I lived without a cell phone for a long time. I refused to get one. People used to ask me how I lived. Well, I lived just fine actually.
I’d even go on cross country tours, driving, with just a $5 pre-paid phone card that I could use from a gas station or a motel room. This is how people managed for many decades.
I valued my free time. Allowing myself to think and ponder.
Many of my “Eureeka!” moments, that impacted my life greatly and gave me huge success, came from walking around with no phone.
I finally caved, maybe about 4 years ago. I bought an iPhone, for the purpose of handling tech issues with my software. But the ringer is always off. All notifications are turned off. I will check my emails briefly at a time that is convenient to me, and that’s it, it’s over.
So, “what about an emergency?” You ask. It’s the immediate go to everyone always justifies their always connected status with.
Well, I suggest, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A TRUE EMERGENCY.
None. None that weren’t handled in “the old days” when cities were built and great companies founded – without their founders being available 24/7.
I’m totally serious. There is no such thing as a true emergency. My business LIVES AND DIES by my availability. “What if…” “What if….” Well, let’s paint a picture.
True story.
Our servers crashed, none of our software was available, and the only person who could fix it was me. And guess what, my phone was not turned on, and I didn’t have it on me.
So, what happened? Well, the service was unavailable for a while. Then I checked my emails, said there was a problem and remedied it.
Did the world end? Nope. Did anyone’s life end? Nope. Was anyone’s business irrevocably harmed? Nope. Do I live a peaceful life without being beholden to a gadget? Hell yeah.
What is someone died and they need to reach you? Well, they’re still dead.
What if your kid got hit by a car? Well, I’d be there soon, whenever I checked in, but really, am I going to let my fears of my kid getting hit by a car rule my life? Seriously, this is how I’m going to go about my day? And if that isn’t going to qualify as an emergency to leave my phone and availability on 24/7, then nothing else matters.
There is no such thing as an emergency, and my phone never rings. Life is good.
