Mike Clark's Business Bites: Finding the balance between IT and black hole

Companies around the world want your focus and attention. The more they have the more they can charge for marketing to you. Photo / Unsplash

How much time do you spend looking at your phone in a day? How much time will you commit to your phone this year?

How many times do you touch your phone in a day? For a bit of fun, write the answer down on a piece of paper before you read any further.

Following last week's Business Bites on the importance of choosing what we focus on, two articles caught my attention this week. One was a comment on the radio (and subsequently read about online) on how many times we touch our cellphones in a day, and the other a BBC article on how much of our waking time is devoted to being on mobile apps. Both articles are classically shocking and, if true, deeply concerning.

Something I have learned to do is check facts and statistics, even when published in reputable periodicals. A quick Google search will bring up the 2016 study that claims the average person touches their phone 2617 times a day! The amount of references to this article is amazing.

Before looking at your estimated number and freaking out, it is worth reading Dr Jacob Groshek's response to the research in the Journal of Communication Technology that brings in some balance.

The BBC article claims we devote a third of our waking time to mobile apps. As an individual, even if this is half true, it creates a powerful reason for reassessing where we are choosing to focus our time and attention.

From a business perspective there is a two-pronged dilemma. 1) How easily interrupted are your team through the day by technology and what is the impact on your business? 2) If people are committing so much time and attention to mobile apps, which ones are your clients looking at and should/could you be on there?

The new currency in the IT world we live in is eyeballs and mindshare. No, people do not want your physical eyeballs! Companies around the world want your focus and attention. The more they have the more they can charge for marketing to you. We are in new terrain - as business owners we need to find the balance between engaging the best parts of the information revolution and being aware of the black hole of time and distraction that it presents.

Are you clear on your expectations and guidelines at work for your team? Are you marketing on the right platforms to your clients? Are you personally aware of your habits and where your time and attention are invested daily? If not, maybe now would be a good time to start.

• Mike Clark is director and lead trainer and facilitator at Think Right business training company.