Introduction

I broke my iphone in an accident a few months ago. I decided not get another phone to see how it would affect my life. If people needed to reach me, they could call my home or office or send me an email. After just a few days, I realized that I had a lot less stress. I came to realize that much of my stress came from other people imposing their schedules on me. I would get calls from my wife asking me to pick up things from the store. This would through my schedule off and cause me stress. I would get calls from my bosses asking me questions that could have waited until I got back into the office. Students would send me multiple emails within the day because I had not responded immediately. One student complained to the school because he had sent me an email around 5 am with a question about a class that started at 8:00 am. He was upset that I did not respond prior to the start of the class. I realized people called me at all hours of the day with seemingly meaningless things or because of their lack of planning. This resulted in more tasks, wasted time, and stress for me.

The experience was eye opening. People around me hated that I did not have a phone not because they needed to reach me but because they wanted to reach at anywhere and at any time. In talking with them, it became clear that their need for instant gratification was the problem. They hated they had to wait until I made time to return their calls or emails.

Our society is changing. The lines between work and family have become blurred. Technology allows people to be connected 24/7. Social norms are also changing. What you do in your home or private time is no longer your private life but can cause you not to get a job or be fired from a job.

The question for this week:

“What do you think about these changes?”

Rubric

You will earn 2.5 points for responding to all the questions above and 2.5 points for responding to another student’s responses to the questions,.