As we move forward, the immersive world of AR/VR is getting the upper hand on meaningful human interaction.

Recently, I was at a restaurant where a big family was seated at the adjacent table. The family comprised older folks around age forty, and younger teens. When the music turned to a peppy number, the adults couldn’t help but find their way to the dance floor. Clearly, they knew how to live in the moment and enjoy life. But the youngsters were what caught my attention. You would think the teens are more interested in dancing and enjoying life, right? To my utter disbelief, I saw four teens sitting in a row with their heads bent down. They were each engrossed in their mobile phones, oblivious to their surroundings.

No conversations! No appreciation for the music or their environment! They were present in the physical world, but lost in an alternate reality - the metaverse. It was a hard-hitting moment of truth for me. This could be our kids! In fact, this could be the lifestyle of the generation in the near future. Disconnected from their own family but connected to virtual communities. 

So what is the formula for happiness in this scenario?The simple solution is balance. Actual conversations, authentic experiences, and real people trump over virtual. That is a fact but being real takes effort and it requires being vulnerable and focused on priorities.

As modern humans, we crave attention, importance, and expression, all of which are easily accessible in the metaverse. Additionally, it’s an easy way to ‘not think’ but be entertained.

On the other hand, we also have an intrinsic need for a more profound experience of life which is impossible when we are constantly plugged into the digital world.

So is disengaging totally from the metaverse an option?It could be, but it comes with the risk of FOMO (fear of missing out) – leaving you feeling like a relic in the modern world.

However, there is a middle path that you can traverse to stay included yet not be overpowered by your digital space. Here are 7 simple steps to strike the optimum balance.

1) Prioritize

Always focus on what is important NOW. Health, Relationships, Career, and Abundance require conscious and continuous attention. Ignore any of them or take them for granted, and you risk causing severe setbacks to your life. Always focus on the top 5 things to do, the top 5 people who matter the most, and so on. This gives you a sense of how much time you can allocate to activities that matter the most to you. It also clearly indicates those less meaningful activities where you could spend lesser time.

2) Strategize

Once you have a sense of what’s important in your life, you need to strategize your actions. One way to create time is to do a time audit of your regular day. Recognize the time-wasters and create a ‘Stop Doing Things List.’ After that, try to eliminate your time-wasters to the extent possible.

3) Time Management

The human mind is naturally prone to distractions, and entertainment is a state of stimulated distraction. This obviously takes less effort for the brain and can lead to addictive behaviours if you don’t exercise some degree of control.

4) Express and Engage Positively

The virtual world genuinely affords an opportunity to express ourselves better, showcase our talent, network, and easily reach more people than before. These significant benefits satisfy some of our intrinsic needs for importance, recognition, and influence. The likes, shares, and hits make your online presence more engaging and help release some feel-good chemicals that are inherently rewarding. When we get addicted to our identity in the digital world, we tend to seek validation and approval for everything we do. The need to look good becomes a priority and distorts our personality and preferences.

5) Stop the chase

Life is more than just a string of instant gratifications; and there are deeper aspects to it. Learning to deal with real problems and overcoming them helps us evolve into better human beings. Avoiding problems by hiding in an unreal world does not help. Using the virtual universe as an escape is therefore avoidable.

6) Emotional mastery - The key to an evolved human experience

Being overly engaged in a virtual universe deprives us of feeling genuine emotions. Awareness of emotions, knowing what triggers you, and how you respond to others are aspects of our personality that need to be worked on to develop mastery. Empathy, gratitude, and kindness are keys that can help us develop emotional mastery, leading us to a deeper state of happiness.

7) Live intentionally - The winning formula

Live an intentional life. If you intend to spend time on social media and in the virtual space, that is perfectly fine. Evolve your boundaries to avoid blurring of lines. Use the virtual space as an enhancer rather than a compulsive and addictive space and choose selective entertainment over mindless scrolling.

There is no perfect formula for happiness, but one thing to remember is that the evolution of technology should serve our need for happiness at a deeper level. Avoid the trap of becoming a slave to technology.

We live in exciting and interesting times. If we can learn to live with the metaverse as an enabler, we can arrive at the destination of happiness.