Challenge of the Week: Living Offline
Two weeks ago, Paul Miller of The Verge published an update of his life without the internet. As of mid-August, he was three months in the no-internet life. Here’s an excerpt of his confession:
The first two weeks were a zen-like blur. I’ve never felt so calm and happy in my life. Never. And then I started actually getting stuff done. I bought copies of Homer, Plato, Aristotle, Herodotus, and Aeschylus. I was writing at an amazing pace. For the first time ever I seemed to be outpacing my editors. (…)
Three months later, I don’t miss the internet at all. It doesn’t factor into my daily life. I don’t say to myself, “ugh, I wish I could just use the internet to do that.” It’s more like it doesn’t exist for me. I still say “ugh, I have to do that” — it’s just not the internet’s fault.
A part of me is put to shame as I’m the person who would habitually open three tabs as soon as I’m in front of my computer: Facebook, Gmail, and Tumblr. When I don’t have anything to do, my natural response is to open Facebook, Twitter, or Tumblr to see if there’s anything new—not reading a book.
So, here’s my challenge to you: go off the grid maybe for one hour, a whole day, or even the whole week—create your own boundary—and instead, spend that time to finish up a book, explore, or spend time with others. I will also be off the grid for one day on Saturday; let me know your stories!
Follow up The Verge’s Paul Miller misadventures without the Internet here.
