It's at the Scene of the Crime, but it’s not the Criminal(它就在犯罪现场，但不是罪魁祸首)
Linda Stone
2008/06/30
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People are saying technology is making us stupid. Technology is shattering our attention. Technology is ruining our children. Technology is making us busier than ever.
Taking that train of thought a step further: technology can fix the problem. I believe we can make smarter email and smarter phones - and we should. It just won’t fix the problem. We can think of technology like cupcakes. The cupcake is at the scene of the crime, but it’s not the criminal. We can make smarter cupcakes -- sugar free, higher in fiber, but that doesn’t seem to be making any difference. The cupcake isn’t saying, “Eat five of me.” We make the choice. “I’ll have one and take a walk. I won’t have one.” Or, “I’ll have five.” Why will it be different with technology? Technology is at the scene of the crime. The criminal is that voice inside of each of us that says, “Do it all. Have it all. Don’t stop to consider what you’re doing or why. Run fast and do as much as you can.” Sharon, a former professor turned consultant, says it always seems easier to respond to emails than to work on the project files sitting right in front of her. Is she making this choice because picking up a project file requires focused attention and emailing requires less of a commitment? Or is there a buzz of completion and immediate gratification each time the send button is pressed in contrast to the delayed gratification from a meatier project? The technology is at the scene of the crime - a weapon of mass communication turning productivity opportunities into an excuse for procrastination. How do the choices we make in each moment, about what we choose to do and what we choose to ignore, tell the story of what matters to us? When a day begins and ends with a list of action items, it can lack a sense of purpose. Without a sense of purpose, we have no framework to guide our choices. Technology, just like cupcakes, is there -- for our pleasure. The crime only happens when we forget our sense of purpose and fail to make choices as to what we include or exclude. |
翻译:xiaochong 大家都说技术让我们退化了，变得更蠢，技术分散了我们的注意力，技术毁了孩子们，技术让我们比以往更忙了。 沿着这个思路再进一步：技术也能修正这个问题。我相信我们能做出更聪明的电子邮件和电话——也应该这样。但它改变不了什么。 可以把技术看作蛋糕。蛋糕就在犯罪现场，但它不是罪犯。我们可以做更好的蛋糕——无糖，高纤维，但这于事无补。蛋糕没说“吃五个吧。”是我们自己做决定，“我就吃一个然后走一走”，“一个都不吃”，或者“吃五个”。 技术有什么不同吗？技术也在犯罪现场。真正的问题是我们本身的声音，“全部都作了。别想你在做什么为什么做。再快些并且尽可能多做。” Sharon，以前是教授现在改作咨询行业，她认为回电子邮件好像比坐下来真正研究一个些项目文件更容易。她这样选择是因为拿起一些项目文件会要求更多的注意力而发电子邮件就不要那么多责任感？或者每一次按下发送按钮就有些完成的感觉以及直接的满足感（和一个真实项目迟一些的满足感比较而言）？ 技术就在犯罪现场——大规模通信武器，将生产力机会变成了拖延的借口。每次我们选择做哪些事情不做哪些事情反映了哪些事对我们是重要的。 日复一日，那些任务清单让我们迷失了目标。没有目标我们就没有作选择的框架。 当我们拿着任务清单计划一天做要什么的时候可以问自己：为什么这件事出现在清单上？怎样才能将重点放到真正对我重要的事情上？哪些事我能排除掉从而让我目标更明确？ 技术就像是蛋糕，在那里——供我们享用。只有当我们忘掉了目标没有正确选择哪些应该做哪些不应该做的时候才会出问题。 |
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