I have had the honour and privilege to travel around the world. To mingle and network with some of the most influential leaders of our age. In proximity to relationships, to learn and glean from them.

It is interesting to observe that the closer you get to people, the more real people become. You do not experience that from social media or a podcast. Yes, they INVITE you into their lives, but when you are close to others in proximity, you get to see who people REALLY are.

The highs and lows of leadership.

The pressures and demands.

The joys and weaknesses.

In proximity, here are a few leadership reflections I have learnt from leaders who lasts.

Artificial Intelligence.

Relational Bots.

High-powered devices.

Our relationship with personal technology is REAL.

We interact with sophisticated digital machines.

We consume massive bytes of online information.

We seem to be always connected online.

It is interesting to note that our relationships with personal technology can be healthy. Modes of productivity, the ability to connect with others and be informed about our world, are like nothing before in human history; and yet, at the same time, modern-day forms of technology can be extremely unhealthy as personal technology isolates us from each other, hooks us into damaging modes of information, manipulates our thought processes, and can even damage our souls.

Modern-day loneliness is REAL.

Isolationism caused by digital spaces, hypersensitivity to individualism, consumerism of relationships, and an increase in personal technology has caused…

… A skeptical outlook on authoritative structures, an acute criticism of shared community standards, the rise of mental health issues, busyness due to economic and political realities, and personalization of truth, and…

 … I propose that quality + mature human relationships will be the highest form of wealth in the modern-day world?

We live in a world bombarded with information.

Unregulated, the modes of information coming at us through our digital devices can cause symptoms of information overload, which I call Infobesity.

Symptoms of distraction, blue-screen fatigue, slight forms of mental illness, and feelings of anxiety, overwhelm, and sadness can set in.

Even spiritually, Infobesity can cause damage to our souls – we lack coping skills to deal with personal brokenness, relational isolationism, identity confusion, polarization of truth, and hyper-personalization of God.

 In saying this, how can modern-day followers of Jesus living in a digital age practice the Sabbath?