A friend recently shared this SNL Headz Up App video (which you should definitely check out here) on his Facebook wall. As the video opens, we see a young man and woman walking through their offices, outside through parks, down streets, etc. The voice-over reads:
“You’re part of generation connect. Whether it’s email, text or mobile web, you’re jacked in 24/7. Online, all the time, wherever you are. But being so connected has its disadvantages…”
At that point, the young woman crossing the street, nose buried in her mobile device, is hit by a taxi.
The voiceover continues: “…until now. Introducing Headz Up from World Tel. Sending you real-time, instant messages about what’s in front of your face.” This time, while the woman is crossing the street with her nose buried in her mobile device, she receives a message on her device that says: “Watch Out! Truck!” So she is able to navigate the oncoming traffic without looking up.
The voiceover continues: “Get closer to the people you love”. This time, we see a husband and wife sitting together, and the husband’s eyes are planted to his mobile device while the wife is talking to him. His alert notifies him that his wife is talking. Another vignette has a man driving while buried in his mobile device, but his device tells him when to turn right, so he never has to look up.
The video closes, saying: “So when life gets in the way, get Headz Up, and get back to business, with Headz Up from World Tel. Always Be There.”
The video is definitely funny. And telling. And it begs the question, is your real life getting in the way with your professional aspirations? With your online habits? With your Internet addictions?
I talk with so many teens that explain that even when mom or dad comes home, they aren’t really home. Likewise, these teenagers have a hard time going a few minutes without texting or checking in on their social networking profile. Parents and teenagers struggling with addictions to Internet pornography can lose sight of the importance of family, friends, and even their basic needs like eating and sleeping. I’ve talked with fathers that have set alarms on their computers to remind them to stop looking at pornography and take a few minutes downstairs with their wife and their kids before going back to dive back into the virtual world of porn.
Suffice it to say, your “always on” mentality with your job, your use of social networking and virtual reality sites, gaming, or pornography can become far more important than looking up and out at the world and people directly around you. As a parent, your kids are watching you, and often, your habits will become their habits too.
So, do you feel as though spending time with them, with your spouse or your friend is getting in the way of your pleasures and pursuits online? It’s time to look up and stop letting your virtual world get in the way of your real life.