Unplug!

Unplugging can mean a lot of things. It can mean turning off the TV, the computer, the cell phones, the video games and the ipods. That can be tough to do in this day and age. I’m certainly not advocating abandoning all the technology at our fingertips. I believe technology can be used to bring a lot of good to the world.

But, every once in a while, it really does pay to unplug. Recently I spent a week in the Smokey Mountains with my family followed by another week at the foothills of the Uinta Mountains in Oakley, UT for a spiritual workshop. Over these two weeks I didn’t work, and I spent the bare minimum of time online. My assistant checked my emails. I turned off my cell phone for most of the 2nd week and only took about 5-10 minutes each day to post some photos to Facebook so my friends and family could catch a glimpse of the beauty I was enjoying.

The rest of the time I relaxed in nature and connected with real people in the “real world” offline. When I came back to work, the perspective I gained was incredible. Suddenly I could see the virtual world for what

it was — virtual! It isn’t real. You can’t touch it, feel it, or experience it fully. Many of us get so caught up in technology that we lose our connection with others. We begin to believe that that world is all that matters. But it isn’t real!

So I have two baby-steps into unplugging:

• First take at least one day a week and unplug from work. Stay off the computer, forget the email and rest your brain a bit. No working for that one day a week.
• Second, take at least 20 minutes each day to connect with nature. Go for a walk, dig in the dirt, go for a drive and enjoy the view, etc.