Tech-Life Balance: Perception Vs. Reality

TECH-LIFE BALANCE: PERCEPTION VS. REALITY Despite three in four Americans believing that they maintain a healthy tech-life balance, a majority of Americans cannot endure more than two hours without checking their electronic devices. Additionally, one in five would sooner go to dinner with an ex significant other than separate from technology for a month. WOMEN MEN MILLENNIALS ARE SKEPTICAL OF TECH'S ROLE IN SOCIETY GO TO GREAT LENGTHS TO STAY CONNECTED CONSUME THE MOST TECH BUT WANT TO DISCONNECT 54% said tech helps keep their families connected throughout the day 34% of men said tech keeps their families together 86% of millennials have a laptop or a smartphone More than a third said tech has been 62% of women think technology will make people lose the art of verbal conversation in the long term 12% of men have lied about the amount the cause of an argument with a significant other of time they spent on their mobile device 25% schedule “disconnected time" or "downtime" and shut devices off 36% of men said laptops/ mobile devices have a positive impact on family 36% said tech keeps their families closer together 39% of women think people will have worse posture from looking down at their phones 84% of men admitted to having checked a mobile device while driving, in a movie theater, at a funeral or during a child's play 31% said they wish they could go back to a time where people were not constantly connected IT IS EASY FOR US TO GET SWEPT UP INTO THE 24/7 TO A BETTER TECH-LIFE BALANCE MARY LOVERDE FEAR OF MISSING OUT SYNDROME. HERE ARE SIX WAYS SIX WAYS TO HELP YOU ACHIEVE A BETTER TECH-LIFE BALANCE. 1. Establish personal tech-life balance policies. Take a look at what you value and set some policies to help you stay connected to what's most important. 2. Create new habits. Just like our other cravings we can change our habits to lessen the urge to get a hit. 3. Maximize your device's efficiency with adequate memory. Waiting for downloads is a frustrating time-waster and can be avoided by simply upgrading with more memory. 4. Pick sleep over technology. That last 30 minutes at night of Instagram, e-mail, or LinkedIn cannot compete with the benefit of a half hour more sleep each night. 5. Look UP. Seriously, every once and a while just look up and see what is going on in the REAL world that is right in front of you. 6. Stop taking yourself so seriously. We need to understand that when we let go of some of our technology, other ideas will come into clearer focus. • Research findings are based on a survey fielded in the US between October 31 and November 4, 2014 which asked 1,000 adults aged 18-65 about their use of technology and its impact on their personal and professional lives. For additional information about the survey, Crucial, or computer memory upgrades visit Crucial.com. • Life balance expert, Mary LoVerde, author of Stop Screaming at the Microwave and I Used to Have a Handle on Life But It Broke. http://www.maryloverde.com crucial .com by icron