Pockets of Peace

A Robin Sharma Blog -

Incredible. I had a massage the other day. Post-experience, I was taken to the “Relaxation Room” which I can only assume was a place created for, well…relaxation. As I laid down to rest and renew, I detected the sound of fingers pecking away at a cell phone keypad. I'm serious. Some guy was using the oasis of calm as his personal workspace - post his massage - and firing out text messages. Had he lost his mind?

I love technology. Many of my MACs (Most Adored Clients; I promise to stop this acronym thing I'm into these days as soon as I cleanse it out of my system) are tech giants like Microsoft and Satyam Computers. But it must be our servant - not our master. We must apply technology to advance our dreams - not spoil our days. Technology must be used with discernment, discretion and old fashioned common sense (that means turn off your mobile when you are having dinner with your kids and don't check your text or email messages when another human being is standing in front of you (it's rude) and neeeever answer a cell phone call in a movie theatre.

Back to The Relaxation Room. Whatever happened to pockets of peace? Times where we could simply relax, reflect and think? To me, those are the very times that make you a more interesting, effective and successful person. I gave a leadership workshop to the executive team of Dulsco the other day - a 3000 employee powerhouse with its fingers in many fast-growing businesses. When I started evangelizing the need for managers to not be so busy climbing their mountains through their workdays that they fail to think about what are the right mountains they should be climbing the GM burst out with a “Thank You Robin”. Seems far too many business people (and human beings) are busy being busy. Rather than being disciplined and staggeringly focused around their best opportunities and the smartest uses of their time.