I have thought a lot about mobile phones over the years, about how and when I use mine, how dismissed I feel when someone leaves theirs on the table with notifications pinging whilst we have are trying to have a conversation, about how every reflex is now to pull it out and show a photo, look something up, make a note on some list somewhere. I know that I am not alone feeling like this.
A few days ago I watched another documentary about social media (“Inside the Rage Machine”, on BBC iPlayer for those in the UK), which talked about all the usual things: the algorithms, the prominence given to click bait, the disappearance of safe guards in the name of free speech.
But the most depressing thing was this: at the end of the program, I thought about how much I disliked the manipulation and business model of being a willing receiver of tailored ads pushed into my face, but nevertheless the thought of removing these apps from my phone seemed unfathomable.
I had built habits around scrolling whilst waiting for someone I was meeting, or in the evening before winding down and going to bed. I realized how much of a hold they had on me, how dependent I had become on this vacuous time-wasting and distracting activity. What power these platforms have over me!
Of course, I know that I am not alone. In the documentary I watched, school children were interviewed and said that they spent an average of 5 hours on their phone per day. 5 HOURS! This time won’t all be spent scrolling mindlessly, but also connecting and conversing with their friends. But 5 hours?!
Mobile phones have grown in their functionality to become our one stop shop for every single thing that is digitized. For every little thing we want to do, the phone comes out. Whether we are writing our shopping list, checking our diary availability or looking up opening hours of our favorite coffee shop. Oh, and while we’re there, our finger automatically goes to our scrolling platform of choice. We’ve developed a muscle memory and the next thing we know is that 30 minutes have gone by.
So how do we break that habit?
Here is my plan:
- I will remove the apps from my phone. There is no need to panic, they are still accessible through the web browser if desperately needed, but adding a bit of friction makes access more intentional.
- As of this evening, instead of going to my phone to scroll for a while before bed, I will get off the sofa straight away, leave my phone on the coffee table and go to bed with my book.
- When I am out and about waiting, I will actually look up and observe what is happening around me. I will also carry a small notepad and pen (how old-school!) to take notes of things to remember.
In a time before we even had phones, we lived perfectly well without them. It’s quite incredible that something so addictive has permeated every aspect of our lives in so many ways in such a short period of time (in evolutionary terms).
With distraction and entertainment right at my fingertips, I realize that I am now fearing the empty space that would result in turning away from them. But is it worth my valuable attention? Do I really want to be feeding what is nothing more than a highly sophisticated advertising machine?
I don’t want to turn away from tech altogether, and there are some very useful tools available on our phones. I just want to be more aware of where my time goes and feel more in control of where I put my focus. I want to feel that I am living my life intentionally.
Are you finding this difficult too and want to break the scrolling habit? Then get in touch and let’s talk.
