How Do You Stay Connected and Unplugged?

Does this sound contradictory? It is possible to be connected to your constituents but not be tied to your pervasive electronic device of choice - wireless laptop, blackberry, I-phone, cell phone? In this age of information, accessibility and turbulent changes, it's understandable that you want to stay connected - to your customers, to your people, and to your suppliers. But, what does it mean to be connected? Is it to be personally on top of the needs, changes or ensuring this work gets done? How honest are you with yourself in making this distinction?Without sleep and some sense of downtime you lose your edge - your ability to be on, energized and focused. Even your blackberry needs to be recharged occasionally.

As a society we have changed our addictions from health, exercise, relationships, and work to our portable devices. What is driving this? Is it fear of losing the next deal? Fear of not being needed? Fear of not being the top performer? Does this little device really give you more control over these fears?

How do you recharge? Is it possible to schedule in time to unplug or discipline yourself to not respond to every ping or call? What does unplugging give you? I propose more balance and therefore ultimately better performance.

What have you got to lose other than freeing up some space on your hard drive? :)

What would happen if you had empty space? What would you fill it up with?