Worker: Tech-free isn’t stress-free

Qwest stunt ‘unplugs’ businessman to show reliance on technology

Imagine the peace of no wires – and no wireless. No cellphones, no e-mail and no computers.

By The Associated Press

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~26430~1941062,00.html

Nampa, Idaho, businessman Jeff Moeser returned to the simpler life for one day and professed to love it – initially. His colleagues at work told a different story, however.

"By the end of the day, he’ll be sweating it," said fellow worker Jonathan Weech, who viewed Moeser fidgeting with a remote control device early in the day.

The "day without technology," staged by Qwest Communications International as a publicity stunt, required Moeser to forgo all technology devices.

Moeser, chief executive of Dedicated Devices Inc., a recent startup technology firm that makes a device that networks all electronic and wireless components in a home, initially said the day would be a cinch and an opportunity to get work done without interruptions.

Advertisement
Click Here!

Asked what device he would miss the most, he pulled out his Apple iPod music player – a slim pocket-sized device – and proudly displayed it.

"I can put 4,000 songs on this," he said. "It’s great. I have a trainer bike here, and I’ll listen to the iPod and ride, and I’ll even pop a movie into the DVD to watch at the same time."

Clearly, Qwest picked the right person – a self-admitted gadget guy – who had to be reminded to keep his hands off the iPod for the remainder of a brief morning interview.

Moeser, however, asserted that the day would be like a vacation.

Then he admitted that on his family’s next vacation – to Hawaii during spring break – he would certainly bring along his laptop and cellphone. And probably that iPod, too.

Barbara Faulhaber, a Qwest spokeswoman in the firm’s Denver headquarters, said they asked Moeser to do without his favorite devices for one day to highlight how tied people are to technology and communications devices.

"It’s a fun way to demonstrate how important communications is today and how reliant we are on technologies," she said.

By the afternoon, Moeser was rethinking his earlier comments.

"It’s been a challenging day," he said with a sigh. "I’m not as productive as I used to be. I’m not as effective as I could be.

"I’m surprised. I thought it would be a refreshing day where I got lots of things done." Instead, there were missed phone calls, product development that couldn’t be worked on since it involved technology, and a sense of being disconnected from the world.

"I check in on IdahoStatesman.com once a day and usually the Drudge Report and the normal technical stuff I look at," Moeser said. "I don’t know what’s going on in my e-mail. I certainly couldn’t do this for a week."