Which technology or media item has brought the most stress into your life?
A lot of people are stressed out these days. I myself live in a overpopulated city for example which is stressful in itself. But I do believe that having three emails, home, work and phone stressful. I also have a cell phone which forms part of my business technology. I surf two internet types, our servers at work and my server at home. Both can be a bombardment of information. I also have a land line at work obviously and one at home. I have a post box too. Along with this I have a lap top with 3G or wireless which I am supposed to be logged into when I am “on the road”.
Remember the days when the salesman was out? and you were told to leave a message?
Did you ever get to a point where you felt saturated by the idea of accessibility? and what steps did you take to change it? Without short cutting work and business information. Plus did it make you feel better?
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May I suggest http://mnmlist.com/ it’s a blog on minimalism. Maybe time to cut back on some of that stress.
Hmmmm, not really. I’m pretty sure it has made my life easier, if I feel overwhelmed, I turn things off or don’t answer them. The only one I can think of simply to answer the question is cars, because I hate looking for parking, but that’s not really due to cars…...maybe everyone having too many kids is what stresses me out…...I’m pretty sure we could destroy 50% of the country’s teens if we go to a mall on a Friday and Saturday night lol.
My cell phone. I’m a frequent call-screener, and it’s on silent about 95% of the time. I guess I’m just not very fond of being “available” all the time. I like my privacy.
One suggestion I’ve seen lately was to brainstorm everything in your life time, commitments,etc… as either an asset (adding to your life, helping you reach your goals) or liabilities (detracting from your life, taking you further from your goals). Then try to eliminate as many liabilities as possible. I’ve natural always done this, but there are always things that kind of sneak up on us (the why am I still doing this or that stuff…)
I don’t feel the need to be accessible to anyone. I either shut my phone off or I don’t answer it if I don’t feel like talking to someone. I do the same with my front door. I feel no obligation whatsoever to answer it.
I do, however allow myself to get stressed out by the television. I have one on at my night job, and frequently I have it in the tv guide channel. Apparently I never learn. I see lots of red carpet crap and reality tv stuff that drives me batshit even though I have the sound all the way down. I guess the fact that I look at it at all makes me accessible in a sense. It’s like I’m driven to look, the way some people are driven to look at the wreck on the side if the road.
I don’t feel particularly good about your question tag at the end about short-cutting work. I think it’s yet another indicator that we identify far too much with our work.
@Blackberry I don’t wanna die!! :O
haha I would have to say a cell phone is stressful. It helps me stay in good contact with people; but I mean DAMN! Texting me 24/7 and calling me a whole ton is just.. woah. (cough, cough MOM!)
Lol but another thing is the interweb…ugh. It provides too much information. I hate ex girlfriends who stalk my boyfriend’s Facebook >:O Damn technology!!!
@Trillian loll you made me laugh with the red carpet stuff and it’s also very “flashy” which can give you a headache. I can’t really not answer the phone if it’s a business call. However some are private numbers and are full of shit, like people you really don’t want to talk to. So you have to answer anyway in case its a client. If I go to the toilet I get “where were you????”. A few years ago when I had more clients, I had to wear a blue tooth headset all day and walk around and talk. I think that alone burned me out.
My beeper. Any time it goes off, can only mean trouble! :-)
When I was doing my residency training, I got so stressed and frustrated that I once threw it at the bathroom wall as hard as I could. Damn thing continued to work just fine, though.
My Mom. Oh – you said technology. My Mom on the phone!
Email. When I’m behind on my bills.
TV…cable/Sat TV 300 channels of brain rot and it’s getting worse! Watching my family become dependent on it they way they just sit there annoys me to no end!
The internet. It’s my favorite and my nemesis. KAHNN!
It really depends on where I go though. This question is a good reminder that I control my experience. Thanks.
@tedibear39 Agreed. I have a love/hate relationship with that site :(
I can just ignore them. My youngest child has embraced them all. I find that a bit stressful.
My cell phone. People now expect to be able to reach me at any time, and there are times when I simply want to be unavailable.
