Everything started in 1999, when I received my first phone as a (well-demanded) gift from my parents. It allowed only messages and calls, mostly with friends and family. No pictures, no concerts, no digital memories of any kind. I would not start taking photos of places or concerts until around 2015, and for a long time that felt perfectly normal.
In 2010, during an evening French class, the teacher asked what the most important item I owned was. I answered instinctively: my laptop. Not because of its monetary value, but because it contained everything that mattered to me.
In 2015 I started using VPNs (Freedom, then Opal, then both). It was a tougher choice than it sounds, because cutting out WhatsApp, emails, social media and constant news exposure, even for a limited amount of time, is far harder in practice than in theory, especially for me. Moreover, VPNs do not coexist peacefully with law firm life. Teams, Outlook and endless client emails shape your daily rhythm more than you realise. I still remember a well-known managing partner writing to his associates in 2018: “Emails are supposed to be read in REAL TIME.” Yes, capital letters. And, by the way, the law firm and corporate scenario became far worse after the Covid years.
In November 2022, during my time in the US as a visiting researcher, I used VPNs to push things further. Emails only three times a day, no social media until 8 pm, no news until 6 pm. For a week I woke up every night at 3 a.m. with a strong headache, and I was genuinely surprised when I realised what I missed the most: Google search. The immediate satisfaction of curiosity, the instant answer to my hyperactive mind. Even then, practical problems followed, from banking issues (yes, double authentication…), to nearly being denied entry to a concert because I could not access my emails and wallet. Luckily, Måneskin started playing at 8 pm. Yes, in Boston. Yes, I saw them live.
Eleven Caminos de Santiago, and I brought a laptop or an iPad with a keyboard, plus the usual smartphone, to every single one of them. In 2016 I wrote a blog, but most of the time laptops and iPads were for emails, contracts or articles. Since University (I graduated in 2009), I never set an out-of-office reply. If you know, you know.
Addict. Junkie. Strong words, but not exaggerated ones. This is what we are, and this is certainly what I am. I could list dozens of books and academic articles I have read on the subject, and my conclusion would not change. Our brains in scrolling mode work exactly like those of gamblers in front of a slot machine: expectation, dopamine, reward, repetition. News, emails, social media, dating apps. Different interfaces, same neurological loop. Everyone pays a price. Some more than others.
So you can probably guess my point. A part of me wanted something more. And that happened now.
I decided to spend an entire week, from January 5 to January 11, in a no-tech-at-all mode. No laptop, no smartphone, no WhatsApp, no email, no social media, no credit cards in my digital wallet, no news, no travel apps, no maps, no bank accounts, no search engines, no music, no YouTube, no streaming, no AI tools. And because I know myself, I left my phone and pc home, chose a no connection area, and asked a group of monks to host me. An old proverb would say “if the fish is around the cat, the cat will eat it”.
So you may ask yourself, why all of this, and why the hard mode?
The reasons are various. Because I wanted to, because I felt I needed it, because I wanted to see how life is in a different mode. But the most important one is: because I can. Having no children and a job that – at least so far – I can manage, gives me a privilege. And when destiny gives you certain blessings, it feels like a pity to say no. Had I done something like this two or three years ago, people would probably have asked: “Why?” This time, the most common reaction was different: “I’m jealous.” I guess that says more than anything else.
So here I am, writing early morning one week after my retreat in the hermitage. Initially, the plan was to stay for a full month, which according to Daoist masters is the exact time needed to reset the mind. I soon realised that it would have been too much given the workload I am managing. Despite the timing, with one day off for Epiphany, two days as weekly rest, and the slow start of the year, it was not easy at all.
As usual, preparation turned out to be the hardest part. It took six weeks to prepare everything. I warned my family and a few close friends, colleagues and clients, then many more.
And now, the answers to the most common questions.
Was it beneficial? Yes, or at least I think so.
Am I proud of myself? Yes, mostly for deciding to do it. Once you decide, everything else becomes easier.
Was it really no tech at all? Yes, but no. One evening I took the car and went to the town for a pizza. The TV was on, broadcasting the news. Driving back on the last night, I turned on the radio. That was enough to remind me how deeply wired the habit really is.
The thing I missed the most? Taking pictures and screenshots. I saw beautiful landscapes, but they are stuck only in my mind. It sounds like 1980s, and it kind of sucks. If I had to choose one more thing, Google Maps. An easy one. I thought I would have missed Spotify and Apple Music way more than I did. But we’re surrounded by sounds, plus I sing melodies most of my time. Not a bad deal.
The moment that stuck with me? Seeing a teenager with her phone in a cafeteria on my way home. She was smiling. Then she took out her phone, and her face slowly grew darker. That was when I realised how rare it is to witness the opposite.
How did my body react? My sleep was terrible. For a full week I woke up every two or three hours, despite usually sleeping very well. Apart from that, nothing particular.
What did I do during that week? I prayed with the monks, read the Bible, focused on strategy, read business books and thought deeply about Better Ipsum. More importantly, I asked myself a number of uncomfortable questions.
How many emails in the inbox? 683. Plus almost 100 whatsapp messages.
Do I recommend it? Yes.
Did I absolutely need it? I am not sure.
Would I do it again? Maybe.
One suggestion for the brave ones? I have said this many times after walking Caminos, and I say it again now: when you really want something, the universe tends to push back. Yes, I am serious.
The conclusion for this post? The following one.
A simple but recurring thought was stuck in my mind for all this week. Am I just sweeping things under the carpet? January 2026 will be one of the hardest months so far, with five major deadlines. So I was asking myself repeatedly: am I doing the right thing by stepping away?
The right perspective arrived last evening through a story I heard a few years ago involving Sting and his guitarist Dominic Miller. Sting, a long-time yoga practitioner, originally started because of him. Today, he has been practising for more than thirty years.
Miller’s argument to convince Sting and his wife was simple: you lose 60 minutes, but you gain 90, because you become more focused, clearer and more precise.
Not a lawyer’s argument, but certainly a good one. At least for me.
So yes, I lost one week.
But I gained far more than that
