While both accompany us to far-flung places, let’s appreciate the differences between a smart device and our adventure buddies.
Having a consistent, solid partner (or squad) with whom we get after it is the White Whale of adventure pursuits. There is no substitute for a person or posse who, when facing a landscape of unknowns, we trust to be wholly oriented in the same direction. These are relationships built over time and miles, kindred spirits who turn the most outlandish visions into our most valuable experiences.
Do you know who else goes on all our most far-flung adventures? If you said, “My phone,” give yourself a gold star! Like our most beloved adventure pals, smartphones go just about everywhere we go and have seen us from our absolutely most stellar to our significantly less than that. In a survey of 274 participants, “sixty-three percent of entrepreneurs reported that it would be tougher to go for a day without their smart devices than a week without their significant other.” While adventure pals and significant others are slightly different kettles of fish (though sometimes they are one and the same), the sentiment is similar; some people believe they need their smartphones more than they need each other. Gasp!
As much as we’d like this to be surprising, considering all the times we’ve seen people out adventuring together but really just traveling through space using their smartphones, it looks like the race for favorite is on. Since winter sports, like many other adventure activities, are best pursued with our trusted adventure pals, we thought, to better distinguish between who’s who and what’s what, we’d share these helpful lists comparing smartphones and adventure buddies:
Five ways smartphones and adventure pals are similar
- They provide inspiration when we’re feeling low.
- They entertain us when we’re bored.
- We get information (some useful, some not) from both.
- They’re welcome in almost every part of our lives.
- They record our memories, share our stories, and network with others.
Five ways smartphones and adventure pals are not similar
- Smartphones are inanimate pieces of soon-to-be-outdated stuff that are basically worthless without a signal, battery, or person to help them do anything. Adventure buddies are so much better than that.
- Adventure pals look out for and encourage our wellbeing. Mobile devices disrupt sleep cycles, endlessly distract us, lead to inattention blindness, and cause various overuse injuries.
- Adventure pals support us in creating boundaries and having fun. Technology rewards us for having zero boundaries and encourages us to be stressed, anxious, and lethargic.
- Adventure buddies care about our lives. Smartphones absolutely do not care about us at all, not even a little. No matter the reminders or congratulations, smartphones will never care.
- Despite what we think, we can actually ditch our technology anytime, and no feelings will be hurt. Ditching our Adventure Pals is rude and leads to upset.
As we enjoy this season of winter sports, it’s important to pause, reflect, and make sure we’re taking care of the truly valuable things in our lives. For instance, where are smartphones enhancing our experiences, and where are they interfering? Depending on what we discover, it might be time to create boundaries to protect the things we care about most. And, despite all the mapping, weather prediction, and other advantages they bring to our outings, smartphones will never replace a good adventure pal.
Eli Shostak is a senior lecturer of adventure education at FLC with expertise in mindfulness, leadership, risk management, expedition design, and delivery, as well as tons of experience leading others in finding the inter- and intrapersonal benefits of exploring wild spaces.