9 ways to stop wasting a lot of time on your smartphone

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

The author of the book "How to Break Up with Your Smartphone" shares tips to help you get rid of your phone addiction.

During the presentation of the first iPhone, Steve Jobs said: "From time to time, a revolutionary product appears that changes everything." Eleven years after Jobs' talk, we increasingly find we don't like the way phones have changed us. We feel busy but ineffective, connected but lonely. The technology that gives us freedom at the same time acts as a leash: the more we become attached to our gadgets, the more relevant the question of who is really under control becomes.

For the past two years, Katherine Price has been writing a book on how to create a healthy attitude towards the smartphone, drawing on research in neuroplasticity, mindfulness and the science of behavior change. Here are nine of the best tips from it.

1. Decide what you need a smartphone for

Many people set themselves the goal of spending less time on their smartphone, but do not specify exactly how they want to do it. They abruptly stop using their smartphone, and then they are surprised that nothing happened.

This is tantamount to wanting to dump someone in order to "improve the relationship" when you have no idea how it should be. If you do not understand this issue, then, most likely, the next relationship will be the same as the previous one.

Therefore, before taking any action, ask yourself: why do you need a smartphone? What makes you happy and what frustrates you? What habits would you like to change?

2. Find out how much time you spend on the phone

Install an app that will track your activity. You might be upset when you find out how much time is wasted, but it's a great way to motivate yourself and track your progress.

3. Determine how you want to spend your free time

Soon you will have more free time: for example, when you are riding the elevator or standing in line. Take a deep breath and just relax. Remember what it feels like to be lost in your own thoughts.

Think about what you would like to do in your free evening and create an appropriate atmosphere at home. If you want to read more, place the book on the coffee table so that it can be seen as you collapse on the couch after a day's work. If you want to make music, remove the instrument from the case and put it where it will always be at hand.

4. Use apps to protect yourself from apps

It sounds paradoxical, but in fact it is an extremely effective way. Apps like Freedom, OFFTIME or Flipd will let you block access to other apps and websites. Include them at work or while studying. Some apps allow you to create a schedule: you can block access to social networks a couple of hours before bed. It is an incredibly useful tool to change your habits.

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5. Create a self-test reminder

We often pick up the phone automatically. To prevent this from happening, create an obstacle that makes you stop and decide if you need a phone at the moment. Put an elastic band or elastic band on your phone. An inconvenient case will work too. You can set wallpapers on the lock screen that could stop you, for example, these.

6. Remove social media apps

These apps are designed to make us spend as much time as possible on them. What for? Because it is beneficial. Every minute we spend on social media is another opportunity to show us ads.

This does not mean that you need to stop using social media. But if your goal is to spend as little time as possible on your smartphone, consider using social media only on your computer.

7. Set up a text answering machine

Many people get nervous when they do not respond to a message from an interlocutor for a long time, so they constantly keep their smartphone at the ready. In this case, you can set up a text answering machine. IOS 11 introduces a Do Not Disturb While Driving feature that you can customize for any situation. Android users can use a third party application such as "SMS Auto Answer Calls and SMS".

8. Take small but rewarding actions

Charge your phone away from your bed. Turn off all notifications except for calls, messages and calendar events. Leave only useful apps on the home screen. Buy a watch. Don't use your phone as an alarm clock, remove it from the table while eating, and ask others to do the same.

9. Remember the true purpose

One of the reasons that all our attempts to spend less time on smartphones are failing is because we treat it as an act of self-deprivation. Instead, try to think in a more positive way: the less time we spend with the phone, the more our life will be like the one we dream of.