A 10-Step Guide to Reclaim Your Life
The term, “SmartPhones” is ironic and I’m not sure whether the creators made it deliberately ironic or not, but they have taken over our lives to such an extent that we are becoming incapable of remembering even the simplest things: shopping lists, phone numbers, what we were doing before the notification dinged.
I am weaning myself off my device as much as is humanly possible, and I wanted to share my process, in case others might like to do the same. I’ve set it up so you can do one thing at a time and adjust without having to go “cold turkey” on the world’s biggest addiction.
I must preface this by adding - if you don’t add social media or any app that allows scrolling in the first place, this process is much easier.
My 10-Step Guide to Reclaim Your Life from your ‘smartphone’:
Turn off the notification sounds. I only keep music and ringtone on - and even then I miss most phone calls.
Remove unnecessary apps, or apps you think don’t serve your greater good.
Once you are accustomed to not having the sounds, turn off the screen notifications.
Put the phone in airplane mode when you need to focus on a task. It’s still there near you, but you are less tempted to check in this mode.
What things can you take off your phone that have analogue equivalents? Such as calendars, clocks, CDs, payment cards, cameras, torches, etc - this is a tough one for me, particularly around music - I love YouTube and Spotify, so it’s hard to wean off this one.
Practice going out without it. Go for a walk, to the shops, or to the toilet (!) without your device. Find places in your day where you can leave it behind.
Build in your phone- or tech-free hobbies: gardening, exercise, yoga, meditation, writing, drawing, knitting, crafts, motorbikes, cooking, cycling, fixing cars, pottery - whatever you enjoy doing without the phone, do more of that. These things bring life meaning.
Delete the social media apps from your phone and only access them on a laptop or computer. I find that I spend less time on the apps when I “scroll” on the desktop, I find it boring.
When you wake up in the morning, see how long you last before looking at your phone. Even better, move it out of the bedroom and complete your morning routine BEFORE looking at your phone.
In social situations, allow yourself to engage and truly listen to people without having to ‘Google’ things or post about what you’ve been doing. Savour the moment without having to share it immediately.
For those of us who have businesses hosted and promoted through social media, this makes it difficult (but not impossible) to reduce our screen time and take back control of our lives. But I have found that managing my business from my laptop has freed up my life and made more room for creativity, and happiness, and I feel like life has more meaning. When I was fully addicted to my device, I would waste days of my life, and for what? What did I gain from that consumption of content? Nothing. Now, although I’m creating content that nobody will see or read, I feel like I have a purpose and direction now, that I didn’t have when I was immersed in the consumption of other people’s lives. Now, I’m fully engaged in my life and how I can make a meaningful contribution to other people’s lives.
Good luck with your phone detox, it’s not easy and if you can get yourself fully off, I hope you bring the best of yourself into the world, we need it.
~ Alyssa
