As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, I took a week’s vacation and learned something about breaking routines. But I did more than just vacate, I also took a two week break from blogging, tweeting, texting, face-booking, etc.
I’ve written before about the importance of taking regular weekends off from technology, as great and important as it is, to get refreshment but every once in a while you need to seriously unplug from the madness and recalibrate.
Here’s what I learned, what worked for me and what might work for you:
1. Turn the phone off, and if possible, leave it behind. With the work of the Rescue Mission being 24/7, 365 at our 6 locations, I could easily justify never turning my phone off. There’s always something going on that I’m ultimately responsible for. Are you in that boat? All the more reason to turn it off and leave it behind, even for a few hours or minutes. Cutting the umbilical cord of your phone will help speed the process of refreshment.
2. Keep reading, just read different stuff. I love consuming information, and twitter is without a doubt the best and fastest way to get your news and information updates. So i kept reading, but I changed what I was reading. I read a mystery novel, The Fleet Street Murders, which was a total change of pace for me and I greatly enjoyed it.
3. Turn off your screens for a bit. With the proliferation of screens (computer, smartphone, ipad, tv) you potentially never have to be away from the noise. Turn it off get away from everything being so instant. Instant is good, until it whips you into an anxiety-filled frenzy. What’s the latest on the Israeli-Palestianian Flotilla crisis? What’s happening with the oil spill in the gulf overnight? There’s no end to information about stuff you have no control over, yet captivate vital emotional energy.
3. Get silence. Tech breaks should be all about getting alone and getting some quiet in your life. Silence builds emotional space for you to re-charge, listen to God, listen to others, listen to what your spirit is telling you. Sometimes we just need to get some emtional space in our lives to renew.
Those are some of my ideas, what can you add to this list? Let me know.
I encourage you to take a prolonged tech break sometime this summer, you’ll be happy you did.
David Curry
