Put the Human back in Humanity
We all know that creative endeavors come from an intuitive source. As children we are open to all the stimuli around us. We simply take the information in that we experience and use it to create our world. But as we grow older we are influenced by parents, teachers and “molders” who begin to readjust our viewpoints by explaining what one should or shouldn’t do – what doesn’t fit into their “normal.”
This reduces the inherent knowledge that we are born with under the headline of education. The world is shown as good or bad, right or wrong – experimentation is limited and the child is manipulated into a carbon copy of the norm. As we age the cage gets smaller and the priorities of our parents and teachers become our blueprint. We are no longer ourselves.
So we play the roles we have learned from our education and lose the flexibility and enthusiasm we had as children. By the time we have a job, join the firm, have a family and take on responsibilities, we have little time left to experiment. We must function.
Functioning becomes our routine and we call it life. The freedom we once had is gone, replaced by daily activities and roles we must play to keep the routine continuous. With the addition of the digital age, more and more time is invested in the internet and technology leaving experimentation and face-to-face connection behind us. Social media lies to us – the 1000+ friends we have on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram are merely instantaneous comments that are forgotten as soon as the next mail arrives on our smart phone. We are alone and not aware of it.
In China the subways are filled with people on their phones, I-pads and entertainment systems. No matter the age, it is rare to find a person without their mobile telephone in their hand. They arrive at a station and without eye contact they let their phone lead them to their job. No eye contact – no conversation. Humanity is lost in technology.
This is happening all over the world.
Nevertheless these employees arrive at their firm, pump up the computer and continue on into a virtual world. There is no time for self-reflection and empathy. The boss delegates vertically from the top down – everyone must function according to the norm. The deals are made, the instructions are followed and everyone reverses the process of turning off the computer and returning to the subway. Another day gone.
No one has taught us how to balance technology and humanity.
Think less – feel more.
