Passion Power

I used to tell my kids that watching too much TV will make their brain turn to mush.   I wonder what parents are telling their kids these days when it comes to their devices.   Keeping kids off technology is next to impossible.   I applaud every parent who is trying to do so, especially during Covd where, a year later we are still stuck in our homes — and increasingly stuck behind our screens.   We must be flexible enough to evolve with the technology but choose how to use it right. Apple is hands down, my favourite company in the world.   It has made our lives better, easier, and more efficient and we cannot overstate how useful these devices are.   Yet for every plus there is a minus. When we spend too much time on our phone, we miss what’s happening in front of us and lose connection with our surroundings.   The average screen time in 2020 was 7 hours a day.   Technology overload is detrimental to a person’s mind. Establish some “house rules”...

I watched someone check Facebook during a business meeting the other day.  I felt so insignificant and unimportant I wanted to throw my hands up in the air.  We’re acting like a bunch of teenagers; drunk on cell phone drama convinced it’s more important than the people right in front of us.  If I’m standing with someone using their device I don’t automatically assume they`re being rude.  Something really important has to be happening on their phone.  I don’t think it’s anti-social or socially awkward or impolite.  They could be running a huge multi-national business or helping a friend off the ledge or maybe their house is on fire.  It`s lovely to remain in touch with people we don`t see but are we talking to the people who live in the same house or sleep in the same bed.  Cell phones don’t belong in the boardroom at the dinner table or in the classroom yet it`s the new normal.  I think society is moving in the wrong direction with v...

Am I the Only One? I received an email from my daughter’s Math Teacher. She was using her cell phone in class and struggling in Math. It had been going on for weeks. I appreciated the heads up. I replied, “Did you ask her to leave her phone in her locker?” I thought to myself, isn’t that what lockers are for? Why don’t we tear them all out if you can’t leave valuables in them? I question the effectiveness of a Teacher that can’t take away a cell phone from a student in class. She replied, “I don’t mind if they use their phones while doing their work.” Although I’m sure sticking ear buds in, texting and doing math problems works okay for the really bright kids, my daughter needs to pay attention in Math. Most teachers and administration have agreed that cell phones are a huge distraction. It sounds like a slippery slope and shouldn’t surprise anyone when engagement goes out the window. What I’ve learned from raising three kids is give them an inch and they’ll take ...