Which came first?
Too much data? Or the tools to deal with all that data?
There was a time in my life when I had an incredible memory.
Scary good.
Today, I have tools for memory.
- Smartphone for reminders
- Online and paper folders
- Clouds to capture it all
My baby boomer brain weeps in exhaustion.
Selective Memory
I have redefined selective memory.
I constructed shields against the bombardment of too much stuff. I half listen to details, relying on memory tools to tell me later. Much later.
Packing Memory
Take for example my upcoming trip to San Diego.
I am participating in my 10th 3-Day, 60-mile Walk for the Cure. I also use the annual trip to see friends, meet with clients, and visit a prospect or two.
Last year, my boomer brain buckled under the strain as I packed for three. (No, I am not carrying triplets -Ha!)
- A personal trip for casual and sunny San Diego events
- A business trip with proper attire and business tools
- The 3-Day event of walking 60 miles and all that sweat
So, now I have lists, and reminders, and schedules – oh my.
Walk in My Shoes
At our recent 10-year reunion in beautiful Lake Tahoe, I had the opportunity to go on a job site with one of my teammates.
She is an interior designer. Seeing her work first-hand was more fun than an episode on HGTV.
I always thought my teammate wasn’t much of a details person. Boy, was I wrong.
There were contractors’ questions, calls from the homeowner, and furnishings to coordinate. In other words – a LOT of details.
The experience gave me a whole new perspective.
The moral of the story?
Your important data may not be their important data.
So, the next time you think someone is blowing you off, consider this.
His or her tools may be crowded with other stuff.
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Live…Laugh…Love
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Great moral, Cathy. Don’t you find that the more tools we have, the harder it is to remember anything? I have a scary-good memory for directions. We were in Brazil and I was directing my husband back to the B&B from memory. I don’t read Portuguese, so the signs were of no use to me. I can find us back to anywhere we’ve been…that is, until the GPS came along. Now I rely on it, too much in fact. What I need to do is turn it off and trust my gut.
Details are great if you can remember them. 🙂
I agree, Lori. The infamous they say all this techie stuff is re-wiring our brains, and I believe it.
I had a coworker once who told me I gave the greatest directions because I always included landmarks. And I always had a fabulous sense of direction, but now I find I’ve lost some of that. I suspect it’s like you said – relying on technology instead of my own senses.
Around the Zen Center we often tell each other TMI when there’s too much information. And you know what? A lot of what passes for communication ends up being TMI – fluff that’s just not part of what needs to be said.
I know I have a bad habit of TMI when I speak. One more reason it’s not always good to write like you speak. 😉
Thanks, Anne.