Have cell phones ruined our social interactions?

I want to first start off by saying I love the technology I use on a day to day basis. I use a smartphone, laptop and tablet every single day. The ease of use of these items for business and information, cannot be understated. You literally have access to an infinite amount of data at your fingertips. This newer technology has allowed people to completely work from home as the normal office setting is no longer a must in the business world. With this technology comes a major drawback that a lot of people may not realize, lack of in person social interaction.

I am lucky that I went through school before cellphones were in every hand. When you hung out with friends, you did just that, hung out. Nobody was looking on their phones while "hanging" with friends. We went outside, we laughed, we did crazy stuff because we had to find our entertainment that way. Some of my best memories as a kid and a teenager were just building forts, riding bikes, and road trips with family and for hockey. Everyone was tight knit and we had a blast and amazing memories that will last a lifetime.

Now I am not saying that kids nowadays don't have fun playing and hanging with friends, but it is different. Time is now spent checking youtube all night, burying their faces in their phones playing games and browsing apps, and not actually speaking to each other all that much. I have seen kids that literally will not eat their dinner unless they are allowed to play on their phone and this is at age 5!!!! Something needs to change or social interaction will get even worse.

Another downside is a lot of kids these days do not know how to speak to people by looking at them and having a conversation. They are so use to looking at a phone and not interacting with a human that it is getting lost on the next generation. I will say that there are a lot of parents out there that teach their kids these skills and limit the amount of time is spent with phones and video games.

Like I said earlier, I love my technology and all that it offers, but there should be a limit for young kids especially, on how much time is allowed on a phone. Have a family game night and turn off the phones and television. Invite people over for a BBQ and make people put down the phones for an hour. Laughing and being around others is good for your soul. I think social interaction can be saved, we just have to be mindful how much time we spend with our phones compared to actual interaction with people.

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think.