I’m a CEO of a 1,000-strong company, and I’m ditching the laptop at work

Image credit: 123RF.

During meetings, I can see people raising their eyebrows at me. What’s this guy doing staring into his phone? Is he even paying attention?

Yes, absolutely. The truth is that for the past year, I’ve been steadily weaning myself off of my MacBook — relying more on my iPhone for work.

With the iPhone having just celebrated its 10-year anniversary, this may not sound like a huge accomplishment. In fact, lots of people live on their phones.

But, for context, I’m the CEO of a growing tech company of nearly 1,000 employees. Each day, I get hundreds of emails, go to a dozen or so meetings, and review countless reports. In the past, I couldn’t imagine doing my job without a PC.

Turns out it’s possible.

To be fair, going “mobile-only” has led to a few hiccups. But since taking the plunge, I’ve noticed that my productivity and overall happiness have gone up noticeably. For fellow leaders out there, I’d like to share some insights from my year on mobile.

A few disclaimers:

• First, I cheat. I still have to use my laptop on occasion for looking at spreadsheets and PowerPoints.
• This mobile-only strategy obviously isn’t for everyone. If you’re a developer writing code, it makes sense to have a proper screen.
• Yes, being a CEO makes this much, much easier: I don’t have a boss hassling me about being on my phone all day; I have an executive assistant who handles my calendar; etc. But I still think there’s some value for everyone in this approach.

Leaving my laptop

It was Siri that helped me make the switch. Voice dictation has gone from a fantasy to a viable technology almost overnight. Once I realized I could essentially just talk to respond to emails or write memos, I found myself spending a lot less time with my laptop.

I felt a little weird at first mumbling into my phone all day, but that wears off fast (and it seems to be becoming more culturally accepted). The big upside is that I can speak a lot faster than I write. And the inevitable Siri-isms are growing fewer with each iOS update.

App-wise, Google Drive was a huge help. The interface is mobile friendly. Changes are tracked automatically; everything is immediately accessible in the cloud. When you don’t have to worry about uploading or downloading and all you do is click on a link, document management on your phone becomes doable.

Unexpected benefits (and limits)

Early on, I was surprised by an unexpected benefit. Laptops inevitably form a kind of wall, physically separating you from the person you’re meeting with. Once I left my laptop behind, I found I actually absorbed — and retained — a lot more in meetings and in conversations.

But, to be honest, I also felt kind of powerless without my MacBook, especially at first. In the past, if a colleague sent a report, I’d open up the doc and pore over every page, making tons of edits. But you just can’t do that on a phone. Reading and editing more than a few pages at a time is a recipe for a bad migraine.

The mobile-only future we need to get ready for