Published on Jan 6, 2026<\/p>\n
I\u2019m\u00a0at my desk this morning in my study in my Chelsea apartment, drafting a piece on my feelings of technical inadequacy.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0among my first attempts to get my story underway, even though\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been suffering from computer troubles most of my career.<\/p>\n
I click on my handsome all-in-one computer but worry\u00a0immediately\u00a0when the screen\u00a0remains\u00a0dark,\u00a0failing to light\u00a0up as expected in milliseconds. My heart sinks. I catastrophize, imagining the device is in trouble, fearing\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0lost the text\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been writing over the last days.<\/p>\n
## **Everyday Tech Challenges**\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019m\u00a0a digital immigrant, raised on instant gratification. If my screen\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0pop open right away,\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0ready to call in the Geek Squad. In an uncanny scene, as if scripted for an indie comedy, when my screen finally brightens and I begin working on my draft again, a string of techie crises overwhelms me, as if designed to dramatize my plight to illuminate my struggles.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, a new window pops up, asking for my access code, but it doesn’t accept it. Later in the day, my screen goes fuzzy, looking like a\u202fglass window in an old-fashioned public toilet stall. The same afternoon, a commanding, booming voice emanated from the speaker demanding, \u201cSTOP ILLEGAL ACTIVITY,\u201d urging me not to turn off\u202fmy computer, insisting that I fill in personal details in a space provided on the screen, guaranteeing my data will be saved from devastation.<\/p>\n
Since\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0experienced similar\u00a0scams\u00a0before, I was able to take it\u00a0somewhat in\u00a0stride with a deep breath and turn off my computer, silencing the tyrannical voice, turning the machine back on without damage. Still, my heart did skip a beat, fearing the worst. Luckily,\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0been here before when similar catastrophic warnings evaporated as I learned to ignore them.<\/p>\n
## **Feeling Lost in Technical Language**\u00a0<\/p>\n
But routine technical obstacles give me trouble.\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0not skilled at the simplest tasks, stymied posting on social media, clueless finding my Word files, stumped when I\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0locate\u00a0the cursor on my screen, bewildered looking at videos but not knowing how to turn on the sound.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
Often, when confronted by technical details posted on computer screens, I have little idea what they are about\u2014what\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0for, what they mean, nor exactly what they encompass. Inadequacy, failure, helplessness,\u00a0frustration\u00a0and irritation are feelings\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0had to manage all these years. Not being fully familiar with the language of technology,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0as if\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0an alien in a foreign country where I don’t understand the language and often get lost.<\/p>\n
## **Leading Online**\u00a0<\/p>\n
In an academic career in online learning spanning\u00a0nearly two\u00a0decades, I must confess\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0never been a confident digital wiz. Matter of fact,\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0often been pretty freaked out by it. Even as I led a couple of remote learning operations at NYU and at Stevens Institute of Technology, I was often flummoxed.<\/p>\n
The curious thing about my plight is that, for a great part of my work life,\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been deeply involved with technology. As a consultant, I\u00a0advised\u00a0academic libraries on negotiating digital journal\u202f[contracts](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/1f5c3d\/0e54e0\/150f16\/3e1f88\/035915\/786671\/064cb2\/a7648a\/2ec983\/23ef5b\/fa86c4\/cddeef\/31b581\/ae6a4d\/678fd8)\u202fand later led online education at two\u202f[colleges](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/1e5c35\/0955e0\/150f1e\/641e88\/54034a\/786671\/054bb5\/a7638d\/7bccde\/23ef5b\/f483c9\/cdd4ef\/36b284\/ae6a48\/628fdd).\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
## **Psychological Roots of Tech Anxiety**\u00a0<\/p>\n
Psychologists say that some of us are drawn to behavior we fear because the experience creates an exhilarating rush in a safe, controlled environment, allowing us to feel the excitement in a fight-or-flight\u202f[response](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/105964\/0e54e0\/420a16\/641e88\/565915\/7d3a2d\/034ce5\/a7638a\/29cc89\/7fb85b\/a683c8\/cad5ef\/66b584\/ab6d48\/6088d8)\u202fwithout actually being in danger, leading to feelings of euphoria, heightened alertness and a sense of mastery. Or I may be trapped in what Freud recognized as repetition\u202f[compulsion](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/1f5c61\/0e53e0\/170f14\/641f8d\/570316\/7d3871\/044bb0\/a73e8d\/2ecc89\/7fb25b\/a183c9\/cd8eef\/32b587\/ae6a4d\/6688dd)\u2014a concept he coined\u2014an unconscious tendency to repeat past, often traumatic, experiences and behaviors relived in the present. Freud claimed sufferers may be trying to master or resolve unresolved trauma experienced earlier in their lives by going through similar situations in the present, even if painful or unsatisfied. I am drawn to technology for its exciting, innovative possibilities but unnerved by fear of my tech inadequacy.<\/p>\n
## **Relying on Soft Skills and Colleagues**\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n
It turns out, luckily, I\u00a0possess\u00a0other attributes\u00a0required\u00a0to go online, mostly soft skills that propel remote learning\u2014managerial competencies, marketing\u00a0arts\u00a0and other nontechnical strengths.<\/p>\n
In the years when I was a senior academic officer, when\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0get stuck with technical obstacles,\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0often reach out to students,\u00a0colleagues\u00a0and others for help, asking those with skills I lacked to fill in where I\u00a0couldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
