I went offline

On December 23, I decided to go "offline".

No iPhone.

No blogging.

No Twitter.

No RSS feeds.

No e-mail.

In part, this break was inspired by a tweet from a colleague, Phil McRae:

Phil's words reminded me of a thoughtful talk by Sherry Turkle where she talked about the need to moderate our "online" diet and be present with those who share our physical world.

But mostly this break was inspired by my wife and family. 

This break was a conscious decision in light of the coming holidays where I would be spending a lot of time with family. I didn't know when I would go back online, but I figured it would be sometime after my birthday (December 28). As it turns out, I didn't return "online" until December 30.

At first it was a little tough. Out of habit, I kept grabbing my phone in an effort to check something, but would then catch myself and return it to my pocket. I quickly realized I was better off if the phone wasn't even in my pocket, so I left it at home.

Here's what I learned:

I check my phone for e-mail and Twitter far too often.

The break from being online was liberating in a lot of ways and it's not something that should be reserved for a couple days in December.

Sherry Turkle Podcast

I just listened to this podcast from Harvard Business Review featuring Sherry Turkle. It's a great listen.

I particularly enjoyed how Turkle frames the use of social networking and technology less as an addiction that must be simply stopped, and more like a diet that must be monitored and regulated in appropriate moderation.

My favorite line from the whole interview was:

If you don't teach your children to be alone - they'll only know how to be lonely.

If you found this interesting, you might like to know that Sherry Turkle will be in Edmonton in May 2011. More information here.

Sherry Turkle comes to Edmonton

The Alberta Teachers' Association is pleased to announce another Real Learning First Public Dialogue. On Monday, May 30, 2011, MIT Professor Sherry Turkle will be in Edmonton, Alberta.

MIT Professor Sherry Turkle

Join this evening public lecture on technology and social interactions, and the importance of putting ‘real learning first’ in our educational settings and communities. 

Professor Sherry Turkle, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science & Technology Director, MIT Initiative on Technology and Self. She is the author of Alone Together.

Buy tickets here

Tickets $10 / person

Tables $50 / 6 persons