Time merely passes by before you hear or read of how people are “getting lost” in their online activities and surfing every single day (movies, gaming, social media). You will even hear of someone complaining of how another person they were hanging out with just whipped out their phone to reply to a text or tweet. Others would even dare say that this era is making people “stupid”. There has been this argument/division over years now, of how people have become unable to manage the time they spend online and interacting with others face-face. Is it really a valid one, though?

But first, we must realize that despite where we stand on this agenda, much of our daily behaviour has changed over time as more and more gadgets and activities evolve to be accommodated on a screen. Fifteen years ago, our screen time was limited to just a TV and, if lucky enough, a computer desk. Yet even then, the Internet had not been introduced to the African world to make us as glued to it as we are now.

For those whose lives depend hugely on the time you are online, this question may be worth considering: does technology keep us from interacting with our natural world, or does it enhance it anyway? With a day not having changed from the traditional 24 hours, it may be true that we spend a lot less time doing anything other than scrolling up and down pages. When did you last read that prominent old newspaper or a physical book?

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What is most crucial to our time spent logged on is what happened when logged off

However, some argue that we can’t separate our “online” and “offline” lives as they are both paramount parts of our lives.  They say that this view of trading lives is myopic, as what we exchange in our everyday lives with friends and family on Instagram and Facebook is real life.

We live in an augmented reality that exists at the intersection of our physicality and digitality. Everything we do on sites and social media platforms directly reflects what’s happening out here. Instagram doesn’t exclude the offline but depends on it. What is most crucial to our time spent logged on is what happens when logged off; it is the fuel that runs the social media engine. 

Do you agree? Maybe, but all this would be true if the Internet was social media, which is not. The Internet comprises much more than sharing our daily photos, insights, check-ins, stories or videos. It consists of a sea-fill of information, entertainment, games, book-reading and review, and engagement with others; all this is often done privately without having to do it in public with other users seeing. A majority of corporate players are moving in this direction now. All this is happening to interact with you individually and not in the presence of your friends. So, let’s not limit the definition of this new era to just showing off our beautiful lives in still photos, opinions or videos.

“Wi-Fi detox”, a bit like therapy or irrigating the mind, taking out all the unnecessary slime.

But still, a whole bunch would rather have everything they do physically than through a network. How do you convince them that this argument is not here to solve any problem? Most of those embracing gadgets that receive and send calls or texts argue that the Internet is like eating the wrong food for long periods or using drugs, whose results will finally catch up and ruin your everyday life. It is becoming the next big purge to do the “Wi-Fi detox”, a bit like therapy or irrigating the mind, removing unnecessary slime.

Just as that suggests, you were overeating, and detoxing is only for those who have had far too much pointless stuff, which you should not have done in the first place. In a world that depends not only on social media but on life, such as our careers, going offline should only be for those who do not need the Internet. But it also sets a reputation that you are so hotly in demand that you do not need to take a step back from the craziness and cannot even afford to do so.

See, even if I went off the grid, I would still need to look up my emails for work or school. If I do not, I risk missing a deadline or not completing a job that would risk me being fired. Let’s face it: this purge should be for those who can afford to do so. We do not live two lives, just one that depends on us being on the Internet or physically with people. What you decide to look up is a choice only made by you. How much time you spend on it is a choice only from you.

Of course, YouTube and Twitter are addictive, all about craving company and getting rid of boredom, but we mere mortals have work that depends on it. Checking messages and fielding calls out of hours is now a routine part of many office lives.

The Internet is the present and the future. However much you separate yourself, you will have a task that demands you to go look up some ideas on Google fill a form on an institution’s website or, even worse…watch a video on YouTube. Get used to it and be a better manager of your time wisely!