Thoughts on a Flight on the Global Day of Unplugging…

Isn’t it funny…I am someone who uses flights to disconnect and read. I don’t like that planes now offer WiFi and free messaging, but as someone who spent the week unplugging while on vacation, future Ashley will thank me for taking the time to get caught up on my emails and other tasks needing to be done.

I know my colleagues and friends are participating in the Global Day of Unplugging, and I kind of feel left out not doing it at the same time as them…isn’t that funny.

Well – while I am on this plane and reflecting on the previous month (how is it already the second week of March?!), I am thinking back to visiting Oregon DECA back in late February. Oregon DECA is a group of high school students who attend conferences and workshops around becoming future business leaders, and is such an incredible program!

I had the pleasure of presenting a workshop to the Oregon DECA fellows, nearly 100 high school students attended my session. The topic of course – digital and social media wellness.

I gave the students an overview of what is happening right now between society and the social media giants, and the most important thing I wanted them to leave with – it is not their fault that a company made one of the most addicting experiences and we are all in this social experiment together.

In the back of my mind, I hear the grumpy people I hear at the gym, or at the airport, or at the store who say, “these darn kids don’t work hard – all they do is scroll on their phones.”

Well – it is NOT their fault.

I hope the students left feeling empowered that they get to choose how to live their lives, something I had long forgotten starting my 30s. Now that I remember this, I hope to empower others to remember this too, or maybe learn it for the first time.

I hope the students left with some actionable insights, which we are the [Dis]Connect Collective bring to every workshop and every session. Especially I loved us chatting about the potential for “Awe walks,” or walks without headphones, music, or smartphones.

All I can say is I left with hope from that session. The students were engaged – the majority of them (except a couple in the back) didn’t go on their devices at all, and they asked excellent questions. They reflected on their usage and who knows what impact I made on them, but I am grateful the impact they made on me. The more I interact with my college students or these high school students – I have hope that the world will get better.

I have hope that the world will continue to spin while we learn these hard lessons ahead. And I have hope that at least one of those students will go on an Awe Walk this week. I know I will.  

- Ashley