The Magical Land of Blackberry
There's always the off button, folks
I see that airlines are beginning to test in-flight Internet services.
An executive from GoDaddy.com was quoted as saying he welcomes business trips as "an opportunity to decompress a little bit from the constant flow of e-mail, perhaps catch up on a book."
Well, I have some revelatory information for this executive and other very important business people who probably feel the need to check their e-mail even while they are sleeping.
This may come as a big shock, but cellphones, Blackberrys, laptops, PDAs and hand-held video game systems have off buttons!
Please consult your user's manuals to find out where they are and to learn how to use them. - Dwayne Written, Phoenix
In other words...you are a bunch of self-important jerks.... Thanks Dwayne.
But wait. Aren't these devices intended to be Always On as productivity tools? My Blackberry has made me more efficient. It is not like I am sending texts like, hey jack, where r u? want to go 2 the mall? Time management is critical at an 1800 person organization like GoDaddy.com. With 12 million Blackberry subscribers out there, I know I am not alone. You can read about their recent earnings in Business Week.
Can smartphones be abused? Of course they can. I support the ban on texting while driving that recently went in to effect in Phoenix, AZ. Would I like to mandate some set of standards for ringtone choices. You bet. A lot of people make terrible choices on the ringtone front. Anything by gangsta rappers should be banned.
The trick is simply to use smartphones at the right time. Not as a replacement for human interactions. Only as a replacement for interactions with some humans. So back to the beginning of this story and the title of this article. I'm in the Orlando, Florida area for the space shuttle Atlantis launch which does not occur. So we head to Disney's Animal Kingdom and enjoy the park and rides. Later that night at dinner my family begins to discuss the excitement that ensued when a women fainted in line at the Animal Kingdom. The emergency responders came and helped here. Something about blood sugar. It was the first I had heard of this incident. Where was I, I asked? My eldest son Noah's response--In the Magical Land of Blackberry!
I still have a long road ahead of me.....On a related note, GoDaddy recently partnered with RIM to integrate the Blackberry Internet Service with GoDaddy's email services. There was much rejoicing!
Here is a question, would you have been able to take that time off without having constant communication? I bet you would have stayed at work through at least a few of those vacations without it.
I think this constant contact is wonderful. Yes it means that work intrudes on personal time. But it at leasts lets you get out, take vacations and get unchained from the desk more often. And they also let personal time intrude on work time. How many text messages have you gotten from the wife and kids while at work letting you know what is going on.
There are clear times for work, clear times for not work. But for most people there are not that many hours per day that are that clearly dedicated to either work or not work. There is a lot of gray time in between that is a mix of both now with constant communication. Finding the balance in the gray area is where everyone is struggling. And of course it is going to be different for each person. You just have to find what works best for you, and your family, and friends, and co workers.
What we really need is a common agreement on when to use the various communication options. For instance please don't call me about something that I can deal with next week. But also please don't email me about something that has to happen today, etc. If we can get that sorted out then we can work on an acceptable set of ringtones. Or even better when to use the vibrate mode.
Reply to this
I agree with you. Right time and place for everything. And having the Blackberry has enabled me to do things without being tethered to the office or desktop.
Reply to this
While not strictly related to "Crackberry" addiction, I've recently started trying a new routine to help fight that "email addiction" syndrome that can really sap productivity...
I call it the "9-1-4 club" and it's very simple -- I will only read email at 9am, 1pm, and 4pm.
I haven't been able to stick to it 100%, but I'm pretty close. It helps keep me from getting distracted while working on something that I should be doing instead.
Depending on your office culture, your co-workers and supervisor(s) may not like the 3-4 hour delay in email responses, but generally 9-1-4 works pretty well. You can explain what you're doing to them and they usually understand. Besides, if something is really important most offices have other communications channels -- phone, instant message, etc.
Reply to this
I think that is a great strategy and one that many should adopt in order to be most productive. As you point out, if it is urgent there are cellphones and instant messaging. I must admit that for a period of time I turned off my corporate IM as the deluge of messages became somewhat unmanageable. It is really important for people to understand when and how to use these communications channels. And I freely admit that I have been an offender at times.
Thanks for sharing 9-1-4 with us.
Warren
Reply to this