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Good Morning. Here is a great thought for the day:

Technology can be our best friend or our worst enemy. As we race into the twenty-first century, bombarded by information from all sides, many people seem to have an irresistible, if not obsessive, need to communicate continually with people everywhere — in their personal and business lives.

This compulsion to communicate incessantly — entailing the nonstop use of cell phones, BlackBerry devices, personal digital assistants, the Internet (both wireless and wired), and various contact management systems such as Microsoft Outlook and Maximizer — tends to leave people psychologically breathless. We have no time to stop, smell the roses, and collect our thoughts.

Bill Gross, manager of more than $600 billion in fixed-income funds and bonds, is famous for exercising regularly and meditating daily to keep centered while using no technology at all. He turns off his phones, leaves his BlackBerry in his office, and exercises without the continual interruptions of people who have an overwhelming need to stay connected. And he says that he never misses an important message... When he arrived back at the office after a two week vacation, more than 700 emails were waiting for him. He realized that it would take him a week to get through them all, during which time he wouldn't be able to tackle any of the projects waiting on his desk.

For the first time in his career, he took a deep breath and punched the Delete All button, erasing those 700 emails forever. He then got busy with the projects that were really important to him and his company.

His explanation was simple: "I realized that, just because somebody sends me an email, it does not mean that they own a piece of my life in terms of my having to reply to them, now or ever. In addition, it occurred to me that if the email was really important, the sender would send it again." And that's exactly what happened.

A Servant, Not a Master

For us to be able to concentrate on those few things that make the most difference in our business or personal life, we must discipline ourselves to treat technology as a servant, not as a master. Its purpose is to make our life smoother and easier, not to create complexity, confusion, and stress.

Guess what — the world seems to continue revolving whether or not you are in continuous contact with it. Problem solved, answers get found, work gets done, and life continues to flow along like Old Man River. Nothing is so important that it cannot wait. Whatever it is, remember 50 years from now it won't make any difference.

Have a wonderful day.

"Each morning is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When the sun rises tomorrow this day will be gone forever, in its place will be something you have left — may it be something good. Follow your heart, it knows what to do."

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