Unplug. That's easy, or is it? Decide to do it, and do it.
Recharge -- what does that mean for you?
Changing habits. By all accounts we do not find that so easy. We are creatures of habit and that's no bad thing. Imagine having to think every time you needed to ride a bicycle, drive a car, type, follow a certain route to work or speak a language. Some habits really serve us. Others do not, or maybe only up to a point.
Partly what is exciting about being human is that you have the freedom to choose what works for you. You have the gift of conscious awareness to help you to make decisions about what you do. You have a knowing spirit within you.
It is a habit I am learning: to check inwardly about whether a choice I am making about what to do is true and appropriate for me, at that moment. There is a whole field of freedom, which I believe we are only beginning to realize and fulfil for ourselves.
We can potentially choose to be plugged in or to unplug ourselves. When does being plugged in cease to be an asset and become an addiction, or a liability?
The beauty of any issue we may face is that it has within it new seeds of creative possibility. What do I mean by that? Clearly, being plugged in constantly to stimulation from outside of ourselves by mobile phones, computers with internet access, emails and the rest has a value up to a certain point. We were not born with plugs on us so that we might forever be tapped in to airwaves -- not always relevant for our needs and well-being.
What is the creative possibility? I see it as becoming more mindful of how we are using our time and attention. Is what you are doing serving the intention you hold for yourself, for example? When does being plugged in serve a purpose, and when does it become devitalizing?
As with almost any addiction I know, relentless plugging in may be, in part, driven by fear of the space left by switching off, and part a sense of feeling in control. After all, we have our fingers on the switches, so we are in control. But do we retain awareness about when to switch off?
As to the fear, the absence of distraction may leave us feeling open and vulnerable. Why? When we keep busy, we avoid having to deal with, or look at, what may be uncomfortable for us. or we have to re-evaluate what we are doing or the direction in which we are heading to face some inconvenient truth. Usually the fear of the unknown is much more distressing than the truth of the unknown.
Vulnerability may heighten your senses and give you a new look at aspects of your life that were hidden by your busy-ness. You may surrender in the present moment and find your perspective opening up to fresh insight.
A temporary sense of disorientation leads to new awareness because you move outside of your comfortable box of the familiar and safe. Pattern interrupts can be very productive. Recently, I had the experience of being unplugged -- by choice. For a while I felt weird. Once I accepted and embraced the feelings, I was fine. In fact, I grew to enjoy the energy that had been released by detaching. I felt freer.
What about awakening to greater conscious awareness -- becoming more aware of what is right and proper for you in the moment? How could you be more switched on to yourself, less plugged in to electronic gear, or only when it serves you? It involves becoming more masterful, so that you are less a victim of unconscious drives and apparent needs, and more in tune with your intuitive understanding and wisdom.
The new UK government is taking unplugging on board.
Mobile Phones and Blackberries are banned in UK Cabinet meetings.
The opportunity of learning to unplug and recharge is that of awakening more fully to the enormity of the human spirit within you. It is that innate loving spirit that will guide you to improve the quality of your life, and the lives of those important others around you.
Why and how to recharge your relationships? Here are a few tips:
1. YOURSELF
The relationship with anyone else starts with the relationship you have with yourself. How can you recharge yourself?
Having half hour "check ins" is a good way to stand back from a computer screen, and if necessary do something different for say five, 10 or 15 minutes to regain some perspective.
Go for a walk or swim and nurture your mind with affirmative statements. For example, recently I walked for half an hour chanting the Peace Prayer: God bless you, I love you, Peace, Be still. I returned to my computer relaxed and alert.
Sometimes, I will stretch out and do some deep breathing. Breathing in, I may focus on one word like Joy or Happy or Fun or Receive. Simply letting go as I breathe out.
Try doing repetitive chores around the house and garden for a mental freshening up. Ironing, pulling up weeds, re-potting plants, browsing through and clearing a cabinet, closet or set of shelves can help to clear and freshen the mind.
2. INTIMATES
Your nearest and dearest may be the ones who most miss you when you are plugged in.
In retirement, it becomes too easy to share a house but not share a life when one partner is forever plugged in. Children also need to learn self-discipline with their electronic gadgets. They will learn more from your actions than your words.
Make time for your loved ones. Create dates to do things together you really enjoy. Mealtimes can be recharging by creating conversation topics that stimulate and entertain you; sharing funny moments, times of gratitude, adventures, mishaps and triumphs.
3. OTHERS
As good as skype or Facebook are to stay in touch with others, there is absolutely no substitute for spending time face to face, being with a group of friends, making contact in person, sharing a hug, gathering the subtle nuances of human beingness that simply do not communicate electronically.
"Shooting the breeze" over tea or coffee, letting your thoughts exchange and develop with a good friend can be very productive and enjoyable. Recharge your senses by getting out in the world, to be in nature, listen to live music, view paintings in an exhibition and sharing these moments with others, will enrich your life.
Do you find it difficult to unplug? If so, what is difficult for you about that? How do you creatively recharge yourself when your batteries have gone flat? I would love to hear from you.
Please feel free to leave a comment below, or contact me at anne@annenaylor.com

Re-tweet or pass to friends who may enjoy this post.
For updates on The New Wealth Book, click here for the latest from the New Wealth Book Blog 8 Questions To Help You To Choose Your Vows

For information on my future blogs, click on Become A Fan at the top.
