Life Outside the Law
Is It Time for a Digital
DETOX? BY SCOTT R. MOTE, ESQ.
I recently had an interesting and serious conversation with a lawyer named “Dave” who told me that he was having trouble getting his work done because he felt he was addicted to technology– specifically, social media. When he wakes up in the morning, the first thing he does is scroll through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. When he cannot sleep, he reaches for his tablet to read the news.
He went on to explain how he feels like he is constantly attached to a device: his phone, his laptop, his tablet, the TV. Whether he is checking his email or checking out what his friends are doing on social media, he feels like he has to be up to date on the most recent news, his email, the weather and whatever else is happening at that moment. As we were having this conversation, his phone buzzed and interrupted him at least 20 times with different notifications, news stories, emails and texts. I asked him why he feels he has to frequently reach for his device, and he said that he has a really bad case of FOMO. I, not being up to date on the current acronyms, emojis,
66 | Columbus Bar L aw yers Quarterly Summer 2021
