Does technology make us lazy?

jiyajpai
Jul 25, 2022
5 min read

Updated: Jul 26, 2022

I'll be looking at both sides of the story, keep reading to look into two points of view!

Technology doesn’t make us lazier

Imagine the old world. Trying to figure out the answer to a question via books. Now look at our present. We press a few buttons, and type a few letters into a rectangle that stores all of the information from thousands of books. We get an answer in less than a second. Does this make us lazy? Finding the answer to a question isn’t a lazy task. In fact, it’s the opposite: industrious. Technology and innovations are only helping us gain more knowledge and get things done efficiently.

Technology can help our world gain more knowledge. To be all geeky with you, the dictionary definition of lazy is “unwilling to do work or use energy.” Setting aside the fact that you can get a quick answer to a question, technology helps us innovate in areas that we want to explore more in. For example, the microscope has helped us combat disease, and learn more scientifically. In addition, a Britannica article states (referring to the printing press), “As the machine was perfected further, more and more books, newspapers, pamphlets, and other edifying materials became available to the public. This gradually led to greater literacy around the world, as well as the sharing of knowledge and ideas, which resulted in dramatic social and cultural advances.” These innovations helped to gain and spread knowledge. So, this, in no way, means that we are being lazy. We are simply using key resources and tools to gain information.

Technology can also get the job done more efficiently. When using a ventilator, we aren’t being lazy towards the patient. Instead of doing chest compressions 24/7, we can use a ventilator to help the patient breath. Again, this is in no way being lazy, it’s getting the job done efficiently and logically. An article made by grin.com states, “Digital technology improves effectiveness of communication and instruction strategies at school and at work.” This implies that technology makes us more coherent with our work strategy. This, again, shows efficiency but in another view.

Many think that our world has become too reliant on technology and modern innovations, therefore, blaming tech and innovations for their laziness. I don’t disagree with them, but I don’t fully agree with them. Though technology is rubbing into our daily lives more and more, we are the ones who decide if we want it to take over our life. We must also think of the good that new technological innovations give to us and whether they really make us lazy or if they make our world less lackadaisical.

Technology makes us lazier

Our world has come to the point where technology and modern innovations don’t allow us to unlock our full potential. Here are some ways technology makes us lazier:

Technology makes us put less effort into our work: Technology makes it easy for us to get information without knowing if the site is reputable or if the facts are actually factual. On the other hand, if we read multiple books to find out information, we would have, not only, better information, but correct information from reliable authors who are experts on the topic. Books are packed with facts whereas a small internet post sprinkles facts. This makes us lazy because we don’t bother to read books, we can simply do a quick google search to get answers. Here’s the solution to this problem.

Technology limits our productivity and gets us all distracted: According to calendar.com, “The distractions of email, social media, and instant messaging can detract from those productive hours.” This shows that technology, especially social media, is distracting and can lead us away from working effectively. Note: The opposite of being productive is more ‘work-shy’ than ‘lazy.’ In addition, using social media affects our sleep cycle, making it hard to wake up with a productive spirit. Here’s the solution to this problem.

Technology affects our mental health: This one’s not so much about being lazy, but it’s probably the worst downside of technology, in my opinion. There are way too many cases of kids and adults being mentally affected by social media and technology. Mental health is an ever growing problem. We should take steps to decrease the poor mental health cases. One of those steps must be cutting down on technology. Here’s the solution to this problem.

Technology leads us away from exercise: Again, bringing back the definition of lazy, “Unwilling to work or use energy.” Not doing exercise might as well be the reason why the word ‘lazy’ was made! With so much ‘sit-down’ technology, our physical health can be affected. Of course, many technologies (like a treadmill) can help balance this out. But, again, we need to be productive to exercise. Here’s the solution to this problem.

I feel guilty…now what?

Great! Now that you feel guilty, here’s how you can make technology not take over your brain! Lot’s of teachers, parents, and other adults like to tell you to “READ MORE BOOKS!” It’s true! Reading makes your knowledge a lot more accurate. It’s equally as good to follow reputable blogs. There are lots of blogs that specialize in a certain topic/subject. Try to get all of your data from people who actually know what they are talking about!

Try to not use technology near bedtime. It only distracts you from going to bed and can make you less productive in the morning. Also, try to keep your phone on airplane mode when you are in your productive hour. It helps keep you focused. Here’s a fun fact: When it’s dark, your pineal gland prompts the release of a chemical called melatonin. Melatonin is the chemical that makes you sleepy. When you use your phone, the light from the phone stops or slows down the production of melatonin, making you less sleepy.

To keep tech from affecting your mental health, we should either set restrictions for our kids’ screen time, or restrict ourselves from using social media apps that can be very noxious.

Finally, make sure to get up and move after long periods of time with technology. Remember, technology doesn’t just mean phones, laptops, or social media, technology can be lots of things! You can even use technology to motivate you to move. Find an online fitness instructor for free on YouTube or find a good fitness blog. Not to mention the endless amounts of technology for physical exercise like a treadmill, fitness tracker, even an electrical jump rope!

With all of this being said, technology is still in-between angel-like and devil-like. But, we are ultimately the people who can control our technology intake. We can’t let technology be the blame for our laziness. Hopefully this gave you a boost to get off your glutes and challenge yourself to use technology for the better instead of for worse. Speaking of challenges…down below is a popular ‘Two Week Social Media Detox Challenge.’ Tell me if you would try out this challenge by filling out the poll below!

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