The lost art of white space
As the years pass it seems like there is an alarming trend in our lives of becoming more and more automated. Some would perhaps say that one of the home appliances that most revolutionized our way of life was the washing machine. According to the late Hans Rosling, the washing machine was a true miracle for his grandmother. Fast forward to today and our homes are full of machines. The creation of washing machines made women's duties in the house easier and helped them to get the work done quicker. There was a time when women had to set aside a whole day in the week and dedicate it to doing laundry for the family. The electric washing machine combined with the electric iron – gave women back more than six hours of the time they once spent doing the laundry. In the early to mid-1900s, electricity would give women a new superpower: access to devices that saved them time doing basic household chores. Pretty amazing huh?
What did women do instead? Well we started entering the workplace and thus contributed to economic growth. As a family, did we really get more time, or did we instead get less?
Don’t get me wrong- I’m a huge advocate for women having equal opportunities and the washing machine did help with that. However, what I’m interested in exploring in this blogpost is how many of these automated machines actually do add positives to our lives and what have we lost along the way? In today’s western world (I recognize that this entire conversation is rooted in privilege, but my intention is to explore if over innovation truly does make us happier in the end) there are robot vacuums, robot lawn mowers, electric scooters, battery driven ice scrapers, food delivery, summaries of books (blinkist) etc etc. To be completely frank we don’t need to do much anymore. Also, for everything that we used to use our bodies to operate we are now using electricity. Seems to perhaps contradict with another issue- climate change? However, that is for another conversation.
We are becoming more and more comfortable.
Our lives are undeniably easier now, but comfort doesn’t equal happiness. In fact, it seems that many people are more stressed and depressed than ever. The physical struggles of survival have been replaced by mental challenges, like rising levels of anxiety, stress, depression, and occupational burnout. Although, as humans we are hardwired to seek comfort, it’s not necessarily good for us. Some anthropologists have speculated that we were happier thousands of years ago. Our needs were simpler and easier to satisfy, and we were naturally mindful, living in the moment. Like my grandmother used to say the best things in life are worth working hard for. How would you feel if someone just handed you the Olympic gold medal, a full bank account or a written book to sell as your own? Probably not great in the long run- right?
It is one thing to save time but what are you saving your time for?
It seems like the more time we save the more intentional we must be with the time that we receive. We must plan in white space because it doesn’t happen naturally anymore. Remember back in the day when you sat on a train or a bus and just stared out the window letting your thoughts flow freely for the entire journey? What do we do now? Look at our phones?
So, what is white space? According to an article on Medium, white spaces are these small moments where we have time to pause and reflect, or go for a walk, or just breathe deeply for a few moments. It is what gives us balance and flow and comprehension to our lives as a larger whole. White space in our lives creates space, balance, emphasis on what's important, and a feeling of peace that we cannot achieve with a more cramped life.
Has white space lost the battle of our attention for the automation in our lives? The natural white space we used to have vacuuming, mowing the lawn, and cooking is decreasing at an alarming rate. We have never had more time and we have never been as unhappy?
Perhaps next time you outsource a life task to automation ask yourself what it truly is you are outsourcing. Is it just a task or is it a moment in nature, fresh air, or time to yourself?
Xx Alexandra