Remember HAL 9000, the computer from 2001: A Space Odyssey? Initially, HAL seems like our best hope for technology, helpful and courteous, taking care of all of the space crew’s needs. Soon, though, HAL loses its “mind” and begins to dominate the crew’s lives, dictating their every move. Eventually, HAL murders a crewmember and almost kills a second one.
While you’re not likely to be threatened by the various devices in your own life — unless you are unfortunate enough to have your cell phone explode or your laptop battery catch fire — you may find that technology controls your life.
Surely the advances in technology have been remarkable. With digital video recorders, we can stop a championship football game easier than a holding penalty, and go to the kitchen to grab a snack.
Technology advances have changed the world of business as well. Today even the most old-fashioned executives use email. With lightweight laptop computers and cell phones so sophisticated that they will even give directions to your next meeting, you can be “online” and “connected” 24/7/52. If Timothy Leary’s instruction to “tune in, turn on and drop out” was the ode of the 1960s, the ode for the “000s” should be “turn on, login, and stay connected.” Heaven help you if you forget your passwords.
But are you more productive and efficient now or has technology overwhelmed you? Are you stuck in a quagmire of endless spam and instant messages? Worse yet, have you become a technology addict, answering email while at your child’s holiday concert? Many business people refer to these devices as “Crackberry” for a reason.
Like everything in life, moderation is key in using and adapting to new technology. Use technology to improve your life, rather than allowing it to spin out of control. Some basics:
Limit multitasking. With all the technology we have at our disposal, it is easy to fall into the multitasking trap. How often have you been talking on the phone while checking your email? Do you find yourself with so many open “windows” on your computer desktop that you consider jumping out a real window?
Efficiency experts will tell you that multitasking is the least efficient way to work. As you switch from task to task at a feverish pace, you may feel more productive. Instead you are wasting time by restarting each task, trying to figure out where you left off and regaining your train of thought. It is more effective to tackle one task at a time, giving that task your full attention for as long as you can. If you are on the phone, turn off your computer screen unless you specifically need information that is related to the phone call. If you are in a meeting, turn off your PDA until there is a break. That’s not only effective from a time management perspective, it’s also part of the basic manners your parents taught you.
Schedule your life. Like any other task, you should schedule technology into your day. Set aside times to check your email, maybe once an hour if you don’t receive many messages, or once every fifteen minutes if you do. Your email software can probably be set to download messages at specified time intervals. This will allow you to avoid interruptions and focus on what you are doing.
Disconnect. That’s right, shut everything off, your phone, your cell phone, your email, your PDA, your television, your wireless headset and, most importantly, shut your door. Do this for at least an hour a day and concentrate on the most important tasks on your agenda. Make sure to include this time in your schedule and treat it like it’s your most important appointment. Use your computer, if you must, but only open the programs that are essential to the task at hand. You will accomplish more in this hour than you will during the entire remainder of your day.
Then make sure you disconnect at the end of the day, too. Instead of answering your cell phone or checking your email, go and live your life. Read a book, play with your kids, and talk to your spouse … in person!
Mackay’s Moral: Technology should improve your life, not become your life.
Harvey Mackay is president of Mackay Envelope Corp. and a nationally syndicated columnist.
