The Value of Traditions - Creating and Enjoying Human Experiences

I've recently been pondering on the role of traditions in a fast-paced digital world, that is focused on driving efficiency, productivity, and getting more done.

Our phones have our full attention with emails, messages, social media, video and games consuming majority of daytime hours. And AI is expected to super-charge all of this as our time, attention and data become highly sought-after commodities. Keeping us entertained within the closed walls of the eco-system is the prize.

In today's immersive virtual world, where it is challenging to distinguish between the real and the fake whether it be art, news, videos or even people, what is it that can ground our sense of reality? This becomes especially critical for the gen Z and Alpha.

Being able to disconnect is the obvious answer but it not easily achieved as work, school, friends and entertainment is all online. Being active through sports, going out for runs, walks or hikes are all ways to connect with the real world while also offering the opportunity to socialize with friends beyond the screen.

Simply making and enjoying human experiences is going to be of real value in the coming decades.?

And that brings me to the topic of some traditional analogue experiences in my personal life that I take immense joy in as a means of disconnecting from the tyranny of the screen.

While the digital calendar still dictates my schedule and how I organize my day, I handwrite my own notes and make the time to journal a couple of pages everyday. The act of writing, without the ability to simply delete words on a screen, no spell checkers, focuses attention, gives structure to my thoughts, and allows for free flow of ideas. The mind slows down? to keep pace with the speed of the pen flowing on paper giving my thoughts more coherence and meaning.

Similarly, while I still have my music on the go through Apple Music, Spotify and Tidal, but at home I prefer to listen to vinyls on the turntable - a decidedly retro passion as you cannot fast-forward or skip? songs and you need to change the sides of the disc manually, brush the surface, and manually position the tonearm. This calls for patience, enjoying the music by being present and physically engaging with the medium. It makes it all very real!

And finally, we all live the life of convenience with the ability to order food delivery on the app from hundreds of thousands of different restaurants spanning diverse cuisines to enjoy true variety in our lives. But taking the time to visit the grocery to purchase supplies, checking the freshness of the vegetables and quality of the meat, cutting the greens, chopping and marinating the meat, organizing the spices, and cooking the meal takes a degree of commitment that not everyone is able and willing to make. But the satisfaction I derive from a home-cooked meal, having taken the time and effort to do so is relaxing, comforting and healthy. Even if not everyday, once in a while, during the weekends, is pure therapy.?

Not everyone can find the time to meditate and disconnect; some are not inclined to do so, but incorporating some practices in everyday life that slows you down, allows you to focus on the present, touch and feel real things, and make real connections will keep us real in the long run.

Does that make sense to you? Let me know what you think. And do share this message if you agree.

? Rangam Bir 2025