I’m afraid of notifications

In 2013 whilst freelancing I was doing some work for a particularly interesting organisation, one of which operated in an unusual sector and had an unbelievable audience, I mean the traffic this site received was incredible.

The project began to get stressful and the client started to throw their weight around. It was a complex project, comprised of multiple individuals with specific responsibilities, and whilst mine weren’t going swimmingly I was on hand to fix them, but I was also getting stick for things that weren’t to do with me.

I received a decent amount of abuse over email, and whilst I stood up for my position it still wasn’t welcome, not least as this was meant to be a positive time for me and my family, with graduations and the arrival of my nephew.

Emails would land at all times of day and night, and the notification ding was very quickly becoming the warcry of the asshole.

I completed the project and got the hell out of dodge, even leaving an unpaid invoice on the table because the cost of additional stress wasn’t worth the small amount I wanted for some scope changes.

Even though the situation had passed, the affects were continuing with strange consequences… a battle primarily fought by email had made me afraid of notifications. The notification ding would have a hold of me, each instance making me question who wanted their slice of my attention.

I dislike how we’re seemingly always connected, and how notifications are allowed priority access to our head space, at any given time, night or day the dreaded ding will rear it’s head.

I’m now strict with what apps on my phone notify me. Nothing from Twitter, nothing from Instagram, nothing from BBC News. If it’s important enough I’ll check when I want to.

I’m also make sure that I don’t receive superfluous emails, anything remotely irrelevant is unsubscribed from, and those who make it difficult are marked as spam. Additionally, regular updates from apps we use such as Basecamp are modified to only email when appropriate.

I also don’t passively receive work email on my phone, I have it setup but it’s only there if I need to get info while on the go. With that said, I do have alerts setup to notify me at any time of website / server issues, that’s okay as it’s my role in the business and I do all I can for issues to not arise.

I’m still cautious of notifications, and whilst I’m not fearful of receiving them anymore, I still continue with my aggressive “less is more” strategy.

I suppose it’s inevitable with the way we’re using devices and apps these days that we’re opening ourselves up to all manner of interruptions… both time and brains space, I’m glad I’m aware of it now, make sure you’re aware of it too.

I was inspired to post this after the recent Geek Mental Help Week and World Mental Health Day.