January 4, 2011
FACT: Your Smartphone is Ruining your Relationships
Don't shoot the messenger…that's me. I'm simply speaking the truth. Someone needs to say it. But, your Smartphone is very likely ruining your relationships. And…the relationships it's ruining are the ones with your spouse, significant other, kids and “real” friends more than anything.
Sure, your Facebook friends and Snapchat followers probably love you…but don't be surprised if your REAL relationships suffer because of that thing glued to the palm of your hand.
Don't get me wrong. I love my iPhone. I love my laptop. I'd say I love my iPad and Kindle too…but my kid's stole them from me and took over ownership. My Smartphone has helped me in more ways than I can probably count.
In many ways…mobile technology has revolutionized our lives. Think about all the things you can do with a smartphone.
Here's some things that I personally use my iPhone for on a regular basis:
There's actually quite a bit more that I personally do with my smartphone that has made life amazingly productive. Think about all the things you can do with a device that fits in the palm of your hand!! What a game changer!
On one hand…mobile has made us the most connected society in history. We're connected to our Facebook friends, our Snapchat followers, our Periscope viewers…and within seconds can be on the phone or communicating with anyone we have in our device.
However, the ADDICTION to mobile…the constant “head down, buried into your device” position that we see people in all the time is causing HUGE problems that I think we haven't even hardly seen yet. I believe that with all the benefits these devices offer us, there are huge consequences people will suffer.
Where will families be 10 years from now when parents didn't even seen their kids grow up because they were focused on their devices rather than their children at dinner time?
How will marriages be when communication has gone to virtually nothing because both people are staring into their phones rather than into each other's eyes?
Yes…mobile has connected us in a way we've never seen before.
And, it has disconnected us in a way that is shocking.
Look around. Next time you see a group of people hanging out together in a park, at dinner, at a function, or in a coffee shop…where is their attention??? Their head is in their smartphone.
You will very quickly notice how rampant the “head down and buried into their device” position people are in.
I took a vacation…and most of the time, I have my mobile phone with me. I constantly do status updates on my Social Media accounts, text people, make calls, and check Facebook. But, what's the purpose of a vacation if you spend all your time with other people rather than the ones your with?
I just wrapped a 25+ day vacation with my family with extremely limited smartphone activity. I wanted to spend the time with my KIDS and my WIFE…not with Facebook, Snapchat and Periscope.
I had to ask myself a question…and I'll ask you the same:
Is entertaining the “friends” you have on Facebook really more important than spending quality time connecting on a real level with your family, your spouse, your kids and your friends?
I've been guilty of bringing work to vacation and vacation to work. However, I really DO think that the phrase, “wherever you are, be there” is a valid one.
The people you are with, wherever you are…deserve 100% of you, don't you think?
I'm super curious to know your thought on this.
I love mobile. Love my iPhone and won't be giving it up anytime soon. But…what I really don't like about it, is how unbelievably addicting it is for so many of us. So much so, that we don't even spend time communicating with the people who are right in front of us!
Please give me your comments…
