More and more important decisions are being made through e-mails, full conversations are being composed in text messages, and families separated by large distances are staying connected by video chatting. Technology has become a new language, one we are still learning to use effectively. There have been obvious benefits to the age of connectivity, but there are also negatives to consider. This blog will take a quick look at the pros and cons of staying connected through technology.
The Pros- Being connected means increased safety. No mater what emergency you face; contacting the appropriate help is no longer a serious concern. Through increased technology, cell phone range is greater than ever. Car accidents and unforeseen accidents and illnesses even in remote locations can be quickly relayed to emergency help services.
- Staying in contact is now as easy as clicking a button. Ask any soldier deployed over seas and they’ll tell you that staying in touch with their families is now easier than ever. Sending a message takes only a second thanks to highly advanced Internet connections and international bandwidth.
- Technology lets you take your work anywhere. Thanks to the advancements in cloud computing, the definition of a workspace is now more flexible. Working from home is easy, and a practical option for anyone on sick or maternity leave.
The Cons
- Connectivity is hard to turn off. We all appreciate being in touch, but sometimes we need alone time. Being constantly available makes disconnecting extremely difficult. This negatively affects our capacity to stop and smell the roses and appreciate our surroundings.
- Always being connected encourages over-working. While telecommuting helps redefine your workspace, it also blurs the line between private and professional life. It’s important to know when to disconnect, so having your entire office available on a laptop can make that choice a difficult one.
- While connectivity can be hard to break, it can also encourage us to disconnect from those close around us. While technology has helped to make communication possible at a remote distance, it’s also made personal connections easy to ignore.
The age of connectivity has transformed the way we communicate. The key to keeping ourselves in check is remembering to interact with these new experiences with moderation. We all have to strike the balance between too little and too much connectivity.
For more information on connectivity, as well as an interesting look at unplugging yourself from technology, take a look at this article.