Thinking About: A Digital Sabbatical
Sort of out of nowhere, the idea of a digital sabbatical popped into my head. I'm not sure if it's mercury retrograde, being back to "normal" life, being away while on vacation or just a fluke idea. I don't even have that much time to figure things out, as I'd like to start on Wednesday August 1st.Oh irony, as I've spent a bunch of time this evening "researching" a digital sabbatical online. Susannah Conway did a digital detox, which seems more in line with my emotional goals for this time. Others work digital sabbaticals into each weekend. Some took 4 days, others, a month.Here's a list I read through that you can enjoy too:
- Hamlet's Blackberry - Also on NPR
- Rowdy Kitten's experience
- Close the Laptop at 3 New Leaves
- Susannah Conway's Digital Detox and her August Break
- Jen Louden's How To Take a Digital Sabbatical
For me, I know that it needs to be at least a week. It coincides with recalibrating my work routines and the feeling that August is here for me to reboot my life. The urge to go through things, sorting out what I want to let go and keeping what serves me... this is my jumping off point - my motivation.Why am I doing this?I just took 20+ days away from work for my wedding and honeymoon. It was glorious, but I found all the boredom / stress / anxiety entering into my actions via social media and Instagram. During vacation, I stayed off email and "off the grid" for work, but I mindlessly checked my phone. I logged onto Facebook, seeking comments and support, complain a bit on Twitter, and showed how awesome my life was via Instagram.It's addicting. And kind of pointless.I want to feel present - with my husband in this new phase of our relationship, with my dog in his new rhythms, with my body, my work schedule and my own thoughts and emotions.I want to reevaluate - how I spend my time, where I put my energy, how I use (and enjoy) my creativity.I want more creativity - in my journaling, my writing, my photography, my artI want a few more systems in place - things I can't step back and think about or set-up unless I have some timeI want more quiet in my mind's eye - computer screen at work, TV screen at home, Kindle screen for reading, iPhone screen for my phone... etc. Turn 'em off!I want more human interaction with friends and family that's deep - phone calls, letters, and hang-outsThe General PlanI can not take full time off from email / the internet for work (just got back from a 20day vacation!), but I can build in some tight boundaries.
- Actively cleaning up Facebook, Twitter, Email subscriptions, Inboxes, and LinkedIn - I'll need some type of plan and schedule for this. Unsubscribe and delete!!
- Take a full hiatus from Facebook & Twitter (personal) and check 1x per day for work
- Tighten up my Flickr and Instagram accounts
- Log onto Instagram 0 - 1x per day. Process photos but do not post to feed. (Airplane mode on phone)
- No reading internet posts / blogs - deleting (mindless) web surfing for the full duration
- Checking email 2x per day for work - 1x per day for personal (use 'out of office' replies and phone to connect)
- Clean up hard-drives, desktops and back-up all files
- Put e-books on Kindle and iPad
- I am unsure if I want to post on my blog during this time
August 1st sounds like a great starting date. August 15th is 2 weeks, and August 19th feels good too come back.