A Reso-Promise

     So today’s blog post is going to be a promise of sorts, or maybe a halfway through the semester, no where New Years, New Years resolution…well you can interpret it in whatever way you would like lol. And I have a specific reason why I want to share this not really a resolution but basically a resolution with you, which I will make clear at the end of the post. So ready for the resolution/promise?

     The resolution/promise (legit don’t know how to define it) I want to make is to stop being on my phone so much. Now you might be wondering (well those of you know me semi well lol) why would a person who is studying communication want to not be interacting with the technology that makes communication so accessible? Simple. I want to be more involved in my own life, and be more involved in the lives of the people I love. Say wha?

     Being on campus and doing some assignments involving media use, I’ve come to the conclusion that those devices that once made speaking with a relative that is so far away so feasible, is not the reason that relationships fail and the basis on which we construct our culture. Sitting in a lecture hall for 85 minutes I see students who cannot even put their phone down for 15 minutes to absorb at lease a segment of the lesson that is being taught to them because they need to constantly check what is “going on in the world” when ironically they’re missing what is going on in their own worlds! As a society we have become so engrossed in the need to be updated all the time on what we think we’re missing out on that we actually miss out on the moments that make the best memories, because they are our own moments that should be something we could look back on and we don’t, because we did not take advantage of it.

     Before this semester I felt like I could talk to say my mom or my friends in person and check my Instagram feed or respond to a text message because I could multitask and not miss anything. Well it turns out I was wrong. Now you can say that maybe it’s just me, that I lack the skills to efficiently multitask, but the fact of the matter is you miss the whole point of the face-to-face communication process when you just listen with your ears. Along with hearing what the person is saying, their body language and facial expressions are also contributing to the conversation and that has been completely missed because you were sending that “quick text,” therefore a possible memorable moment is gone.

     Okay so now the reason I’ve put this reso-promise (yes I made the word up since I still can’t decide what to call it) I want you guys to help me ensure that I stick with it. If you’re with me and see me pull out my phone just to scroll call me out on it. If you see me [failing] at multitasking because I’m consistently checking my social media accounts say something. I want you guys to call me out when you see that I slip up and that I’m not going through with my reso-promise, because I really want to follow through with this.

     When I reflect back later on in life I want to ensure that I have a plethora of amazing memories to laugh about because I know that I was able to fully live my life to the fullest, which I know will not happen if social media plays such a big part in my daily life, so it’s time for a change. And who knows maybe I’ll even become a more productive student….wellll one can always dream (;