Sunday, August 21, 2011

Are you on call?

The cell phone is a wonderful invention.  And now with smart phones, our world is a completely different place.  I can buy and sell stocks, check the weather or find a restaurant in seconds from my smart phone.  I can even post intimate details about my hourly activities that no one cares about.  It's awesome!

There is one downfall of our instant world.  We are always on call.  It used to be acceptable to call someone, leave a message and understand that they would call you back when they had time.  Now, if our phones rings (or beeps, or vibrates) we feel an obligation to answer it immediately regardless of the circumstances.

To really enjoy life and enjoy the people in our lives, we need to remove distractions.  For most of us, we can remove our biggest distraction by shutting off our phone.  What's more important, the possibility of a phone call or being able to repeat back the intimate details a story that your child tells you?  Or being able to look a friend directly in the eye and be fully involved in a conversation from beginning to end?

Stop being on call.  The people in front of you are that important.