Your smartphone is your connection to just about anything and
everything. Think about it: in the palm of your hand you have access
to news, sports, music, video, social media and messaging. We are
connected in ways that we haven’t yet begun to fully comprehend.
While smartphones are meant to help us be more efficient, that type
of access can also be habit forming; almost addicting. You’re almost
afraid to leave home without your phone, and you will routinely pat
yourself down in panic if you can’t find it.
Overuse can also be detrimental to relationships. As we now snub
significant people to use our smartphone. Now I’m not insinuating
that we should we stop using our smartphones, that’s just crazy
talk. It’s about moderation; a mobile device is meant to provide
assistance in your life, not take it over completely.
1. Create no phone zones – It’s true; there is a time and a place for
everything, including phone usage. Setting up areas free from phones
– such as meal time, family game or movie nights and (especially)
the bathroom – are a great way to be forced to stop surfing. Your
phone is dirty enough as it is, you don’t need to tweet while you, you
know. Having friends over? Set out a basket to put their phones in
so you can actually spend some quality face-to-face time, instead of
posting about it.
2.Change your bedtime routine – I use my smartphone as my alarm
clock. While nothing screams “mobile addict” about that function,
that accessibility could quite literally keep you up at night. You’d be
tempted to watch a video, play games or browse the internet. There’s
even the risk of “sleep texting.” To avoid trouble, keep your
smartphone on the other side of the room. You’ll be less tempted to
reach for it if you’re too snug in your bed to get up. The added
bonus is that once the alarm goes off, you have to get up to turn it
off, reducing the risk of hitting snooze or sleeping in.
3.Demote your notifications – The sound of an incoming message
can be a source of excitement, like the sound of an ice cream truck
rolling through the neighborhood. It can also be distracting, so why
not set up profile notifications? You can set your phone to a variety
of audible or silent profiles and even create custom contact
notifications. That way you can enjoy peace and quiet unless an
extremely important phone call or message comes in.
4.Take a break – Some weekends call for a complete disconnect. You
want to talk? Come on over for dinner. Want to play a game? Dust
off your football boots and go to the field. Again, you lived before the
age of mobile devices; you can get back to the good old days now
and then. You don’t need a phone to get through awkward silences
or boredom, you can fight back with your own imagination. Put the
phone down, lift your head up and immerse yourself with life that is
happening around you. (As I type this, I can hear my dad’s voice
telling me to turn off my NES.)
5.‘Apputation’ – This may be going a bit extreme, but we are in
desperate times aren’t we? Apps are meant to provide shortcuts,
easy access and mindless entertainment. It’s the source of the
thought “oh, let me just check…” You tap through sport scores, movie
reviews and social media while you’re cooking, next thing you know
your food is burning and so is your house. Apputation (App
+amputation) is a cute way of saying: Suck it up and uninstall apps
that give you access to things you can get through a browser.
Chances are, you’ll be less likely to check them as often.
Your smartphone can be your constant companion, but it shouldn’t
have complete control over you. I know that it will keep you
connected, productive and efficient, even if your face isn’t perpetually
glued to it. It should make your life easier, not non-existent. What
do you do to keep your smartphone addiction in check?
