A client told me about an incident she experienced a few weeks ago.  She was sitting at a red light when one of her clients texted her with a question. The only problem was that she wanted an answer NOW!  This really irked my client because of the assumption that just because she carried a cell phone around she was available 24/7 to answer any questoins on the spot. It got me thinking about what we expect from technology.

There's no question technology (and I like texting by the way) can be a great tool in our lives. The problem comes when we cross over from a handy tool into a chain that holds us down and starts to control us. At home my wife and I don't have a land line. We both have cell phones and that's all we use. For the first year or so I would pretty much take calls (if I was able) from the time I got up until the time I went to bed.  If I was out I would answer and if I was home I would answer. Now I treat it very differently. I treat my cell phone as if it were a land line. If I'm home then more often I will answer but if I'm out then I usually don't. I treat it as if I was back before I had a cell phone. When I was hanging out with my friends and someone called my house they would get the answering machine. Now people get the answering maching on my cell phone just like they would have before.

Of course there are people who refuse to accept it. I had someone tell me once that if a person has a cell phone on them and doesn't answer it when it rings then it's rude.  Really?  It's rude to have personal time? It's rude to simply not be available 24/7?

If you carry a cell phone how much do you feel chained to it?  Do you feel obligated to answer every call and text?  Maybe it's time to examine why we have it and to make sure that we are able to get a break on a regular basis.