Every story has a beginning and this application is no exception. A few days ago I posted this status: “Putting your phone down and paying attention to people who are talking to you? There’s an app for that. It’s called ‘respect’.”
The post received many likes, and based on that many people visited my LinkedIn profile, one of them sent me this message: “… I found your post about the app called respect, and I couldn’t agree more… I notice this issue much too often… If you plan to start a crowd-funding campaign for this app, I’m in :-)“
This message sparked off a train of thought: “How can I turn this quote into an application?”
It took few days and it was quite fun to make this happen.
And here it is, an application called “Respect” for Android OS.
You can’t buy Respect (although you can download it now), you need to earn it from others.
Disclaimer: It’s not a magical app that will gain Respect from others. This application is not going to gain you the respect of others, but it will help you to earn it when you stop playing with your phone and become fully present with the people and in the moments that matter in your life. :)
But this app is not going to win this battle without your own efforts, and if you are not trying, you are not going break out from the “cell phone jail”.
How does this app work?
After you install the app and open it, you hit the big button “Respect” and it will turn off your screen, preventing you from using it. But when you hit the arrow icon at the end of your screen you are taken back and everything is working again.
Benefits of installing this app
- It’s going to change your life and the life of your significant other, becauseyou will discover that you are paying more attention during your private time without the temptation of Facebook.
- You will quickly realize that those little people you are always accusing of stealing your phone charger are more fun than War of Clans.
- You will be more fully present in the moment, and that matters. Being in two places at once means that you are nowhere.
- You will finally discover a book that has been lying around for years and realize that you enjoy reading real books.
- During your downtime such as driving, traveling by train, waiting for somebody, etc. you will have time to “have a think.”
- You will experience more synchronicity moments.
- Your stress levels will drop, because you don’t have to argue with other people on the internet about things that are not even important.
- During your trips, you will discover that being lost isn’t that bad, because you will find new places and meet new people.
- You will realize that your cell phone is not your friend anymore.
- I know that your neck will hurt from constantly checking your phone, but here is a small hint when you raise your head: the blue thing above your head is sky and the big brown and green things are trees. No they do not emit free Wi-Fi, but they do emit free air.
Why did I turn this idea into reality?
This app is real and it was created because of a few reasons. The first is that I love turning ideas into reality and creating new things, it’s amazingly relaxing and fun.I know that this app is not going to be hugely successful or change the life of the mankind, it’s a just a silly thing, but still it can make some difference.
The second reason is that everything starts with a quote: “Putting your phone down and paying attention to people who are talking to you? There’s an app for that. It’s called ‘respect’.” I found out that there is no app called “respect”. I know that this quote’s purpose is not to perform PR for some app, but I didn’t want to be seen as a liar because the app didn’t exist, so it’s exists now. :)
The third reason is that I would like to raise the issue that we are focusing more on our phones instead of real people. I am also guilty of this myself, I am not some special exception; my cell phone gets my attention more than I realized. So like everybody else I am trying to fight this, I don’t want to become another gadget zombie just because of my phone.
Luckily I recently started to win this battle called “not being always available” and to get my life back. It will still be a long war, but I have good motivation. If you are trying to reach me during a weekend or after work and I do not pick up my phone, well don’t take it personally, you are simply a witness to the fact that that I am winning the war with my phone and probably enjoying time with real people in real life without the aid of a small “cell” called phone. :)
Good luck with your battle and enjoy this crazy idea turned into a silly android app.
#RespectApp
Originally published at www.linkedin.com.
