So you want to reclaim your time and attention by spending less time on your phone. How do you do that when your phone is designed to hook you and keep you scrolling?
Life Kit spoke with experts in behavioral science, psychology, and technology for practical advice. The key, according to them, is to find effective ways to resist that constant urge to pick up your phone.
For some people, the solution can be as simple as practicing self-awareness: do you really need to look at your phone right now, or do you need something else? Others may need a little more help, like blockers that limit access to apps and sites.
1. Ask yourself why you’re picking up your phone in the first place
When you feel the urge to grab your phone or check Instagram for the hundredth time today, notice how you feel in that moment, says Sammy Nickalls, author of Log Off: Self-Help for the Extremely Online.
“For example, I realized that whenever I felt bad about myself in some way, I’d go on Twitter,” she says.
So ask yourself: What can I do to deal with what’s really going on? “Most of the time, it’s not scrolling. It’s taking a nap, talking to a friend, or doing something that makes you happy,” she says.
2. Practice “urge surfing”
Just because you feel the urge to pick up your phone doesn’t mean you have to give in to it.
“Urges are a lot like waves. They come up, get bigger, and then go down,” says clinical psychologist Diana Hill, co-author of I Know I Should Exercise, But… 44 Reasons Why We Don’t Move and How to Overcome Them.
In addiction research, the practice of letting the urge pass without acting on it is called “urge surfing,” she says. “The more you practice, the better you get at surfing the urge and the less you feel like you need to give in to it.”
3. Uncover the root of the problem
If you want to break the habit of picking up your phone every few minutes, learn what’s needed to create a habit.
“A behavior happens when three things come together at the same instant: motivation to perform the behavior, ability to do it, and a prompt or cue to do it,” says BJ Fogg, behavioral scientist at Stanford University who studies habit formation.
“If you eliminate any one of those three elements, the behavior will stop,” he says.
There are many ways to do this with your phone. “I turn off a bunch of notifications,” says Fogg. That eliminates the reminders that prompt you to keep checking your phone.
You can also reduce the motivation to use your phone by making it less visually appealing. Put your phone screen in black and white or set a simple home screen with just a list of apps and no images.
4. Keep your phone out of the bedroom
This can reduce time spent on your phone by eliminating the temptation to scroll before bed, in the middle of the night, and upon waking in the morning.
Plus, this change can help you sleep better, says Jean Twenge, psychologist and author of 10 Rules for Raising Children in a High-Tech World.
Research shows that having your phone or computer near the bed—even on airplane mode—can lead to poorer sleep quality, says Twenge. When the device is nearby, it’s easier to pick it up. The content can keep you alert and scrolling. And screen light can affect your circadian rhythm, disrupting your sleep.
5. Make it harder to use your phone
Need an extra barrier between you and your device? Don’t be afraid to seek outside help. There are many apps available that introduce delays and reminders not to use your phone. And there are programs that let you temporarily block access to the apps you choose.
“The more friction you introduce into your life, the harder it becomes to use all those services and devices,” says José Briones, author of Low Tech Life: A Guide to Mindful Digital Minimalism. “Your brain will say it’s not worth it.”
Source: npr.org