## **Support From Trusted Tech-Savvy Allies**\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I was dean of online learning at NYU\u2019s Tandon School of Engineering, I’d call upon Marlene\u00a0Leekang, now a senior Baruch College\u202f[executive](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/1f5c3d\/0e54e0\/150f16\/3e1f88\/035915\/786671\/064cb2\/a7648a\/2ec983\/23ef5b\/fa86c4\/cddeef\/31b581\/ae6a4d\/678fda). Marlene, a highly confident colleague with sharp skills in computer applications, spreadsheets and other essential operating tools, sat in an adjoining office. I\u2019d run next door every so often, stymied by routine tech obstacles that she easily swept away, freeing me from screwing up. And a former NYU undergrad, Earl Co, now a global real estate investor living in Spain, would occasionally run over to my apartment after class to perform his magic, as if he was an Apple Genius, untangling whatever mess I was\u202fin. To\u202fthis day, he posts my new videos and my newly released articles on a\u202fwebsite\u202fhe designed many years ago.<\/p>\n
## **Early Fears in the Digital Workspace**\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the\u00a0very early\u00a0days of my career in scientific and technical publishing,\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0avoid touching the keyboard for fear of botching everything. As computers invaded the workspace long ago, when workers were just beginning to become familiar with them,\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0often stand over assistants, who tapped away at the keys as I dictated.<\/p>\n
In\u00a0an\u202f[essay](https:\/\/onclickscan.trustifi.com\/api\/o\/v1\/scan\/link\/fff2a0\/3b064d\/6cce0f\/e33fbf\/511b42\/419734\/a293ca\/c0ba48\/e8666a\/ef542d\/85972d\/627493\/9a11d6\/1f4096\/1d247f\/898879\/c06384\/819ba2\/bafd04\/7245c0\/908da2\/f31f07\/f35f41\/39d1b8\/f38c17\/4e8479\/65daf1\/9fe4f3\/9946cb\/8e2752\/de4d61\/9a366a\/2e5744\/aa3a08\/6c2b1a\/6c0b7a\/6a3f1a\/a68d5b\/83ecb9\/05f3b1\/6677c6\/9b7c0f\/bad84e\/bcd9eb\/6805c5\/982978\/900472\/267b94\/504706\/fa5caf\/ca282f\/bec860\/3f459c\/8c108e\/13a9aa\/e1d19a\/035d8a\/54ad73\/dca654\/c36a3e\/aa771a\/5c7c79\/f9c856\/068133\/4c5016\/009f8b\/d5bb27\/7950b2\/b7ebec\/7ffa1e\/418635\/a6da47\/2670ec\/de5999\/8bc87f\/074402\/f4a540\/41ec37\/adb9a4\/bbc919\/d82cf0\/2d0ba4\/e048db\/8ee1c9\/1826d3\/58e4f6\/2ff33b\/a0cc91\/4b2044\/426904\/5d19de\/f116d8\/03161e\/4c433a\/400ae5\/a20879\/0b87d1\/fc5261\/626ec8\/b836f2\/66432a\/71223d\/49172c\/45e651\/1f5c3d\/0e54e0\/150f16\/3e1f88\/035915\/786671\/064cb2\/a7648a\/2ec983\/23ef5b\/fa86c4\/cddeef\/31b581\/ae6a4d\/678f88)\u202fpublished in\u202f_Inside Higher Ed_\u202fsome years ago, I made an early confession of my feelings of online learning inadequacy:<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter\u00a0nearly two\u00a0decades of cajoling dig-their-heels-in, grumbling faculty to go online,\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0never taught online myself. My formidable job was to encourage reluctant professors to set aside their qualms, step away from their comfortably proud position at the front of the classroom and do what many thought was the repellent thing.\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been an online general who sent his virtual troops into battle but, shamefully, never fought in the digital trenches myself. Feeling like a fraud all these years, it was time to step up to the challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
## **Learning to Teach Online**\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0until I taught at The New School, when I finally got down to it and learned how to teach online. My instructional designer, Shira Richman, now assistant provost of Instructional Design and Assessment, guided me through it all like a coach training a champion athlete for a big game, unknotting my fears, unraveling my anxieties. Best of all, Shira built my confidence week after week.\u00a0<\/p>\n
## **Technostress Across Higher Ed**\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u2019s\u00a0not surprising that many in higher ed face some of the same obstacles I do, especially older faculty and staff. Privately, some of my friends and colleagues say they bear the same frustrations but are reluctant to reveal what troubles them for fear of getting rebuffed for jobs they covet. Many suffer from what\u2019s come to be known as \u201ctechnostress,\u201d in which they feel overwhelmed by complex systems or fear their skills are no longer at the center of things \\[\u201cComparing the Technostress Experienced by U.S. Higher Education Faculty, Administrators, and Staff,\u201d a dissertation by Cornish, Denise, Grand Canyon University, 2020\\].\u00a0<\/p>\n
Over decades of digital engagement, I was known as an authority, curiously with little or no actual technical expertise. However, most of my research for my books, columns and articles are drawn from online research. Even now, as I write this essay, I\u2019ve not only searched the web but toyed with AI to investigate how others may deal with technical fear. Luckily, despite years of anxiety, I\u2019ve been able to get away with being a technophobe in a high-tech world, inexplicably in a quite fulfilling career.<\/p>\n
Original URL: https:\/\/evolllution.com\/navigating-higher-eds-digital-shift-as-a-technophobe<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Published on Jan 6, 2026 I\u2019m\u00a0at my desk this morning in my study in my Chelsea apartment, drafting a piece on my feelings of technical inadequacy.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0among my first attempts to get my story underway, even though\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0been suffering from computer troubles most of my career. I click on my handsome all-in-one computer but worry\u00a0immediately\u00a0when the screen\u00a0remains\u00a0dark,\u00a0failing … Continue reading Navigating Higher Ed\u2019s Digital Shift as a Technophobe<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=547"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":694,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547\/revisions\/694"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobubell.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}