• the journey
  • online outdoors
  • hikes & events
  • photos
  • blog
  • about me
  • contact
jason journeyman
  • the journey
  • online outdoors
  • hikes & events
  • photos
  • blog
  • about me
  • contact
jason journeyman

Notifications OFF

8/1/2014
This week, Facebook began requiring everyone to use the Messenger app to send messages from their phone, replacing the all-in-one Facebook app most had been using. A conversation about this with a friend really got me thinking...

The Messenger app has a proclivity to repeatedly encourage users to turn on app notifications. I get what they're doing, they want this app to be a replacement for the basic text message, a stand-alone means of instant communication. It's always on, notifying you of every little message, goading you to constantly look at your phone so you can giggle at the latest clever communiqué from a friend.

But is this really necessary? Do we need to be always on?

Consider this scenario: you're at dinner with a friend, phone in your pocket, having a great conversation, connecting with another human being. You are present and living in only that moment. But then your phone buzzes because of a new Facebook message. It immmeadiately interrupts your mindfulness. You wonder, "was the message important? Should I check my phone? When is a good time to check my phone? Do you think my friend will mind if I check my phone?" With that one little buzz, you are no longer present, you aren't really at that dinner, and the friend your dining with has no idea.

Mindfulness tells us to live in the moment, but when your notifications are always on you're always one buzz away from distraction.

Notifications are making us less mindful, so I've decided to turn notifications OFF for the month of August.

I encourage anyone who wants to find more mindfulness in their life to do the same.

I'll still get notifications for calls and texts, because those are used to communicate more immediate needs. But Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Gmail, and Twitter are all going silent. Nothing that anyone says through those mediums ever requires my immediate attention, yet for years I've allowed them to immediately interrupt me whenever I get an email or a like.

Make August your month of mobile mindfulness. Stop letting those notifications get to you whenever they want. You'll get to them when you get to them.

Comments
    Access Octomono Masonry Settings

    blog search


    author

    My name is Jason Wise. Life's all about the journey, man. Find me on  Instagram  and Facebook.


    archives

    May 2020
    April 2020
    April 2019
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    October 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014


    categories

    All
    About Me
    Balance
    Change
    Cosmos
    Digital World
    Hope
    Journeyman
    Love
    Mindful
    Mindful Activity
    Mindful Advocate
    Mindful Movies
    Mindful Recommendations
    Monthly Challenge
    Music
    Nature
    Nerdy
    Pics
    Poems
    Practice
    Published Elsewhere
    Quotes
    Reaction
    Relationships
    Social Media
    Urban Disconnection


    subscribe

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

     Subscribe in a RSS reader