The sick cyborg epidemic

 

Jason Berek-Lewis Founder, Healthy Startups 

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What if I am wrong about healthy cyborgs? What if mobile health, smart phones, data tracking peripherals, Google Glass and online social networking are really making us very sick?

If you are experiencing some of the following symptoms, you could be a sick cyborg:

head in the clouds
anti social networking
the gamification of life
content bingeing 
machine drug addiction
notification nausea

Our incessant craving for new technologies, constant access, the next big thing and granular gratification is creating a new generation of distracted, dissatisfied, disconnected and depressed tech users.

Our need to be online is detracting from our personal real world relationships, our engagement in physical activity and our desire to experiment and discover things that are real, tangible and lasting.

Sick cyborgs have created a world where everything is transient: hardware, software, celebrity, infotainment, 'news', friendship, interests, learning.

Sick cyborgs espouse the benefits of the cloud, but what if it's not a cloud but a miasma of distration, desire and delinquency?

While we dream of and build healthy cyborgs maybe we are actually making ourselves sick: forgoing sleep, living off ramen and caffeine, cashing out our relationships and crowdsourcing our sense of self.

Here's the cure (or maybe I am just another snake oil salesman). Close this post. Log off. Auto save whatever it is that you are working on and pick it up later...

Go and live your life - in the real world (at least until the next notification chime).  


Also see: The Rise of Healthy Cyborgs

Share your vision of mobile health through Google Glass

Jason Berek-Lewis Founder, Healthy Startups 

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Google Glass is going to disrupt everything - and while there are privacy concerns - one sector that will be changed forever, and I firmly believe for the better, will be healthcare.

What does mhealth look like through Glass?

If you are building a health and/ or fitness app for Google Glass, I want to feature your work on our Startup Blog! Please get in touch via Twitter or email to talk more about how we can work together to make some noise about your awesome work!

Entrepreneurs! How do you crush your distractions?

Jason Berek-Lewis Founder, Healthy Startups 

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Notifications, @ replies, DMs, SMSes, Likes, +1s, new podcasts, emails, reminders, finely filtered Instagrams, LoL cats, the next Gangnam Style, Foursquare check ins (does anyone still use Foursquare?), RSS deluges, YouTube, memes, Angry Birds, app updates and more... Welcome to the distraction economy, where we get 'paid'/ 'rewarded' for our lack of focus, we live for the next hit, we crave the crush of content and delectable digital delights to alleviate us from the boredom of... well... loving, living and achieving.
 

Entrepreneurs and the double edged despair of distraction fatigue

Why build something, achieve new heights, change the world when you can watch someone else do it in real time, just by following their Tweet stream and YouTube channel?

Why build something, achieve new heights, change the world when chances are no one else will notice because they are too busy retweeting the latest pic of Kim Kardashian's latest pedicure?

Why even bother trying if you are convinced that the builder of the Next Big Thing will be half your age?

You don't become an entrepreneur/ startup founder by being distracted by TechCrunch, Mashable, On Startups or even this blog (but I don't want you to go away just yet! Please be distracted enough to click on one of the Google ads displayed to your right...). You won't build the next Instagram meets Gowalla meets Highlight meets Vine meets Snapchat by losing yourself in the 'stream economy' (hat tip to Gary Vaynerchuk).

Crush your distractions!

How do you beat your distractions? Here are some of the tactics and tools that I am trying...

• Go outside (oh, the horror!) and exercise without your phone. I know we are all healthy cyborgs now, but do we really need to track how far we walk/ cycle/ run? Isn't it more important to just do it?
• Turn off the notifications on your phone/ tablet/ browser - or at least cut off the 'chime' that rings out everytime something happens
• Better yet, actually turn off your phone and tablet for a period each day - my suggestion is don't turn your devices on until you have crossed 1 - 3 things off your (OMG they are always digital!) to do list. I give you the OK to check your Todoist or Any.Do online
• Set, and stick to, rules for each part of your day. Check your (insert distraction vice here) as a reward for completing a piece of work
• If possible, actually meet with your team, face to face and outside the office, over a cup of cofee. And don't bring your devices! Get someone to take notes in one of these (apologies if you are 20 or younger and have no idea what hard copy paper is)
• Turn off your devices before you go to bed. If you are in a relationship, there are sweeter games to play in bed than Candy Crush Saga!

I could well be one of the most distracted people online. I know I need to crush my distractions so that I can Crush It!

How do you escape the double edged despair of distraction fatigue? Share your tips below! 

Also see: Get organised 

Providing advice to startups? Don't make this mistake!

Jason Berek-Lewis Founder, Healthy Startups 

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It's tough getting the gig to advise a startup. You have to put years into building your profile, into blogging, into speaking at conferences and meetups, into social media channels and building communities... Along the way, you will find yourself being asked for advice and giving advice - for free - because you want to build your brand, your reputation and your reach.

I do this all the time and I have to stop doing this! Free advice isn't valueless, it's priceless and in the end it's cheating! The person receiving the advice is not the cheater, but the person giving it away for free is! By giving advice away for free you are cheating yourself of income and time that you could be using to earn money.

The real reason that people ask you for advice is because you are an expert. It has taken you a lot of work and a long time to get there, so don't be ashamed or afraid of charging for the advice.

One final tip - don't ever charge people for your time... Charge them for the value that you deliver. 

 Also see: 4 awesome ways to help startups 

Every startup needs a pet dog

Jason Berek-Lewis Founder, Healthy Startups 

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Jedi - the wonder dog!

If your startup is looking to expand and you are wondering who your next hire should be, allow me to make a suggestion: go out and buy a dog!

Countless research studies, including this recent one from Virginia Commonwealth University, highlight the benefits of bringing your dog in to work:

• Employees experience lower levels of stress
• Lower levels of stress lead to fewer sick days for staff
• Happier, healthier staff are more productive

So, what is stopping your startup from going to the dogs? I'd love to take Jedi to work with me, but here are some things you will need to consider before signing Fido up as your startup's next member of staff:

• Are any of your staff or clients afraid of dogs?
• What will your landlord say?
• Is your dog wary of strangers or fiercely territorial?
• Will having your best friend at work make it too tempting to sneak out for walks...

Startups have a much more flexible environment than most typical corporations. Take advantage and bring your pooch to work - it might be the best hire you ever make...

If you work at a startup and you have a pet in the office - please share your storu in the comments below or email me on jason AT healthystartups DOT com