Wired In While on Vacation! Being connected when trying to disconnect….
The services; Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Netflix, Huluplus, etc…… The devices; Cell Phones, Tablets, Laptops, etc…. Urrrrrggggg! Haven’t we had enough? Well, maybe not.
I recently got back from a camping trip and it got me thinking about some good reasons that come from being wired in (connected via cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc.) while on vacation. I’m a firm believer that while camping or on any vacation for that matter, you should limit the amount of connectivity that you have and focus on the experience you went for. However during this trip, there were some things that showed me why some connectivity is good, and although a lot of us now take this for granted, without it we could have been in a big mess!
The first thing that came up was the need to still be connected to work! Yes the dreaded working while on vacation. Now while I don’t recommend this at all, there are times that you have to decide to stay connected to work while on vacation or you may not get a vacation. Which would you decide, take a few phone calls or just plain not go on a vacation. This is a real option some corporate employees have to consider depending on their job. The other thought is, what you would have to go back to if you don’t take a few phone calls or answer a few e-mails. It could be a mess….. I have even seen people link tablets and laptops to cell phones to get projects done, but at least they were still able to be there.
The second thing I noticed was that not only do we have the ability to update others about our trips while we’re on them by being wired in, the people that read these status updates tend to relate, like, and comment on these updates more than most other posts. The pleasure of the experience is shared with those that aren’t able to be there themselves. These updates also let us make long lasting records of the experiences without having to go through long tedious tasks of old to preserve them. If you’re even close to my age, then you remember having to wait and get your film developed, put the pictures in a scrap book (if that ever happened), and then others would only enjoy that once a year when you tortured them to see everything at once.
Last but not least, I noticed (and all parents would agree) that there are times (waiting in long lines, travel time, etc.) that being wired in can help kids pass time in a more productive way when there aren’t other things to occupy them. Again, I don’t normally recommend this, but there are times that kids need to be kept engaged, and our new always connected devices can do just that. Without them we could have children running wild, screaming and crying, mad, or at best bored out of their minds. Heck, you could have them learning something by giving them a fun educational app. Being connected could even enhance a child’s experience by them being able to look up additional information about things they see or places they go.
The biggest thing to remember about all of these, is that it should be in moderation. If you are missing your vacation because you are wired in, or stopping every five minutes to post an update, or watching your kids pay more attention to a screen then what’s around them, then you and your family are wired in way to much! An example of this is the father talking on a business call, while mom is posting about him not really paying attention to the kids that are so busy playing video games that they don’t realize that the parade they’ve been waiting all day for at Disney just went by and they all missed it. Yes, this is a real example…….
So, if you’re one of those people that shuts off all electronics, gets mad at others that don’t, or just plain don’t believe in being connected while on vacation, remember that being wired in isn’t all bad, and can even improve or enhance the experience.
Jason Thomas
J&J Computers
