--- title: "Baratunde Thurston: Step Away From The Technology" id: "18045" type: "post" slug: "baratunde-thurston-step-away-from-the-technology" published_at: "2013-06-21T17:07:41+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T19:03:26+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2013/06/21/baratunde-thurston-step-away-from-the-technology/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2013/06/21/baratunde-thurston-step-away-from-the-technology.md" excerpt: "Try disconnecting from technology and discover a new world. Also: When an interview turns into a sinking ship, don’t abandon it: save it." taxonomy_category: - "Meetings / Events" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "Leadership" - "meeting tips" - "Meetings" - "virtual engagement" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Director" - "Manager" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Baratunde Thurston: Step Away From The Technology You don’t have to become one with nature, but distancing yourself from technology for a short period of time could change your life. Discover how one man “unplugged” from technology and found himself, learn how to save a “bad” interview, and more, in today’s Lunchtime Links. **Leave the internet:**Sounds like an off-the-wall concept, but leaving the internet can actually help you gain a new perspective on life. In a social experiment for *[Fast Company (opens in a new tab)](http://www.fastcompany.com/3012521/unplug/baratunde-thurston-leaves-the-internet)*, Baratunde Thurston, author of *New York Times* bestseller *How to Be Black*, went on a 25-day vacation from the internet. Throughout his vacation, Thurston tried a new approach to life. On his experience, he writes: “The greatest gift I gave myself was a restored appreciation for disengagement, silence, and emptiness. I don’t need to fill every time slot with an appointment, and I don’t need to fill every mental opening with stimulus. Unoccupied moments are beautiful …” Have you taken time out of schedule to disconnect? **Don’t abandon ship:**Once your interview starts to sink, don’t freak out and abandon ship. Instead, attempt to save the day. [The Daily Muse provides great tips (opens in a new tab)](http://www.thedailymuse.com/job-search/how-to-salvage-an-interview-thats-not-going-well/) on what to do, and what not to do, when your interview is sinking. One of the tips addresses the issue of awkward silence between questions. “If you find yourself answering simple questions (think ‘How do you manage your time?’) and waiting for follow-up questions that never come—you don’t have to suffer in silence, waiting for the interviewer to make the next move. Instead, take the lead and create your own follow-up,” the article suggests. Leverage moments of silence to ask questions, learn more about the position, and to highlight your skills. **Navigate through hybrid meetings:**Hybrid meetings connect speakers to audiences without having to be physically present in the same space. But how do you ensure the audience is fully engaged? In MeetGreen’s article “[Helping Your Speakers Navigate Hybrid Meetings (opens in a new tab)](http://meetgreen.com/helping-your-speakers-navigate-hybrid-meetings/) ,” Carole Garner and Nancy Zavada discuss creating engagement with a larger audience—not just the people in the room. Among the tips: “Select an online moderator who can advocate for the virtual audience.” A moderator can become the voice of the audience, if necessary, and ask questions. How has your association used hybrid meetings? Let us know in the comments. (iStockphoto/Thinkstock) [Jasmine McGee](https://associationsnow.com/author/jasmine-mcgee/) Jasmine McGee is a contributor to Associations Now. 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