Identifying Technology Fatigue and What to Do About It

Technology fatigue is the mental grinding that comes with the overwhelming use of technology in our lives. Many people in the workforce haven’t had to use technology as much as they do today and the ever-growing demand for technology in business creates problems for employees (and therefore businesses). This week, we thought we’d discuss the truth behind technology fatigue and how individuals can do a better job of not getting burnt out from tech.

The Claustrophobic Feeling of Technology

There is no question that technology has broadened a whole society’s knowledge base, connected millions of people together, and given people more options to get their opinion known than at any other time in human history. What isn’t as well documented is that for people who don’t spend most of their waking hours on social media or even on the Internet, the use of technology can sometimes become a major frustration. 

The fact is that most businesses are asking their employees to be on the cutting edge of technology integration. They want them to accept that technology is how business gets done and how decision-makers measure their ability to function inside of the business. This doesn’t sit well with everyone. It’s undeniable that our economy, our language, and indeed our culture is all being directly affected by technology; so much so, that our lives are segmented into our existential and our online lives.

This is even more evident in the way we do business. Today, we get emails, status updates, and calls at all hours of the day, making it difficult to find time to sit down to dinner with our families, focus on our relationships, and actually enjoy ourselves. With this technology permeating nearly every waking moment of our lives, there is so much that we have to learn. It’s in this radical transformation where technology fatigue lies. 

What is Technology Fatigue?

Essentially, technology fatigue is that feeling of claustrophobia that we outlined above. With so much going on all the time, it is hard for people to separate the priorities in their home and work lives and it leads to unfocused, unproductive, and desperate actions. It’s as if we are all being asked to learn several new languages. In this case, people who have been speaking one language for decades, and are suddenly forced to learn a new language are going to run into more frustrating situations than people whose first language is the language of technology. 

Large swaths of the workforce grew up without the Internet, or at the very most, dial-up. These people are analog people working in a digital world and it may be difficult for them to get comfortable with the seemingly unending integration and deployment of new technologies. Think about it, how many new applications, devices, and practices have you had to learn over the past five years that weren’t even a consideration until technology made them so?

What Can You Do?

For those people who do feel some pressure from all the technology that they are surrounded by, there are some steps you can take to make the whole situation easier on you. Unfortunately, business is going to be using technology for nearly every aspect of their operations from this day out, but here are some tips to help those people who have come down with some technology fatigue, to get through their malaise. 

• Take regular breaks - If you give yourself periodic breaks away from your technology, you may not feel the overwhelming need to smash the devices that keep incessantly dinging over and over again.
• Take a day off - If you are really feeling burnt out about how technology is affecting your life, take a day away from it. Either take a day off from work or do it on a weekend. Go enjoy an outdoor activity or read a book. Getting away from your devices is the only way you are going to feel free. 
• Set some rules - We’re all busy, but there are times during the day when the people on the other end of the phone can wait. Take time to have dinner with your family, don’t use your phone in bed, don’t check email until you are done with a morning routine, etc. The more control you take back from the technology that is bothering you, the better off your life is going to be. 
• Identify stressors - Many times the overwhelming use of technology is just one of many stressors that is causing you to have periods of anger and anxiety. Do your best to identify and work on situations causing stress to feel more at ease. 

Technology is undeniably helpful and it is, for some people, an unfortunate side effect of a larger problem. It can be a detriment as much as a benefit if you let it. At SMART Services, we work with technology so many of our clients can have more effective and efficient businesses without having to focus on it. Give us a call today at 586 258-0650 to talk to one of our IT consultants about how to improve focus on your business with our managed IT services.