There is an old riddle about a tree falling in a forest and whether or not it makes a sound if no one is around to hear it. Lately I have been wondering if the same applies to our obsession with social media. #picturesoritdidnthappen
It occurred to me over the holidays while out with our three daughters on our very first family hike. I had many "Instagram twitches" where I saw shots that would be perfect for posting on Instagram, I was even thinking whether Facebook Live would work for when we got to our waterfall destination in the San Gabriel mountains. I was suffering from Immediacy Obsession. Instead, I took a few quick photos, I kept my phone in my pocket, and explored our hike through the eyes of our six and eight year old daughters as they found sticks, dug for treasure, and leapt across streams.
Our expectations have changed, it is easy to get obsessed with having to achieve something right now, and sharing it with the world. We have forgotten how to wait. Wait for weekly installments of our favorite tv show, wait for our next trip to the book store, wait to finish the reel in our camera and send it off for processing and wait for the prints to arrive on our door step two weeks later.
While speed in business is essential to stay competitive, not everything has to be rushed. Speed can be exhausting.
Instead of immediately trying to find that perfect shot or that funny hashtag, stop and look at tree for yourself, the world can wait and see it later.