Look up from your phone

Almost eight years ago, I watched “Look Up”, a spoken word short film. It’s one of those videos that I keep coming back to every now and then, and whilst I think the message is slightly exaggerated (falling in love whilst asking for directions doesn’t happen to most people), I think we need to be careful with our use of technology. We should control technology, and not let it control us.

One of the things about technology that I dislike the most is “doomscrolling”. This is where you spend an excessive amount of unproductive time on a social media app, yet you can’t put your phone down. TikTok is probably the biggest culprit of this, but Facebook and Instagram news feeds are almost just as bad. I’ve fallen into these tech tycoons’ traps before, and whilst I am far from perfect a few tricks have helped me cope with this — sleeping with my phone on the opposite of the room, setting the digital wellbeing timer for my YouTube app to “0 minutes per day”, and deactivating my Facebook account.

The reason why I’m writing this article now is that something happened on the Victoria line on Friday night. I boarded the tube, and went to get my phone out but thought better of it, and instead decided to just gaze around the tube carriage. Now whilst I didn’t fall in love, I saw my brother of all people sitting on the other side of the carriage. So I got up, sat myself down next to him and we both laughed at the coincidence and chatted about the latest cricket match. If instead I’d have got my phone out, then those ten minutes of laughter and conversation would have never happened.