The hoover.
God, I hate that noise!
Technology? The crappy AC jack input of my laptop. It needs replacing from the motherboard. I can’t find a place to do it for less than half of what I paid for the computer. :P
My cell phone. Makes me miserable. Unlike with email, people expect a very quick response from you, and turning it off (like you would sign out of, say, live messenger) is not acceptable.
Hate it. I have to use the cheapskate excuse that I don’t have any credit left. Or the one that makes me seem disorganized: “Sorry, didn’t have any power left”.
Does anyone actually believe the people who tell you this? No, but it’s the only socially acceptable way out of being controlled by others through via mobile phone. And I haven’t even started my professional life…can’t wait! :-|
Cell phones with their fantastic ability for portability, internet accessibility, and convenience has created a world where you can’t get away from anything. Our lives and our business are so reliant on the ability to be mobile that we work no matter what time it is, no matter what day and you are expected to be “on the ready” every time that phone rings. No matter where you are, you can be tracked and although it makes you miserable you now NEED it. Your life is tied into that little device that you put in and out of your pocket all day and you leave on and charging at night. I am tenpinmaster, and I am an iphone addict!
I’m with @gemiwing. The internet has brought me more sadness and stress than anything else in my life. yet here I am!
I don’t answer the phone, so the technology that made that possible (answering machine) is a life saver. I don’t own any of the recent phones or ‘pods’ of various sorts, so I don’t worry about them. I keep the remote handy, so I can turn off the TV anytime I want.
I live a very stress free existence, and have done ever since I became a homemaker.
Cell phones. I mean, I’m still watching eighties slasher films on VHS and Betamax here, this shit is too complicated for me.
Yes, I go with cell phones. They have totally changed the face of stress. And they’re so…personal. “Hey! That’s my phone!” I miss hearing, “Hey! Would you grab that hon? I’m tied up at the moment!” It was everybody’s phone….
@TheBot You’re mistaken. Why would you feel that others have the right to control your time, or that you have to live up to the expectation of a quick response? What is this “socially acceptable” way out of being controlled by others? I never heard of such a thing. Ridiculous. This is a choice that you make. You choose to allow others access into your life and control over it. No one has any right to “expect” you to respond quickly, and you have no one to blame but yourself if you make that your lifestyle.
@Val123 I honestly wonder how long it can go on. This answer your cell phone now mentality. As you said we shared a phone. Now we answer no matter what. Plus we get to see who called, so it’s not like were were out and have no idea. I don’t know I think cell phones need to have laws put on them. I am not sure which ones though! or maybe a booklet with common sense rules. Like Do not always expect an answer. Do not use in public places, do not attach one to your head like a blankie.
@Just_Justine Good thoughts. It used to be “I tried to call but you weren’t home.” End of story. Now it’s like, “Why didn’t you answer your phone?” (ie “Why are you avoiding me?”) and hurt feelings and all of that…...
45 megabyte email attachments with Excel files using columns AA, AB all the way to AZ and on into outer space. You can actually print them if you set the zoom factor to 5% or less. I was asking for a scanning electron microscope and the financial controllers denied my request. Can you believe it?
@Trillian Ok, well to be completely honest, I do not make excuses unless there’s no way out of it. It’s not like I live with my mobile phone just because I want to live up to others’ expectations. Most of the time, I actually just reply whenever (if ever). Most of my friends have gotten used to this. But sometimes, I feel bad ignoring a message from someone who’s been nice enough to think of me. Also, as @Just_Justine and @Val123 pointed out, the technology in phones now is such that it really can hurt a relationship to ignore calls or texts from someone. There is literally no way to say you didn’t know, because all the call info is pushed to you. So no matter how aware my friends are that I’m not an instant reply type of guy, I still have to be careful not to hurt feelings, and that’s a real hassle.
@Val123 – Well, print it out 100% you can wallpaper the wall of your office.
Cell/smart phones. Specifically, drivers who can’t put them down when driving.
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