Containered experience and bottled memories
Thoughts on intentional real-life meetings.
Y just came back from a 4-day weekend in the middle of nowhere discussing community building among other things. I left my phone in my room and only looked at it for 3 min every day to not loose my Duolingo streak (yes, I know).
The combination of being fully present for workshops, conversations, meal time, and not engaging with my phone at all has had some really interesting effects.
My inbox / message app wasn’t as flooded as I expected. Since I didn’t reply to anything, many conversations stayed silent. Obviously I warned loved ones about my absence to avoid search parties showing up.
I caught myself several times reaching for my (absent) phone in conversations to show a picture or a memory. Without the phone I had to describe what I meant, and I remember those conversations so much more vividly.
I feel recharged and a lot more centered. Focussing on one conversation at a time has it’s own magic. Not picking up the phone in between conversations and instead letting the new ideas roll around in my head was even more insightful.
Good ideas seem to often come from the in-between moments, like in the shower where you can’t stare at a phone (yet) while shampooing your hair. You can fabricate those moments by intentionally ignoring your phone.
Twice I asked someone to take a picture to use in the future for remembering a specific situation. I will use then as an achor to go back in time and relive those moments. Other than that, I have a long list ripe with ideas and reflections. I can feel the dots connecting in my brain.
Remote is the future. And short bursts of physical presence is needed to unlock it’s full potential. You don’t need two days in the office per week. You need two meetups per year: intentional and with full presence.