• by Jeff Einstein , September 13, 2004

In last week's column I suggested that the first step to reclaiming our power as marketing professionals is to become aware, first and foremost, of our own driving sense of deprivation. I suggested you keep a "Deprivation and Fear Journal" for three consecutive days. In it you would log every instance of every thought driven by deprivation or fear.

Before we move on, however, I would like to take a moment or two to explain the basic steps of the process that will unfold in this column over the next several months. It begins with my assertion that we don't suffer as much from chronic time starvation as we do from massive time displacement, what happens when time that might otherwise be devoted to improving the quality of our lives (not to mention the quality of our work) is diverted to the impossible pursuit of our obsessions and addictions instead.

This was evident to me in a recent conversation with a local reverend who wanted to discuss with me various ways to introduce spirituality into the workplace. The workplace, he suggested, was the obvious place to go with his message by simple virtue of the fact that it represents where we spend most of our time. He wanted my help.

The immediate problem as I envisioned it had nothing to do with the quality of his message or product, and everything to do with the reason why most people spend more and more of their time at work to begin with: Because the additional demands imposed by our addictions to technology and the media already generate far more additional work than any of us can handle. We already devote a disproportionately large share of our workdays to the operation and maintenance of our many time-saving devices. We simply can't introduce anything new -- spiritual or otherwise -- without displacing something old. Unlike its digital counterpart, human bandwidth is distinctly finite and already stretched well beyond capacity for many of us. Massive time displacement is the real reason why the quality of life -- both in and out of the office -- is in decline for so many. It's a primary function of addiction as the default condition in modern society.

Viewed in the context of time displacement rather than time deprivation, the requisite process to restore and reclaim the quality of life -- again, both in and out of the office --becomes a little clearer. As Stephen Covey would say: "First Things First."

The first step, represented by the "Deprivation and Fear Journal" I introduced two weeks ago, is to identify the thinking that generates inertia and inhibits meaningful change, and to understand in no uncertain terms that time devoted to our thoughts about deprivation and fear -- like time devoted to our obsessions and addictions -- is time diverted away from the quality of our lives. Step two is to identify how and when we ritualize the use of technology and media and how these rituals impair the quality of our lives and work. Step three is to identify more constructive and life-enhancing rituals -- and thereby more constructive and productive uses of our time -- and learn how to deploy them one by one to replace the rituals of our obsessions and addictions.

Those of you already familiar with recovery programs will recognize the above process of identifying and replacing compulsive and additive ritual with more meaningful ritual as the same basic process deployed by all addiction recovery programs, 12-step or otherwise. Destructive and compulsive behaviors are replaced over time with the gentler rituals of recovery: meetings, fellowship phone calls, working the steps, working with sponsors or mentors, eating well, exercising, taking spiritual or quiet time, etc. Recovery programs are designed to reclaim the time and restore the quality of life displaced by our compulsive behaviors and addictions.

Our compulsive disorders and behaviors don't happen overnight; they generally take time to evolve. So too does the compulsive mindset and thinking that forms like a protective cocoon around our compulsive behaviors and addictions. Eventually, as we surrender to the rigid worlds of our addictions, we lose our ability to distinguish fact from fiction. Our conscious thought and freedom of choice are displaced in the process, and we end up marching first and foremost to the self-destructive orders issued on high by our obsessions and addictions.

A paralyzing inertia is just one of the many byproducts of our addictions. But inertia in business is deadly and costly. It prevents us from taking risks and from making the requisite adjustments to our lives and businesses that promote growth and freedom.

Like our obsessions and addictions, recovery -- an ongoing process that requires the conscious reclamation of our time and energy -- is gradual; it takes time. But unlike the stealth-like process of addiction, recovery is a conscious choice, a conscious process that demands equally conscious thought, spirit, and application. It's a process worth embracing.

As the default condition, addiction is a minimum-daily-adult-requirement activity; get your fix and you're done for the day. The quality of life, however, demands more...so stay tuned.

Please note: The Einstein's Corner discussion group at http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/einsteinscorner/ is dedicated to exploring the adverse effects of our addictions to technology and media on the quality of our lives, both at work and at home. Please feel free to drop by and join the discussion.