This morning, while writing my morning pages, I found myself listening to the
hum of my desktop computer. I stopped writing and I took a moment to turn off
my computer. After a moment of hearing the hardware dial down, I was now in a
quieter room.

This shift from up-time to down-time became incredibly apparent when I looked
to turn off my phone. A moment later, my kindle was off too. That’s three
powered devices within arms length at the desk.

That’s when I paused.

And then I asked myself, do I expect my machines need to run at 100% uptime?

Then another, does running machines at 100% uptime mean I need to manage them
100% of that time?

As I sat listening to my furnace kick off, I was struck by how simple the logic
of its operation.

Meet objective, then turn off blower motor;
if not met, ignite and heat,
then, initialize blower motor;
and, turn off gas to flame;
pull thermostat reading:
if objective met, turn off blower motor.

Ask yourself:

• what if more of my work process included turning off as a key component to its functioning?
• Am I expected to run my machines 100% of the time?
• By extension of that, am I expected to run 100% of the time
• And, do I try to meet that irrational standard?

If this is a new concept to you, turning off your devices, take a moment and do
it now.

(Bonus points if you measure how much time your device has been off.)