CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK. DING. SWOOSH. CLICK. CLICK. CLICK.
On the eve of RA training one year, many of my colleagues stopped by my office to see where that boisterous clicking sound was coming from.
“Is that what I think it is?” a colleague asked.
“A typewriter? Yes, it is!” I replied in a matter of fact tone before as I clicked and clacked away, making door tags with my typewriter.
As I entered adulthood, I developed a strong passion for tech and memorabilia of the bygone days. I rediscovered the comfort static of movies on VHS, the methodical nature of flipping a vinyl record on a turntable, the hunt one can embark on in thrift stores and flea markets (there is an unparalleled joy in finding an unused ‘80s Garfield notepad in the wild). These habits and trinkets harken back to days of simpler times and always bring a smile to my face, even when you push past the nostalgia haze.
On this analogue trek, a few unintended benefits have surfaced. When you de-digitalize, you take your eyes away from the screens more often. Spending even just a little bit more time looking at paper instead of my phone helps the eye strain. You also start to feel more of a connection to what you are doing. Instead of things living in a vast and infinite digital landscape, you begin to collect physical and tangible objects that are individualized and separate from one another. It creates a unique connection that feels more organic and real. Never one to let my hobbies just sit alone, I realized I can take this approach to my work as well. It kickstarted a journey for me to integrate a more analogue approach to my work that adds more meaning and excitement to what I do. I believe more Res Life professionals can adapt this approach as well.
As we enjoy our summer slow-down, I am continually thinking about ways to further develop my digital detox at work. Below are some insights that you might be able to take on in your work. While the work of Res Life is very people-oriented, there is still so much we do that requires literal, and metaphorical, digital connections. Cutting that cord a bit can be so freeing and can spark parts of your brain in different ways. I hope you will consider some of these ideas!
Put Your Pen to Paper
One of the easiest things to do is find ways to write instead of type. As you attend summer meetings, can you handwrite your notes? Maybe you’re doing inspections of your residence halls – have you thought about doing those walks with a notepad to track what you find? Or maybe you can share some gratitude with colleagues or upcoming student staff with handwritten notes. Think about how impactful it is to receive a warm written note! Writing on pen and paper requires you to think more of what you are saying and it makes you slow down a bit. For me at least, I feel like I put more intention in what I am writing when I go handwritten. I have to truly think about my word choices because they can’t be so easily erased with a backspace. I now utilize pen and paper to take my notes at meetings, to draft messages, to keep agendas, and to even create my first drafts for these blogs! These acts genuinely make me feel more connected to what I’m doing and it helps them feel like they have a stronger meaning. It also helps my eyes feel better without so much strain. Plus, isn’t it just cool to see your own handwriting?
Find Some Vintage Tech for Your Space
Have you ever been in a one-on-one meeting and worry about time going over? It can be awkward to pull out your phone to look at the time, or even just looking at your watch. This was a problem I had that was solved with an easy fix – I got an old school radio clock for my office. It looks awesome and it helps me keep track in an easy way. Bonus – I can also listen to my University’s radio station! There has been such a push for a one stop shop for all of our technology needs, but the separation of these things has been liberating for me. For example, I can pull out my phone and easily swipe to get the time, change songs on Spotify, and do some quick math for my budget. Or, I can check the time by looking at my clock, I can get out of my seat to dial in a radio station, and I can root around my desk drawers for a calculator. These small acts may seem inefficient, and to a certain degree they may be, but the physical act of doing these things that are separate makes my brain engage in different ways, and it gets me moving. The added time to do these things most definitely outweighs the cost of lost time, in my opinion at least. Some other things you may consider for your office: a CD or cassette player (when’s the last time you heard some audio that was a little rough around the edges?), legal pads and pens, a typewriter (think of the cool door tags you can make), I even once had a TV/VCR combo in my office to keep movies on as background noise (do the students still know what a VCR is?).
Host Tech Free Meetings
As an RD, I barred cell phones and laptops being used in my staff meetings with my students. I can’t tell you how many times I would be delivering critical information and see half of the room get sidetracked by happenings on their phones, inevitably making them miss key pieces of information. It led me to creating tech-free meetings that changed the tenor and efficiency of the meetings I hosted. For every meeting, I encouraged pen and paper note taking, and always delivered robust meeting minutes after the fact that contained everything they could possibly need. In this tech-free era, I saw a sizable increase in engagement and knowledge seemed to be attained better. The vibes felt different too, as you could feel people’s presence more locked in.
Encourage Your Student Staff to Go Analogue
All of the above points can be applied to your student staff as well! I have had many talks with students about tech usage and finding ways to be a bit less digital. You can encourage things like staff challenges to cut down on screen time, taking duty tour notes on paper (just be mindful of training staff on proper ways to dispose of confidential notes, of course), walking around the residence halls without being on a phone, making handcrafted door tags, and so on. In my time as an RD, the RAs had flip phones that they used for duty. Throughout the year, the duty teams would take photos on the flip phone and we would review them all at the end of the year (nothing brings a team together like blurry photos on a retro camera). Our worlds are tech rooted, but it is tenfold for our students – going a bit more analogue can be an impactful opportunity for our students.
Technology has undoubtedly made our lives and jobs easier, but in a time when it feels like the balance has shifted, turning the dial to analogue is so rewarding. The grounding feeling it brings ties nicely to our work that is so connection and people oriented. I hope you will consider digging your pen and paper out a bit more this summer and beyond!
