I have a love-hate relationship with living in a hyperconnected world. Despite it being free will when it comes to deciding on our level of connectivity, it sometimes seems as if we are pushed into being mapped in.
A hyperconnected world has made living easier and cheaper without a doubt. On Wednesday of this week, I had a five-hour internet disruption, which prevented me from working or doing any digital errands. It made me reflect on how dependent I have become on the internet; how impossible it seems to survive without it and how it has changed our behaviour patterns. In some ways, it has made us selfish when it comes to thinking about others, the environment and the future without even realizing it.
By nature, human beings are frugal for the most part and, if anything, having the internet at our fingertips has intensified this aspect of us. The first thing anyone does these days before buying anything is to scour the internet to ensure they are getting value for their money; which is fair, we work hard. The marketplace for literally every type of product has become so competitive that it has become natural to think primarily about price and hardly ever about the impact it has on labour or the environment.