Editor’s note: This op-ed is by Don Keelan
If I were to become the “Benevolent Dictator” my first decree would be to set aside one day a year to have all electronic gadgets unplugged. I would have pushed for a week but such a lengthy abstinence might be too harsh.
I came upon this fantasy a few weeks ago while attending a conference in New York City. My attendance, along with 500-600 other CPA’s was at the New York State’s CPA Society’s annual conference on non-profits.
As I do at all of my CPE training conferences, I sit in the back of the room. This way I am in a position to leave for a break, without being too conspicuous.
But what was disruptive, especially from my vantage point, was to see so many attendees texting, using laptops and BlackBerrys while the conference speakers were plodding through their PowerPoint presentations. As each speaker went through his or her discussion on the nuances of auditing/accounting, legal updates, fundraising and a plethora of other issues impacting nonprofits, a sea of illuminated screens were flickering within the semi-darkness of the hotel ballroom.
It is hard to believe that in such a short period, 10 years, we have allowed smartphones, BlackBerrys, iPhones, iPads, laptops and other electronic devices to take over our lives. I had also witnessed their application while walking along New York’s busy 5th Avenue, in the restaurants and on the train and escalators — it was constant.
During a lunch recess at the conference another ballroom had been set up with eight of us to a table. Those at my table were having a discussion on the topic of the complexities that NFP’s have in running their operations. We were interrupted when a diner answered her cell phone. Within a minute or so we were all listening to her lecture to a client on the importance of filing her organization’s Form 990 on a timely basis.
Reflecting on the rudeness of this young participant, recalled to mind Bruce Feiler’s piece in the December 12, 2010 issue of the New York Times. Feilers’ article, “Should you Google at Dinner?” was an excellent commentary on how far we’ve come in allowing electronic devices to invade our lives — even at the family dinner table.
The author noted that at dinner, gone are the settings when a question raised can be debated among the diners. Not anymore — someone will eventually break so the question can be answered factually by “Googling” it — either on a smartphone or laptop.
MIT professor Sherry Turkle, author of Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, was quoted on FastCompany.com, stating “What businesses need to do is remember that these technologies are precious. My book doesn’t put these technologies down. It puts these technologies in their place.”
As unfortunate as these experiences are, I believe the worst is when folks must answer job related cell phones, text or email inquiries while at home or on vacation. “My home is my castle” was once the axiom, not anymore — it is merely an off-site extension of the work place. I believe we are paying a dear price for allowing it to be this way. And the reality is, we are only 10 years or so into using the electronic devices that have since breached the ‘castle walls’.
I am well aware of the fact that as a recently transformed Luddite I’m not going to change the onslaught of the electronic invasion in our lives. We are no longer connected, face-to-face, but electronically. The comment that some wise person once said, “Facebook is no substitute for face-time” is so true but not being heard.
In the NYT Book Reivew (1/23/11), Jonah Lehrer who reviewed Alone Together, made this comment about Turkle:
“She seems most upset by the banalities of electronic interaction, as our range of expression is constrained by our gadgets and platforms. We aren’t “happy” anymore: we’re simply a semicolon followed by a parenthesis. Instead of talking on the phone, we send a text…”
Therefore, let me decree, that henceforth, we establish May 8th as “Unplug America Day”. It will be a day that all of us leave our electronic devices at home or at work. We go back to making phone calls on a landline or better yet, meet the person we wished to be connected to, especially, if it is a member of our family, a close friend or relative. We, not an electronic chip, are in charge of our lives.
