Totally connected ...but are we in touch?

By Ed Drozda, MBA

See all Articles by Ed DrozdaSee Ed Drozda's Expert PageGet Updates on Work Life BalanceGet Updates on Ed Drozda

Did you  know that:
· Cell Phone usage in the US has increased from 34 million to 203 million in the last ten years
· A 2004 MIT survey said that cell phones were ranked as the one invention that people hate the most, but can’t live without. It beat out the alarm clock and the television!
· A 2005 University of Michigan study said that 83% said cell phones made life easier (choosing it over the internet).

And this is only the tip of the iceberg. Here’s a few more stats to consider:

· Blogosphere stats
o 346,000,000 – number of people globally who read blogs (March 2008)
o 900,000 – average number of blog posts in a 24 hour period (2008)

· Mobile e-mail stats: a survey of business people revealed that
o 79% checked e-mail in the bathroom
o 77% while driving
o 11% while engaged in intimate behavior
o 94% during work nights or weekends
o 96% while on vacation

· Twitter© stats
o 1,111,991,000 – number of Tweets to date (2008)
o 3,000,000 – number of Tweets/day(March 2008)

The list goes on but there is no question we have many means to connect and the number is growing daily. Just take a look at your inbox for all the new offerings.

The Way We Were
How many of us remember party lines and rotary dial phones. How about peaceful evenings and Sunday afternoons without the incessant ringing of phones and telemarketers hidden behind predictive dialers hopping to pitch things we don’t want or need?

To anyone born after 1978 it would be hard to imagine connecting in the primordial world that I was born into. Prior to the computer, the Internet and cell phone, we were getting along just fine. We relied upon face to face communication because it was the most reliable means and if that wasn’t enough we wrote a letter and eagerly awaited the response by ‘snail mail’.

They say life was simpler then, the pace far slower and yet, in hindsight I don’t recall that we were any worse off than we are today. In fact I am beginning to think something is missing today.

The Price of Connectivity
The ability to be immediately and constantly connected supports the concept of immediate gratification and it carries a price. The human body benefits from down-time; an opportunity to refresh the batteries as it were. With the host of connectivity options literally flashing before us, it’s a wonder that we have time anymore for replenishing ourselves. I mean come on, 79% of surveyed business people report that they check their e-mail in the bathroom? Whatever happened to bringing along some light reading or maybe a little time for some introspection? Have we relinquished the need for rest and relaxation?

Is it possible we have grown so dependent upon these tools that we are dismissing the need for human contact? Surely the time available for human contact has been reduced as we spend more and more time playing with our electronic toys, even long after the workday is done. Are we beginning to lose touch?

Where Do We Go From Here?
We live in an era where technology can readily supply whatever we fancy. We’re asking for more ways to connect and we’re getting new ones, almost daily. If the past is any indication, we are rapidly moving towards a time when the need for human contact will be rendered a choice rather than a necessity.

It then is left to each of us to decide where we fit in and just what we will do with (or without) technology. Are you happy with the amount of time you spend “in touch”? Do you miss the simplicity of a quiet walk on the beach or in the forest?

Do you fancy yourself a follower or a leader and though this may bring Twitter© to mind I am thinking otherwise. The deluge of devices and connections will continue to chip away at our solitude and will shape the way that we live forever more. Technology is designed to serve us and yet we may become enslaved by it. You have a choice to make. What will it be?