Facebook Computers and Cellphones, Oh My...

So this morning I had an athletic department staff meeting. Basically they're pretty painful most of the time. It's just a chance for the AD to get everyone together and keep people up on other college business. We get breakfast and they're always crispy bacon so I can usually manage. For the last hour or so it's just the head coaches meeting, and since that's my title I also hang out and listen to the conversation. Usually it's not too bad, talking about admissions protocol and some other nuts and bolts things, but today the group discussed Facebook. For 45 minutes. Shoot me.

Like most athletic departments (and other professional settings i'm sure, too) there's an old school and a new school, with the old school still resistant to email and the new school trying to find loopholes in the NCAA's communication policies with recruits (or email at all hours in other settings, but you get the idea...). As usual the extremes of any two sides are the most comical and this did not disappoint me today. The under 30 crowd (besides me) love Facebook for its ability to get the word out massively about events and keep alumni up to date on the status of the program. Old schoolers think it's just a bunch of crap and the people who want to follow the program will keep up to date in traditional ways.

But facebook aside some of these young folks can't even shut their cell phones off to get through the breakfast. They're constantly responding to emails and recruits and keeping their phones on all night to do the same. I guess my stance is this: That's not me. No matter what your profession find a way to separate your professional and personal life. When I leave the office I leave the office. I don't check email. I don't follow up with recruits. I don't think about my job. When I'm in from day to day I'm doing all that. Some days I'm in until 7:30 or 8pm to get things done. But when I leave, that's it. I said it a lot this summer (in a comical sense) but I'm not here for a long time, I'm here for a good time. And I don't care who you are but responding to a recruit at 11pm on a Tuesday when I've been asleep for a half hour is not my idea of living the good life.

And this goes for everybody. Some technological advancements are great but we're getting to the point of sensory and information overload. I don't need to know that Jimmy Jones went from being "out at the movies" to "thinking about Becky <3 (one moment ago)" I ask all of you to try this. Pick a day you're at home and not working. Hell, a night evening. And shut off your TV. Then shut off your computer. Then shut off your cell phone. And just relax. Take a break. Cut the cord and separate yourself from all of that newfangled bullshit. You'll feel better in the morning. Then try to do it more often. This is just my $.02, but it's a nice feeling. Cheers.