Hi, all.
As I write this, I’m about to leave for a 10-day vacation camping far from civilization. No cell phones. No laptops. No internet connection. Just a chances to be away and in another world for a while. If past experience is any guide, I’ll come back refreshed, full of great ideas, and just rarin’ to go to work.
The catch? I’m writing this the day before I leave, but you’re reading it while I’m staring into a bonfire over a roasting marshmellow somewhere. And guess what? I’m not even wearing a suit. I’m probably wearing shorts and a T-shirt. And sandals. I’m even more casual than “casual Fridays!”
This is using technology for freedom. Use it so you can do work in advance yet have it maintain customer relations while you do long-term, creative, strategic, and otherwise important-but-not-urgent stuff. Send emails scheduled to go out over the next few weeks, so you keep a presence in your absence.
Some of my clients think that being productive is about bringing their Blackberry with them on vacation, so they can be constantly in touch with the office. Nonsense; that’s slavery, not productivity. Human beings need breaks. We need downtime. We need to relax. It might stimulate our creativity and help us with breakthroughs we otherwise wouldn’t have.
Have you noticed the error in my logic, yet? I’m trying to justify downtime by saying “it will be good for business.” It may. Or it may not. But there’s no need to justify downtime. Because downtime is life. There’s nothing “down” about it. It’s life-time.
So use technology to help you disconnect when you need it. Just because you’re human, and you want time doing something other than being a wage-slave.
Life is to be lived, people. Enlist technology to help.