We live in a world in which we are bombarded with information data from many sources, and so much around us on the tech landscape is transparent. How, then, do we keep our tech love alive? Read on.
Spoiling the Surprise?
Yes, it is wonderful that we have so many interesting and creative information technology outlets. But at times we are robbed of the magic and mystique of learning about the world with surprise and personal experience.
Facebook is a great way to keep in touch with and learn about our friends. However, it becomes tiring and redundant to be notified of posts from the same people over and over again with respect to the most mundane matters.
And sure, it is wonderful to be able read online reviews of restaurants and hotels, but then when we arrive we generally find what we were expecting based on advance notice.
Of course, online trailers for movies and television shows help us to select what to watch, but so much is shown in the trailers that we know beforehand where the movies and shows will go.
When it comes to music, we have access to so much from online outlets that we can know so many more bands and songs than ever before; but at the same time it can become rare to hear new and different musical works.
In the 1970s, the band Heart sang “Keep My Love Alive.” So, how do we keep our tech love alive?
Reach Out and Touch Someone
When it comes to social media, perhaps we should reach out to friends whose posts we do not receive on a regular basis. We could look through our friends list and simply send a message to people who we have not heard from in a long time. Better yet, we could ask to meet up with them in person. Imagine that!
The next time we go to a restaurant or a hotel, rather than finding out every little aspect of the establishment based on online reviews, one idea would be for us to obtain a recommendation from a friend without any other information. We then could show up at the restaurant or hotel and there would be an element of surprise.
The same things goes for movies and television shows. We could have a friend we trust make a suggestion and then we could watch knowing nothing more in advance. The movie or show suggested then would unfold to our unsuspecting minds.
And with music, we could have a friend turn us on to an obscure band or song without us having memorized every lyric in advance. Perhaps a friend could just grab our arm and take us to a concert without any research on our part. Who knows, perhaps Heart would be back in town?!
Long story short, technology is terrific and the knowledge we gain is quite valuable. But once in a while, just once in a while, we need to rekindle the magic of surprise in our experience of life. Some of these steps could keep our tech love alive.
Eric Sinrod (@EricSinrod on Twitter) is of counsel in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP, where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. You can read his professional biography here. To receive a weekly email link to Mr. Sinrod’s columns, please email him at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com with Subscribe in the Subject line. This column is prepared and published for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s law firm or its individual partners.