BreakAwayGuy to Appear at Mpls UnSummit

Posted on: Thursday, October 1st, 2009
Posted in: Blog | Leave a comment

Photo by Mykl Roventine

When hundreds of techno geeks and tweeting freaks gather on October 10 to discuss social media (live and virtually), I will take the stage to preach the gospel of unplugging.

The event is called UnSummit, and this impressive gang is leading the rest of us into the future, for better or worse. I’m excited to lead a controversial discussion—and shall wear a helmet!—when I dare to ask…

Are you “connected” 24/7? Do you sleep with your digitalia? Does anything else turn you on? Does your commitment to SM compromise your relationships IRL?

Can you even envision YOU without IT?

Join Kirk Horsted, purveyor of radical ideas like escaping and unplugging to discuss (or is it debate?) the value of constant connectivity, hyper social media, brazen self-disclosure and overall all-at-onceness. Maybe—just maybe—we’ll also shoot the breeze about silence, Sabbaticals and the art of Being Here Now.

For many of us, our love/hate relationship with digital tools and toys makes marriage look uncomplicated in comparison. On one hand, social media is cool, immediate and amusing. On the other hand, the sudden ubiquity of screen living can be creepy, anti-social (ironically) and addictive.

The UnSummit sessions are less about making a presentation, and more about facilitating a spirited conversation. With that in mind, I am prepared to listen more than lecture—and come home prepared to ponder (and perhaps write about) what I learn.

The event is “sold out” but you can no doubt catch Tweetfeeds if you are interested. And apparently they’ll be posting all videos of the sessions on the UnSummit website at some point.