Not A Boy Named Matt

While I only started really working in the mobility space five years ago or so, I had a beeper in 1997 and was stealing my mother’s Nokia 638 so I could call all my friends no matter where I was, so I like to consider myself a lover of all things mobile.  So on a day that is about appreciating the people and things we love, I thought I’d call out the three little things about mobile that make me swoon.

1. Access to information, anytime and relatively anywhere: With the exception of some dead spots of cellular service, mobile phones make it possible to access information pretty much anytime and from anywhere you want.  While the work-a-holic in me loves this for the ability to stay in touch via e-mail no matter the time, the fact-finding, must-always-be-right part of me loves that I can pull up Wikipedia or Google during any argument and quickly settle the case.

From a personal perspective it’s just exciting, but for businesses this has some pretty transformative powers for productivity and efficiency.

2. The evolution of devices has been nothing short of extraordinary:  I still marvel at some of the features and functionality we have on smartphones and tablets now.  I can remember thinking Snake on my Nokia was really cool, but Siri?  Mind-blowing.

And working in the mobile space, I know that there is a slew of even cooler things to come.  I truly believe that with advancements in machine-to-machine communication and mobile  devices we will one day have devices that do everything for us.  The jury is still out on whether  that’s going to be a good thing or not  Either way there are a lot of consoriums and organizations dedicated to the growth of this – one that’s interesting you should check out is Webinos.

3. The transformative nature of its impact on our lives: When forced to live without mobile devices, even for a short period of time, I can count at least 20 people I know that turn into absolute puddles, melting down as their connection to the world, their watch and sense of security have been stripped from them.  Mobility has changed the way we work, play, and has changed the things we love and how we discover them. There’s a wonderful quote about love that I’ve always enjoyed, that I think in some ways can apply to how mobile impacts us:

“What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything…”

Comparing mobility to love might be a broad stroke, but in this context I think some parts ring true.  Mobile apps have changed how we find new restaurants and how we tell our friends about them.  They change the way people act and what they do with their friends.  

It used to be that the first thing many of us would do when arriving at a party or a bar would be to seek out our friends, shake hands and hug and then get a drink.  Today, most people will check in first on FourSquare or Facebook , perhaps hoping for a coupon to be sent to them automatically for a drink, and then will see who from their friends have already checked in.  That my friends, is transformative.

Mobility has given me a lot (least of all a job in this exciting and dynamic space), so on this Valentine’s Day, I want to share three little words with the world of mobile technology:

I love you