will use his artistic eye to point you in the right direction.
Dean is currently the Director of the World Language Learning Centre at GEMS World Academy-Etoy, where he promotes the idea that language learning is about embodying a new language, not simply studying it.
http://www.gemsworldacademy-etoy.com/wllc
