10 Journeys of Unplugging and Disconnecting

I aimlessly browse the Internet, scanning short articles, lists and videos when I could be reading long-form journalism or books. I also visit Facebook and Twitter too often to surveil friends, acquaintances, strangers and enemies, not always in that order.

I briefly experienced the famous “fear of missing out,” a.k.a., annoyingly, FOMO.

Over a late late dinner with some friends at the end of January, I decided to take a pseudo-respite from social media. I only logged into Facebook to share my various creative content, restricted my Twitter scrolling/retweeting to only a few minutes at night, and abstained from Tumblr altogether.

It is the first hiatus that I have taken without expectation

In August 2013, I wrote a post announcing my plan to unplug. I explained that I was desperately burned out and cited two goals for my year off: to regain my physical health and work on a novel. I was a little nervous I’d be deemed a weenie.

Lots and lots of people would like a break from hyper-connected life

Tired of the social media treadmill and hoping to unplug for a couple days? Consider this fast-growing summer camp three hours outside of San Francisco, where the first ritual involves handing over your personal electronics to volunteers in white lab coats.

“I don't remember the last time I went for four days without checking a notification,”

This month I did something I've never done before: I went a full 11 days without checking my email or phone. And you'll never guess what happened. Absolutely, positively nothing. I surrendered my laptop on Friday, July 12 before heading to JFK to catch a flight to Nairobi, Kenya.

A normally overcommitted professional, untethered for the first time in, um, forever.

"I'm good at Multi-tasking", has become a modern euphemism for "Delusions have made my carelessness measurable." Last year I made the hard decision of purchasing my first smart phone. The Pros ended up out-weighting the Cons, like having something better to read while seated on the toilet other than shampoo bottle instructions.

We are the surround-sound generation with 1,000 channels.

My first attempt begins badly, even though I thought I was prepared. I had printed Sunday dinner’s recipe from Epicurious.com the day before, so there was no need for me to go online. But that Sunday afternoon, I realize I haven’t sealed a rendezvous with a friend whose e-mail address is my only form of contact

For the first time since I can remember, I experience a long, lazy Sunday

heading textWhen people shut off their tech devices and feel anxious, it’s a fear of missing something. We’ve all developed a weird psychological dependence on our smartphones.

I’m giving myself the freedom to be full engaged in whatever it is I’m doing

Rose says technology has made it more difficult to connect with people on a deeper level. She says she often feels obligated to pull out her smartphone because everyone around her is immersed in one, and she laments that sometimes dinners are interrupted by people trying to get the perfect picture to post to social media.

"The struggle to connect with others is something philosophers have written about for ages,"

Earlier this month, my wife Gail and I took a much-needed vacation. We rented a house on a lake in the mountains near Monteagle, Tennessee. We were there for two weeks. After my book launch and our daughter's wedding, we were both feeling the need to get away.

I didn’t realize how noisy my environment had become.

If having your smartphone out of sight leaves you panicky and out of sorts, you are not alone. In a new study from the University of Missouri, researchers moved smartphones away from study participants to the other side of the room.

Technology isn’t the enemy

Here's a list about using tech to carry your muse with you Portable Muse ... check it out