Change will not come if we wait for some other time. We are the change that we seek. Through the years, we’ve watched technology grow like a child budding into adulthood. It has certainly made aspects of our lives easier. Cory Doctorow once said “This is why I loved technology: if you used it right, it could give you power and privacy”.

Never have we had greater access to knowledge than we have right now—limitless information just a few clicks away. Any sufficiently advanced technology is equivalent to magic. But what are we sacrificing when we tether our brains to our devices – that is the question. If you use technology at every opportunity as a replacement for critical thinking or problem solving, your physical, cognitive and social capabilities will begin to lose their edge.

There are ways to make technology work to your intellectual advantage. The best way to make technology work for you instead of against you is to be smart about it—utilize it in order to allow you the time and mental energy to engage in higher-level cognitive activities. The whole idea is not about the choice between using the technology or not. The challenge is to use it right.