Follow Anne Naylor on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Anne4Joy
Tom Matlack: A Parent's Guide to Unplugging and Recharging
Laura Trice: Honoring your needs without feeling guilty
Great piece and very timely (for me). Unplugging is essential for us all. I was reminded as I was reading your piece, how I need to discipline myself daily, in order to develop the habit of stillness, breathing consciously and just 'being'. Thank you for this very important reminder!
What a poignant piece! I needed to read this, I definitely have to pry myself away from the computer at times to unplug! but I know how critical it is, thanks for bringing this forward in such an enlightening way.
Jason
Thank you for being here, and for your kind words.
No matter how good something may be, we still need to give ourselves a break from it. We have many possible dimensions to fulfil in our lives, if only we allow it.
With love and blessings to you,
Anne
We are tuned into the same wavelength. My last post was on Solitude For Extroverts, and the life-saving grace of silence and stillness for those of us who are normally plugged into life at 1000 Mega Watt voltage most of the time.
I made some of the same points you are making, especially regarding what keeps us from unplugging from the world and going within. Silence and stillness can be quite a scary proposition for one who is always on the move and at the center of it all. Lately, more and more, I am requiring "time outs" from everything. I am welcoming this time as a time to restore balance and right the ship. I know that if I don't honor this impulse to unplug, my body will have its way with me and create some breakdown that forces me to unplug. So why not be at choice about it and generate it the way I want it?
Thanks for this gracious reminder. How are you enjoying the film festival?
Much love,
Judith
Welcome to my page!! Not exactly, but you know what I mean I think.
I love what you say here: "So why not be at choice about it and generate it the way I want it?" The "time outs" I too value enormously. They are the moments I take to integrate what I have been learning. As much as I enjoy being out and connected with the world in many ways, I gain so much from taking the time to connect inwardly. It is a breathing in and breathing out thing. It helps me to lay down a solid foundation for my next step forward, which I get to see more clearly.
The Film Festival is a lot of fun. I won a pair of tickets in the city of Cannes "tirage" to see Butiful this evening at 7. So I get to go on the red carpet! I had not realized how vast the festival is. Cannes gets transformed for 10 days! http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en.html
Thank you very much for your contribution. I appreciate how you speak from the heart.
With best love,
Anne
So good to see you here! I agree with you.
The freedom to be able to detach periodically and give ourselves a good break is essential, however good our attachments might be!
I appreciate your comment.
With love,
Anne
I agree "relationship" can sound really laboured. Can you come up with a better word?
There is still plenty of lust filled romance around. All included in the realm of human possibility.
However, you are probably already unplugged to enjoy it. So no story here - or not for this post.
Thanks for your comment!
Joy to you,
Anne
What a great post!
I have decided to unplug my family- no tv and no internet for 2 weeks. Believe me, the pain is MINE! Watching 4 kids detox from screen addictions has been a truly enlightening experience. They complain they are bored- yet after that few minutes of tension, gradually they sort of look around, blink, and come up with something creative and more relaxing to do. My teenager is playing guitar more, my 7 year old got our her crayons, and all 4 of them are spending more time outside. Love to hear the Brits are taking the lead with regulating and demanding the recharge!
Thank you so much for contributing your inspiring example. I am sure many could benefit from taking a similar brave stand.
With love,
Anne
I can't wait to hear the tales of your two week unplug and recharge!
Much Love,
Eli
Do you find it difficult to unplug? I meditate everyday it really is a blessing. It puts things into perspective. I would like to go into the jungle and meditation for a long time. Someday will :-)
How do you creatively recharge yourself when your batteries have gone flat? Meditation is the key as itis my favorite of all things. We are teaching a meditation workshop next month at IONS - the Institute of Noetic Science - astronaut Edgar Mitchell and Dan Millman will join us for a Saturday night panel. It's in Petaluma -California - should be a taste of peace!
In Joy- Ed
Yes, it is inspiring to see the lead being taken by the new British Prime Minister with banning phones in meetings.
Jungle meditations... that would be amazing. There is such extraordinary energy in jungles. As for tastes of peace in Petaluma - that sounds like bliss to me.
Thank you for your inspiring presence here!
Huge love and blessings to you,
Anne
Ed
I think unplugging is soooo important in today's world. So far I have refused to buy a smart phone or any "crackberry" style handheld device, because I think they are addictive and we are letting our kids get too addicted to tech too young in my humble opinion.
We live a paperless, ultra mobile life traveling the globe on an open ended world tour, so the internet is our lifeline in many ways, but I prefer to do it via laptop, so I can control our time on and make sure we are also in nature and away from all electronics for much of every day.
Finding time to unplug and recharge is harder than ever today, but so very important. There are wonderful benefits to the new technology, but we must also monitor it closely, so that we are controlling it, instead of it controlling us!
Thanks for your thoughtful post!
Jeanne
http://www.soultravelers3.com/
What joy to hear from you! As an expert on using the internet, your comment is really one I appreciate. I love how you are managing your time on the laptop.
I so agree with what you say here: "There are wonderful benefits to the new technology, but we must also monitor it closely, so that we are controlling it, instead of it controlling us! "
Wishing you ever continuing joy and fun on your travels and I look forward to hearing more about your adventures when I plug in to your contributions!
With big love, Light and blessings,
Anne