Intermittent Phoning
Smart phones are attached to us at all time. When we have a moment of free time, we pull them out. Have to go to the bathroom, we take them out. Walking the dog, we take them out. There is no reason that we are doing so, but we do it anyway. We want to find something to give us another hit. I am guilty of this myself. I have come up with a plan to overcome this issue, and there is a reason to do so. Not to fight back against Apple, or Google, or big tech. But to get your life back. To think clear again, to have more time to do what you really want, and to have a moment to yourself.
I decided to call it Intermittent Phoning, yes it is based off of Intermittent Fasting. The idea is simple, I use my phone during certain hours of the day. I wait until noon to look at my phone, and I am done with it by 9pm. I also don’t let myself consume any media (music, podcast, video) until 3pm. I find that doing so allows me to think clearer throughout the day. I am not going to sit here and make it seem like this will change your life. But I find it helpful. I find myself less stressed out, and I don’t find my mind racing. I also find that I focus better. I know when I am working on something I can’t escape to my phone, which we have come so accustomed to. And if I’m not busy, I do what I really want to do with my free-time. I pick up my guitar instead of picking up my phone. Imagine if every time you would have pulled out your phone, you instead picked up a book, how many more books would you have read?
By following this schedule, I find my time more directed when I do use my phone. There is certainly useful stuff on our phones. But when I give myself full rein to do what I want, I spend a lot of time doing useless stuff. When I only have a certain amount of time, I focus on what I want to get done. I answer emails that need to be answered, I book reservations, I buy the vitamins I forgot to order.
The idea is simple, but the outcome will compound, especially if you are someone who uses their phone for many hours a day. Gaining back a few hours everyday to focus on what you want to get done and need to get done adds up quickly. Give it a try, the worst thing that could happen is you miss a few hours of your Tik Tok feed.