Digital Detox; Deciding to Decline your Devices

by Startacus Admin

With the age of the smart phone, the smart TV, and the ever plugged in consumer; information and services have never been more readily available. Not that this is a bad thing, but is staying online constantly even healthy? More so, can it affect your business?

How could my always being available possibly affect my business, except in a positive way?
You’re only human; sure - you have the most up to date phone and set up, and sure - one day your business will rise up and dominate the globe, and we here at Startacus welcome our new business overlords. We do. However for now, you’re only human, as are your employees and service staff. If they’re constantly on hand, 24/7, imagine the stress and anxiety that would cause, as well as the criminal strain it would be on everyone’s personal lives and this is just from an employee’s perspective. Imagine running this anarchy? All of the time. No breaks. That is time you aren’t getting back, and time wasted that could’ve been used to work on your business, making sure that everything is perfect at the foundation levels, before working up to becoming more akin to SkyNet and destroying mankind with your legion of Terminators.

Ok, fine, but that’s really only running your business all of the time. That hardly covers everything digital that you could ever use.
It’s a safe assumption to say that most of us use some form of social network. Social networking on your phone doesn’t involve the same level of social etiquette that an actual transaction does. We dread to think of the day when our employment contracts end with “lol #yolo”. That said, social networking is always important for your business, except when it’s done in excess. Too much of a good thing is bad for business – Remember the Go Compare opera singer? He was great at first, but then...every advertisement break, there he was; him and his stupid moustache.
Employees who are obsessed with their tech can also find the rigors of a work day difficult to get through, especially if they work at a computer, with the internet...and no one to stop me from playing Candy Crush. Them! I meant them! Let’s be honest, how many of us find it difficult to work without some sort of music or background noise playing; Just one more thing that hinders productivity from day to day. There’s nothing wrong with a bit of tech helping us along through the grind, but it surely can’t be good for us to become dependent on it!

So, the cure is to what? Burn our laptops and throw our phones away?
On the contrary, those are your livelihoods, but it seems that distancing yourself from your tech for a short time can have long term benefits, like reduced stress, less distractions, better sleep and even (heaven forbid) more fun actually talking to people.
The suggested course of action – Digital Detox. A temporary removal of yourself from the tech you use so much, usually by means of going somewhere and filling your time with other pursuits. Like camping, or fishing or hiking. In fact anything that gets you away from it all, including any temptations or distractions.

How do we know this isn’t just hogwash?    
Well, one recent example, the winner of the “Escape to the Shed” competition, has said that living in the shed, (no really, she’s living in a shed) has really helped her focus, and allowed her to make all the preparations and arrangements
 to get her business idea ‘Pip & Nut’ off the ground. She now has nearly all the prep work completed; all that remains is to fund the venture.
Another example that highlights the benefits of a detox is “The Unplugged Weekend” one of ‘The Pitch 100’ businesses that is seeing more and more success as the weeks go by. The premise being, you check your phone at the door, and you don’t get it back for the weekend, instead, you spend 3 days taking part in group activities with co-workers, learning to draw, do yoga and even take part in comedy workshops. All the while, your team becomes that much less dependent on technology, and learns to function without it.  

It seems that dropping your devices for a bit is a definite plus for any business, trying to boost morale or even productivity. It’s hardly bank breaking to try it, and you never know what doors it could open to you; and if it’s not for you at all, don’t worry, it’s only for a few days!

For more information on improving your workspace and productivity by dropping some tech – Why not check out these articles?

Is The Internet Holding You Back?

99 Days of Freedom - Life Without Facebook

You can submit your ideas and businesses to our Collaboration Page, where you can receive advice, inspiration and support from fellow startups, businesses and even investors. Why not sign up and share your ideas with us today?

 

Subscribe to our newsletter

If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.

• #technology
• #digital detox
• #camping
• #the pitch 100
• #escape to the shed
• #unplugged weekend
• #freedom

Published on: 2nd September 2014