Saturday, March 17, 2018

Technology...and Other Time Robbers!

I work at a state university. The primary focus of my job is to assist faculty with paperwork needed to plan and establish new degree programs. I do a lot of other things, too. Today I've been reading through requests that will be taken up next week by leadership in our university system. They will be talking a great deal about STEM disciplines. What is STEM? It's an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. As our society progresses, more and more focus is placed on these areas of study. I don't have any objection to that, in general, and I believe we must focus on these things if we hope to have any leadership status in the world. I also believe we need much more to make our world a good place to live!

When I think about technological advances, I wonder whether they are meant to help us through life, or whether they are meant at times to simply distract us from it! Think of all the devices we use. Are they beneficial to enhance our life experiences and be useful, or do they only entertain us and take us away from where real life is happening?

Now, you may think I'm being very hypocritical at the moment! After all, I'm sitting at a computer writing a blog post. Sometimes - even often - I use my blog to entertain or promote crafting, which may not be viewed as a critical life function. Remember when I said we need more than STEM? My crafting is a stress-relieving activity that allows me to decompress after difficult activities, and it helps me to re-center my thoughts. When I'm focused on a craft project, I'm rarely stressed! And importantly, I have something to show for my efforts. My projects bring me joy, and they often bring joy to others, too.

Some may suggest that their electronic devices, like cell phones, tablets, gaming equipment, etc., are also stress relievers. Perhaps that is true. But when do these devices stop being stress relievers, and start being time robbers that take us away from life? For example, I love to play Candy Crush Saga. I play it all the time. I just realized today that I've played more than 1300 screens! Some I've mastered in a single pass; others have taken weeks to win. I cannot even fathom how much of my life I have spent on these useless activities. They are addictive and they are life-distracting! Really?!? What am I thinking?!?!?

There are a great number of skills that I wish to learn in life - and many others that I want to practice more. I believe it is time to turn away from silly time robbers and get on with it. I want to do more things that will bring joy to others and help them avoid time robbers, too.

My greatest hope is that you will read this post, identify worthless activities in your own life, and then figure out how to replace them with something more useful. That doesn't mean you shouldn't have fun! Of course you should. But maybe there's a better way!

Anyway, thanks for dropping by. I hope you'll come again.

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