Rediscovering the Power of Absence in a Digital World
If you were born before the 80s, you’ve experienced life with and without the internet.
You’re in a unique position, with one foot in the digital world and the other in a time when technology wasn’t the driving force in our daily lives.
For many of us, it’s getting harder to remember the clear distinction between those times. But right now, we have a rare opportunity to reflect on something vital — how to reclaim the power of absence.
The digital world offers endless opportunities for connection, but it raises an important question: how do we maintain a sense of intentional absence in our lives?
The ability to step away, disconnect, and reconnect with ourselves on a deeper level is becoming more elusive but increasingly essential.
Life before the internet will soon be a distant memory. The digital world will be as fundamental as electricity for future generations, which constantly surrounds them.
But in that immersion, something critical will be missing — an ability to be absent, disconnect, and intentionally create space for reflection and presence.
In the same way that every good IT person will ask you if you “have tried to switch it off and on again?” A 21st-century leader needs to model healthy boundaries for using technology both for their own sake and for those they seek to influence.
Please take some time this week to unplug. Whether for a few hours or a day, spend that time away from screens and technology.
Finally, reflect on how this absence feels and how it might help you reconnect with yourself, your thoughts, and your priorities.
