It is not unusual to walk into a wedding hall and find, to your dismay, that most people are blissfully absorbed in their phones without a care in the world for others around them. The phone pandemic is so overpowering that there is no slowdown, even on special occasions. The phone has ruthlessly hijacked all social interactions and special occasions.
Unplugged Wedding
It is not too hard to see why you should have an unplugged wedding ceremony. The phone is a party pooper extraordinaire that you will certainly want to keep out of the wedding hall.
At this point, the question is whether it is polite or justified to conduct an unplugged wedding.
After all, telling guests not to bring their phones along is equivalent to saying that their grown-up children are not allowed. Guests may take exception at being told that their phones are less than welcome.
How to Hold an Unplugged Wedding
You will have to do it politely and in the most discrete way possible to avoid any unpleasantness. While you certainly want an unplugged wedding, you do not want the special occasion to degenerate into awkwardness or downright unpleasantness by policing guests for phone use. Imagine how awkward it would be if there is a sudden announcement for guests to put away their smartphones. It’s like telling kindergartners to stop making noise. That’s no way to treat your guests.
A much better approach would be to get in touch with everyone personally before the wedding and inform them that the wedding is strictly unplugged. Tell all guests that you look forward to their fullest participation in your wedding, which is only possible if they put their phones down and mute them.
You should also arrange activities that will amuse guests and convince them to put the phone away. Dances, speeches, photoshoots, guestbook signing and other activities may help.
This content was originally published here.