Technology To Help You Manage Your Life
March 16, 2022 - Shauna Jurczak

I’ll be the first to admit it: I dislike most technology. I’m an old-fashioned paper and pen kind of girl.   

Yes, I have technology. I have a computer. It is 2022, after all! Of course, I also have a cell phone, which I still choose to make actual phone calls on. I have an iPad, which I have a love-hate relationship with. It does what I need, but I’d happily leave it on the shelf if I didn’t need to use it for work. I recently got a Smart TV, too. The TV, I’ll admit, is pretty cool.  

It’s fair to say I use technology, but I don’t necessarily like it. That is, until I got a new smart watch last week. I never knew there could be so many helpful tools that I could access from my wrist! Certainly, there are multiple brands of watches like the one I picked. I just picked the Fitbit because it seemed right for me. (This is not a promo for Fitbit!) I have to say, this watch has so many features to help me better balance my life – and seriously, I can do it all on my wrist! 

Before I continue, I ask you be kind in my assessment of this newfound tech-love. I may be late to the party on this topic, so some of the features I am so enamored with may be old news to you, but hear me out. Maybe today’s post will help reignite your desire to better balance your life with a little tech help, too! 

I’m all for finding tips, tricks, and tools to help you lower stress, find balance, and better achieve your goals. Things to help you make life easier and be more efficient. Who knew a watch could help with this? Not me! 

How often do you pick up your phone or turn on your computer to see if you have any notifications? 

Too often! It has become (a bad) habit to constantly check for notifications. Social media, email-correspondence, the remote work lifestyle in general, has trained us to be hyper aware of the notifications we’re receiving, at all times of the day, no matter where we are or what we’re doing. Phone notifications interrupt our workouts, dinners, family time, and even our own personal quiet time. The need to check for notifications has such a negative impact on our ability to truly find a work-life balance. 

By setting up notifications on my watch, I can easily glance at a “pop-up” and see if it requires my immediate attention, or if it can wait. Facebook friend request? I can look at that later. Email I’ve been waiting for all day from a business connection? Yes, time to get to work. I can even silence notifications if I don’t want to be disturbed at all. 

By doing this, I still feel in control. I feel connected and aware, but without having to pull out my phone to check for notifications every 5 minutes. Instead, I can make a mental note of the things coming in and prioritize them. Then when I do sit down to open up my email or social media, I can take care of the notifications I got and spend less time scrolling away on the “scroll-hole” (that 5 minutes of checking Instagram that somehow turns into 60 minutes of random scrolling!) In turn, I can decrease my phone/tablet dependency, and free up more time to enjoy life, without the feeling of missing out. 

Do you drink enough water? Get enough exercise? Sleep well? 

The watch and corresponding app help to track it all! A water tracker makes getting enough water throughout the day a top priority. Movement reminders go off if you’ve been sitting for too long. Wearing it to sleep tracks your sleep metrics. Plus, you can set goals for all of it!  

Needless to say, we can all benefit from a bit more water, a bit more movement, and a good night’s rest! 

Do you crave a moment of calm in your day?  

I don’t know why I didn’t lead with this feature! Life is hectic but built into the watch is an app that allows you to pause for two minutes to do a quick breathing exercise. With a tap of the watch face, you can find two-minutes of calm to re-centre yourself anytime during the day. Two minutes may not seem like much, but it’s easy to follow, easy to fit in your daily schedule, and it’s effective! 

Two minutes of breathing can work wonders for relieving stress, anxiety, and benefiting from a little pause in the middle of a hectic day. 

What are you craving? 

When I got my new Fitbit watch, I wanted it to connect to my phone, track my fitness, and to be truthful, I liked the stylish look of it. I got way more! I feel like I have a management tool on my wrist – from the weather, to my calendar, to a calculator, to all the things I mentioned before, and beyond!  

So maybe, just maybe, technology isn’t all bad. I still love my good old pen and paper, but I look forward to having this new tech tool to help me balance, manage, and enjoy life even more. 

I’m curious, do you have a tech tool, app or device, that you love or recommend? Let me know!