Brain = Fried. Culprit; My Phone

I was in our ‘Town Hall’ at work before the break when a colleague and friend rushed over to share something, to spring up a conversation, to connect. I’m mortified because my first utterance was ‘Sorry mate I was just talking to a robot about my holiday’. We had a laugh about it but our conversation was much shorter than it might have been.

I had a lot on my plate and during my lunch break, and I was plugged into my headphones asking ChatGPT to plan out my Dad’s trip to Australia so that I didn’t have to type out every line item, check dates against the calendar and all the rest of it. Pretty revolutionary when we think about it (the advancement of technology and how much we can optimise every minute), but the interaction with my mate was definitely a sign of the times.

I get out of bed and lose 10 minutes because my muscle memory dictates that I reach for my phone to keenly confirm that the world didn’t implode during the 6 and a half hours that I slept. In those 10 minutes, I could have got my kit on, pumped up my tyres, and gotten out the door for a group ride. It’s OK, because I’m riding on my own and I’ll just have be rapid getting ready for work post-ride. I get on the ferry as part of my commute. On a good day I flick on a valuable podcast, and on a bad day I binge short-form content, read alarmist headlines and forget to do things like tell my Mum I love her, or look up at the most beautiful city in the world. Plugged in for 50 minutes from door to door.

My office is incredibly vibrant and collaborative and I love my job. Breaks are important, though, and so are conversations with my friends & colleagues. But I can still feel myself figuratively and literally reaching for my phone; did something happen? Can I be productive? What did I miss on my to-do list? The world around me rages and I’m trying to stand up and be heard in the midst of that. Beyond my work in Social Impact, I’m trying to create long-form content that inspires people, and fires them up to do more of what matters; to ride, run, swim, move, be outside, be together, know the feeling of crossing the line for the first time. 

If someone is reading this sentence or watching one of my YouTube videos then I’ve been successful. But I need to get them there first; I need to meet people where they’re at. Short-form Apps are the where the audience is and I should stay active on there because how are people going to read my newsletter if they don’t know who I am? But more posting equals more notifications, validation, and more time spent unintentionally consuming. Then I’m blue; I could have been editing, writing, reading, training or - better still - asking my girlfriend about her day. I could have been texting my brother and my Dad to let them know I’m thinking of them.

Then comes shame, and I was in and out of this cycle in 2024. There’s an optimistic ending to this story which you can find in the next edition.

It’s never easy but we can always rise above.