A Perspective on the Internet and Consciously Browsing

Recently I have been a part of some powerful conversions regarding the utilization of the internet, and whether or not it is a positive tool for our society. What I have begun to realize is that the whole debate is flawed just by bringing it up in that fashion. When you have two people coming from very different understandings and lifestyles regarding use of the internet, of course there will be different thoughts regarding it's influence on society.

The internet is a tool. It serves a purpose. It brings our world together in a digital fashion and allows connections to be made in a way that has never been possible before. We have everything from digital money to connecting with long lost friends. You can even learn whatever you want from it (to an extent). You may have started to see my side of the debate by reading this paragraph.

Anyways, it's all about intention. Any tool that exists can be utilized in a positive or negative fashion (which again is all relative, but the show must go on). Every time I log on to the internet, I am spending time to enter a layer of reality that is essentially a digital overlay on our world. So, I can either do something that will benefit my life and the world around me, or I can be using it essentially as a drug to escape where I am in my physical reality because I don't like it.

Escape, or misinterpretation of desire to escape, is how things like internet rehab has been formed over the years (Internet Addiction Disorder is a real thing according to psychologists). Kids want to play their new computer game or build cool stuff for hours on end, but the parents think they are "wasting their time" or "addicted" and view it as a negative thing. What parents seem to miss in this case is that what the kids are doing online could actually be more "positive" than what the parent is doing in their own lives. It really does all come down to a misunderstanding of what their beloved children are doing. 

REALIZE-ATION: When the older generations catch up and understand what one can actually do on the internet, they will be just as plugged in. If you don't believe me, just watch!
Source: http://bit.ly/1SbVUgL
Source: http://bit.ly/1SbVUgL

On to the other side.. What happens when we are in a new group of people in the physical realm and are trying to be open and make a real connection with another human being, but after five minutes one feels how challenging it can be to actually make that connection. A sense of isolation sets in, and pulling up the phone to scroll through mindless Facebook and Instagram posts seems like the right thing to do. Now instead of making external physical connections, we are actually inverting more intensely and going deeper into that isolation. This is where the internet starts to become negative.

So what do we do? How do we find that optimal balance?

My path has recently led me to a place where I want to be conscious of what I am doing EVERY time I pick up my phone or laptop.

Is what I am doing the best use for my time in this moment?

Then once I get online, I check in with myself every five minutes or so.

Am I still following my intention? Am I doing what I set out to do, or have I ended up way off the beaten path. By no means am I saying that being off the beaten path is bad, as going way out there has brought lots of meaning to my life, but I know, for me, when mindful wandering turns to mindless wandering.

I call this process "Conscious Web Browsing", and I think it's a concept that could prove to be quite fruitful in our society's collective consciousness. Look out for more posts about this in the future.

I ENVISION A WORLD WHERE OUR DIGITAL LIVES PROVIDE A BEAUTIFUL FOUNDATION (OR SUPPORT DEPENDING ON PERSON) FOR OUR CONNECTIONS IN THIS PHYSICAL REALM, A WORLD WHERE EVERYONE CAN FIND THEIR TRIBE, BE WHATEVER THEY TRULY WANT TO LIVE, AND NEVER FEEL LIKE THEY ARE ALONE.

Please share what you like to do on the internet, and how you use it as a positive tool to influence the world around you.