I recently wrote about my wife and I being on financial diet, and the resulting lack of home internet and phone data package. I talked about some of the drawbacks and ways that I have worked around them. Today, would like to discuss some good things that have come out of this temporary situation.
Better Signal to Noise Ratio
I realize that I need to adjust the signal to noise ratio in my online life. I am an information junkie, but guess what. My life is no worse off without the instant access to the more than 160 blog and web site subscriptions I have. In the past, my wife and I would usually sit down after dinner and she would watch her favorite TV shows and I would sit and read online. I would read about politics, current events, sports, teachings from my favorite Pastors and Bible teachers, technology and entertainment. Now, since I have to intentionally download my subscriptions, I read more selectively, but more in depth. More time spent in Off Line Reading
I have never enjoyed reading books, but there are a lot that I have always wanted to read. Because I paint houses for a living, I listen to the radio all day. I have realized that I should be putting audio books and bible teaching pod casts on my mp3 player and listen to them while working. This has worked great. I’ve been listening to Radical by David Platt. This is an excellent book. I have listened to it over and over and again. I take notes throughout the day, and when I get a break or when I get home I get out the paper book and annotate and underline away. What I have found is that I actually absorb more from this process than sitting down for an hour each night and plodding through the paper version of the book. I have so enjoyed this process, that I am considering blogging through the book. I could be a weekly series for 20-30 weeks. I also read the Bible more than I used to. I keep a small Bible in my backpack , but I would always default to Facebook, Twitter or RSS feeds on my Blackberry whenever I had a few minutes of downtime. Now I pull out my Bible and work on my reading plan. I find this to better than trying to accomplish my reading goals in one session in the morning or evening, and this makes my devotional times more enjoyable with less pressure to make it though a prescribed amount of text. More Focused Blogging
I am not a consistent blogger. I have let the blogs languish lately. This has a lot to do with a lack of personal focus, both in how I spend my time, and what I read and research. I have always wanted to write bout a lot of things, but I jump from topic to topic in my reading, my listening, and my attempts at writing. Over the last year the Lord has started to direct my life and activities towards things that matter for eternity, and less towards worldly interests. I play Drums in our church’s main service at least once a month, in Children’s Church about twice a month, and at our Jr. High and High School services almost every week. Add to that being a small group leader, and trying to make a living, I get busy. As I try to focus my offline activities, I seem to be focusing my online efforts as well. Do I really need to know every little detail about Tiger Wood’s fall from grace, as soon as they are available? One of the side benefits to having to write blog posts in a text editor or email program offline is that I focus on what I am trying to say, and less time on distractions and web surfing looking at what others are saying . This has been a freeing experience. Conclusion
this living offline is only temporary, but I hope that the habits and increased focus that I am developing will stick with me when I eventually have Internet access at home, and on my phone. How would your life be different if you had to be intentional about you internet time, and if you had less time to mindlessly wonder around the internet?
I realize that I need to adjust the signal to noise ratio in my online life. I am an information junkie, but guess what. My life is no worse off without the instant access to the more than 160 blog and web site subscriptions I have. In the past, my wife and I would usually sit down after dinner and she would watch her favorite TV shows and I would sit and read online. I would read about politics, current events, sports, teachings from my favorite Pastors and Bible teachers, technology and entertainment. Now, since I have to intentionally download my subscriptions, I read more selectively, but more in depth. More time spent in Off Line Reading
I have never enjoyed reading books, but there are a lot that I have always wanted to read. Because I paint houses for a living, I listen to the radio all day. I have realized that I should be putting audio books and bible teaching pod casts on my mp3 player and listen to them while working. This has worked great. I’ve been listening to Radical by David Platt. This is an excellent book. I have listened to it over and over and again. I take notes throughout the day, and when I get a break or when I get home I get out the paper book and annotate and underline away. What I have found is that I actually absorb more from this process than sitting down for an hour each night and plodding through the paper version of the book. I have so enjoyed this process, that I am considering blogging through the book. I could be a weekly series for 20-30 weeks. I also read the Bible more than I used to. I keep a small Bible in my backpack , but I would always default to Facebook, Twitter or RSS feeds on my Blackberry whenever I had a few minutes of downtime. Now I pull out my Bible and work on my reading plan. I find this to better than trying to accomplish my reading goals in one session in the morning or evening, and this makes my devotional times more enjoyable with less pressure to make it though a prescribed amount of text. More Focused Blogging
I am not a consistent blogger. I have let the blogs languish lately. This has a lot to do with a lack of personal focus, both in how I spend my time, and what I read and research. I have always wanted to write bout a lot of things, but I jump from topic to topic in my reading, my listening, and my attempts at writing. Over the last year the Lord has started to direct my life and activities towards things that matter for eternity, and less towards worldly interests. I play Drums in our church’s main service at least once a month, in Children’s Church about twice a month, and at our Jr. High and High School services almost every week. Add to that being a small group leader, and trying to make a living, I get busy. As I try to focus my offline activities, I seem to be focusing my online efforts as well. Do I really need to know every little detail about Tiger Wood’s fall from grace, as soon as they are available? One of the side benefits to having to write blog posts in a text editor or email program offline is that I focus on what I am trying to say, and less time on distractions and web surfing looking at what others are saying . This has been a freeing experience. Conclusion
this living offline is only temporary, but I hope that the habits and increased focus that I am developing will stick with me when I eventually have Internet access at home, and on my phone. How would your life be different if you had to be intentional about you internet time, and if you had less time to mindlessly wonder around the internet?