It seems just about any time we have a moment of pause, we immediately go to technology to fill the space. It’s not just an adult thing. Children want to watch a video, play a game app, or color…on a device. If we continually treat technology as our go-to entertainment and time-filler, we miss out on what’s going on around us. Our ability to use our imaginations, be aware of ourselves and our surroundings, interact and problem solve well begins to deteriorate.

What are some things you can do without technology?

• Watch the landscape speed by through a car window.
• Imagine animals and other possibilities in cloud shapes and formations.
• Look for patterns in nature, people, colors, and more.
• Search for “sets”: license plates from different states, items beginning with letters through the alphabet, things of different colors, or various amounts of items as you count from 1 to 20.
• Use your memory. Recall at least one thing you did each day, starting yesterday and going back as far as you can.
• Start a conversation with a stranger. Asking a question is a good place to start.
• Create a story in your mind.
• Gather only the items within your reach and rearrange them to create something new.

You don’t always have to reach a specific, tangible result to accomplish something. In fact, what you do with technology often isn’t as productive as you want to believe it is. Using your mind well is productive enough.