The world is a busy place.
Busy may be too subtle a term – crazy may be better. So much going on, so many issues to react to. Terrorism, politics, technology, and… the list is endless.
And I’m kinda sick of all of it.
The media industrial complex is very good at entertaining, at distracting, at accommodating and reinforcing our very comfortable biases… and yet. And yet.
Where is the most important thing? Where is the moment, the moment of true pleasure and joy? Where is the meaning?
I’m in the experience business. I design software, and part of that involves the telling of stories. Here is how this new experience would be, when the right tech is properly tuned to how people work and what they do. But at the end of the day, it’s about Getting Things Done Quicker, Faster and Better.
Which is awesome, but.. What about simply Being? Sitting on the porch and enjoying the day as it unwinds in front of you?
Or being with the ones you love? I just read a sociologist who is researching sex, and he has found that people are actually having less sex, less frequently… Even young people. One of the reasons he claims as a cause is the plugged in world we all live in. We are bringing our devices to bed with us. Instead of making love, we are binge-watching Game of Thrones on Netflix.
Sigh. Been there, done that.
Life is the sum collection of experiences, and we should be mindful that every day… the world ends. For someone. And someday, the world will end… for you.
Death is something that has been “top of mind” the past year. I lost an old friend, unexpectedly, and that loss reminded me… yeah, I’m gonna shuffle off said mortal coil someday, too.
Until then… what? How will I make that “dent in the universe” that Steve Jobs famously spoke about? And then I started realizing… I probably wouldn’t.
I’ve made an impact, to be sure – I’ve loved, and been loved. I’ve done good work… sometimes great. I’ve had people thank me for things I have done, and I’ve also been able to see a large part of the world on someone else’s dime. Not a bad gig.
I love reading the blog of James Lileks. He researches stories about people, once famous, who are now… well, not even footnotes in the most obscure history books. I’d like to think he considers what he does to be a public service, a duty to throw content into the vast Internet Machine to make sure that the past is not forgotten, that the obscure are just a little less obscure by the time things are said and done. And things WILL be said and done, someday. For all of us.
(By the way, you should totally support his blog. He works really hard at it, and it’s great stuff).
Looking at the year that has passed, and the year to come (“best laid plans…”) I am making a decision… I’m tuning out.
I’m going to do my job, see the world, enjoy my family, and try and avoid the distractions that our modern information age has provided. I am going to stop updating this blog so often, because, well… I’ll write when I want to, when inspiration hits… not to try and “increase my social profile.” I’m going to go for quality, not quantity.
I’m going to cut down on my social presence, and only share when I think it’s super cool. Life, as I noted above… is too short.
And I suggest you do the same. As I like to say (and I’m sure I’m not the first one to say it), the only real currency we have is time… use it well.
I know my words have very little influence – it’s actually freeing, when you realize you are mostly shouting into the darkness. But seriously… just… take a moment. Ask yourself, as you constantly tweet and instagram and snapchat and Facebook…
Is this what you want to do?
No?
Then what do you want to do?
Identify that, and then GO DO THAT. Stop eating Cheetos and watching shitty TV. GO DO THAT THING YOU WANT TO REALLY DO.
Write a book. Learn how to cook. Lose sixty pounds. Go to Australia.
Because (humblebrag) I did all that. And I’m not done yet. And I’m LAZY.
If I can do it, then you can too. And hurry up, because pretty soon you may not be here any more.
Scary? Absolutely. And also completely empowering, if you let it be.
So Let it Be.