The Unconnected – Life as an Analogitarian

What is life like for people who are not connected to the Internet, who do not use mobile? How do they pay their bills? Find a phone number? Get information about anything? How do they find a job?

An ever-shrinking part of the population is not ‘on the Internet’ and I’m very intrigued by this fact. Yes, there will be the homeless, and people in special care, but what about ‘normal’ people? People who purposely choose to not connect? People who choose to be an  Analogitarian? (Yes, like vegetarian). I don’t think mankind has ever forced a medium onto people as quickly and completely as the Internet. Being an analogitarian would exclude you from all kinds of jobs, where email and Internet-connected tools are key to the job. Could you do it without converting to the Amish? With self-service HR systems, collaboration platforms and planning tools, even many simple manufacturing jobs now require at least some Internet connectivity. Jobs that you initially think of (Farmer! Captain of a ship! Policeman!)… all require the Internet.

Still, thinking about it some more, it doesn’t sound so bad. No more worries about cyber security, no fragmentation of your attention, no time wasted following the trail of links and likes. You’d probably replace all that with more mindful and human activities. Perhaps part-time Analogitarian can be a thing? I think I’m going to try in weekends for now, and see where it leads…