This is a very good time for the “non-distracted.”
The curse of the current generation that I teach is
DISTRACTION. In addition to college age students, I also see it in every age
category in the outside world. Drivers texting, joggers running on city streets
with earbuds/headphones, cyclists riding with earbuds/headphones. We can’t seem
to do anything without being distracted. What ever happened to silent
contemplation?
Are we so insecure as a society that we cannot go even a few
minutes without distracting ourselves? Why not listen to the world around us?
Outside of the obvious (at least to me) danger of the above practices, I mean,
really…cycling or running without being able to hear traffic? Are you kidding
me? I guess Darwin’s theories are still being tested and in some cases proven.
I like running. I like cycling. I like listening to the world around me. I
depend upon hearing the car that is about to hit me (likely because they are
also distracted). Just remember that any encounter between a car and a person
will result in more damage to the person than to the car. Yes, as a pedestrian,
you (almost) always have the right of way… but are you willing to become a
quadriplegic to prove it? Cyclists, legally, you are supposed to follow the
same rules of the road that cars follow. That means, stopping at stop signs and
not weaving in and out of traffic. Yes, you are saving the environment and
getting exercise but please show respect for traffic instead of smug arrogance
and frequently, militant defiance.
I digress…
I lived in the era referred to as B.C. (Before
Cellphone…Before Computer)
I used to have all sorts of time before I got a cellphone
and a computer---yes I am THAT old. All kidding aside, in the B.C. era, I had
time to engage in real activities. The cellphone used to be a tool to bridge
the gap between being traveling from one landline to another---sometimes only
for emergencies. I remember when cellular phones first started to appear---they
were the size of a brick. I distinctly remember the first time I talked on one
while driving and how distracting it was. Of course, I got better at it---but
in retrospect, was that a good thing? What am I missing because I am focused on
a cellphone conversation? This type of conversation is different than a
conversation inside the car because the person on the other end of the cell
phone call cannot see what you are seeing (whereas a passenger can and will
adjust their contribution to the conversation accordingly). Anyway…what used to
be a tool has gotten more and more “smart” and is now a toy; a toy that
distracts. A toy that tethers us to everything that has suddenly become
all-important: Social Media. Apparently it is very important to know everything
your “friends” find compelling enough to post. I can go into a discussion about
how I tried Facebook, found very little positive about it and after a couple of
years, deleted my account. I could write about how I didn’t have time for
it…and I am successful. How can those of you who are not yet successful justify
the time you spend on it? I could go on about how it is egotism, narcissism and
voyeurism all rolled into one. Are you living your life or suffering through
that of your friends? Does your sense of self rely upon this? Are you
“somebody” merely because you have a presence on Social Media? Can your brain
digest both all that everyone else is posting and still have enough resources
left over to dedicate your mental and emotional energy to being the best that
you can be? Apparently not.
It’s the dumbing down to the lowest common denominator.
If you can avoid the temptation of distraction at this time
of ubiquitous distraction, you will be successful. If not, you will be just
like everybody else, and that is the goal of Social Media.
Now is the time to strike, the opportunity is there…for
those that choose to not be distracted.
Have you ever wondered how Joe Alessi, Michael Mulcahy, Gene
Pokorny, or the younger generation of Tim Higgins, Toby Oft, Steve Lange, Craig
Mulcahy, Jim Markey, Christian Ganicenco, or the even younger generation of Sam
Schlosser etc. (the list goes on and on) got so good? When they were
practicing, they were not distracted by their devices and Social Media.
Think about it.