The Internet is a Big Time Suck
San Diego Reader, Blog Diego
By, Bridgett Ross:
When attending a training session on Mantram Repitition conducted by Jill Borman, I heard her mention the phrase “vanishing pause time.” Essentially, “vanishing pause time” refers to the notion that with the immense time-saving benefits of technology also comes the loss of time to reflect, relax, breathe, collect oneself…pause. Often, the extra free time that technology affords us simply allows us to cram more activities into our day.
Technology also gives us more time to use technology; instead of “pausing” or fully engaging in the moment at hand, we usually turn to our phones, tablets, computers, etc. How often do you find yourself “killing time” while perusing websites or playing games on your phone? Time is so precious; in fact, it is all we have to work with on this Earth. Why do we invest any time at all trying to kill it?
If you are not sold on the notion that it is beneficial to make a point of engaging in “pause time” so that yours does not completely vanish, consider the idea that downtime actually serves a purpose. You can be productive by not being productive. One way that this happens occurs through memory consolidation, which is a critical process through which memories are sorted by the hippocampus to become permanent. It is how we learn. Memory consolidation occurs when our mind is not engaged in other activities — during rest, downtime, etc.
“Pause time” is important and it is disappearing from our lives. To keep it from completely vanishing, I suggest people engage in the following three activities from time to time: (1) unplug, (2) quit multitasking and engage mindfully in one activity, and (3) pause and do nothing but “be”.
