Episode 3: BookFace

A life without Facebook.

Is there one, I used to wonder and I did have for a few months now. Before I make a comeback to this digital fort, I thought to write about my digital social network less world.

When it was my world!!

app on my phone, the likes for photographs, friends I got to chat with, posts that I commented on, videos shared, events piled up, frens wedding and congratulation posts, vacation information, game requests, xxx wants to add your birthday in calendar.... the list goes on.. All of it was given a pause.

While my heart was heavy with emotional stress, give me a break said my brain and I took pleasure in clicking the button to "deactivate my account" in October 2012.

A journey!!

I was on a travel to two new countries on my list, Czech Republic and France. Meeting international friends is always fun. There is so much to learn about culture, monuments, art  forms, economy, cocktails, food, flowers and families. I like short travels coz you get to hear so many stories in a great package. I was also fortunate to take part in a workshop called "energy audit".

Are we conscious on how we spend our energy an entire day was the topic of this four hour workshop. A human mind is created to work in rhythmic patterns, but we believe in computers and computing. "how can I afford to lose 30 mins, I'll skip my lunch", "I can't wake up so early, will surely go gymming tomorrow", "spiritual thinking, am I that old",we have enormous excuses to not focus on the way we spend our energy. I wanted to immediately kill my addiction to digital Social network which I did, coz I felt my mind was processing too much data of which not all was necessary. So I went shopping in Prague, visited the castle, went on a ferry ride, walked the city, worked through my projects, made presentations, travelled to France, cooked food, drank some wine while my friends back home felt I was washed away from the digital world.

Reality strikes in!! Hard!!

After the much enjoyed working hard trip I came home and then the jittery feeling started to haunt me. Every 2 hours I felt like typing "www.socialnetwork.com" on my browser and activate my account. I wanted to know what was happening and this is precisely the UVP of it, people like to know what's happening in others life.

Battling your own wish to sway the other way is by far the worst feeling in closet. Searching a new home is never a bottom line, searching a new life is. Digital Social network less life isn't something new, but to have one after the experience is a reinvention and it isn't that bad at all.

Time, energy, focus, books, hobbies, love and friends, I got them all....After a week or so, my brain had faded the memories of social network.

Some nice moments further!!

I started reading a lot of books ranging from fiction to autobiography, management to history, romance to political thrillers. I downloaded music apps on iPad and did self learning on playing keyboard. I can play some nice tunes like pink panther, Roja, tumse milke, Teri meri, bade achhe lagte hain, arare arare now. I did vocal recordings of a lot of songs. Tuned myself towards social responsibility. I started to watch movies in theatres. I did research on Hindu scriptures to understand the hidden truths of the preaching and its connection to science and mathematics. I got insights on topics like business model creations. I went on a vacation to coorg. I spent good amount of time with friends and family. There were nice times of cafe discussions. I have oil paints in my bag, time to try a canvas.

So,

I took time to call up and meet my friends to have a nice chat rather than writing a post on their wall or like a photo of them. I took time to cook desserts with mom in my kitchen and it was much fun than growing a farm on computer. I could hold hands of my loved ones and there is so much of warmth in it than just leaving a text message for them. I could write a series of my short stories and this is so overwhelming an experience than just killing time in refreshing the list of posts on my wall. I did make new friends, at the parlour, coffee shop, nilgiris, office, bus stop, schools, events, during journey, international travel. I have understood and now strongly believe, physical presence of a person has much higher influence and energy than virtual.

Anyways, Life is good this or that way, it turns great when you love whatever you do. My life, I love it.. How about you?