Sure, TikTok is pretty darn interesting, and Instagram has accustomed us to avocado toast.Plus, social media is an easy way to stay in touch with loved ones and keep up with the latest news. But which of these do we truly need? Ask yourself, would you truly be bored without ever-changing content or are you driven by FOMO? Have you ever been intimidated by the number of hours you spend on your phone? If you answered yes to at least one question, here are nine simple ways to spend less time on mindless scrolling and more time on real life.
Change the Arrangement of Apps on the Screen
We often find ourselves clicking on apps without even realizing it. Sometimes we realize we’ve just watched five TikTok videos with kitties, but we don’t remember how we got there. More often than not, we pick up the phone for a specific purpose, but end up trapped in social media anyway. At this point, we can compare social media to National Casino. Like with posts, we start with a 3D slot, and after an hour, we find out we are playing live casino games.
Make it harder for yourself and move all the icons to the farthest screen, or better yet, hide them inside a separate folder. The more steps we have to take to check social media, the less likely we are to hit Instagram, Facebook and other apps by accident.
Turn off Notifications
Do you really care that much about getting notifications when someone likes your post or another blogger shares a new post? Notifications are designed to take your attention away from what you’re doing and make you grab your phone again. Leave control to yourself: turn off social media notifications and grab your phone when you need it, not when Instagram demands it. When something that truly requires your attention happens, you’re more likely to get a call.
Understand How Much Time You Spend on Social Media
Begin by identifying a starting point. If your phone tracks screen time usage, study the stats. Usually a couple of hours doesn’t seriously scare anyone, but try multiplying that arithmetic average by 52 weeks and the resulting figure will shock you. Many spend whole days, or even weeks and months on their phones, not at all on journaling or work correspondence, but on useless scrolling through Instagram and the black hole of TikTok. Think about what you could spend those hours on that would qualitatively improve your life or make you more satisfied.
Analyze which apps you use most often, when and why you do it, and what would replace the habit. If you are serious about it, try to limit your screen time. The first step would be to try to reduce your stats by at least half an hour, for example, from two and a half hours a week to two. Don’t go to extremes and delete all your accounts at once: If you do, there’s a good chance you’ll snap.
Leave Your Phone in the Other Room
Sometimes, like on weekends, try leaving your phone in a different room. You’ll be surprised how little happens online during the time you replace the gadget in your hand with a book.
After a while, up the ante and go for a walk without your phone. You have no idea the sense of freedom that comes with this difficult decision.
Don’t Use Your Phone at the Table
Many people unconsciously pick up their phone while meeting with friends and start automatically scrolling through something while telling a friend about a vacation. Even if you hear all about her surfing experience at this point, it’s rude and extremely unpleasant for the storyteller. Would you like your story to be listened to half-heartedly?
During the next meeting, offer to stack the gadgets in the center of the table with the condition that the first to take the phone will pay the bill or the next round of cocktails.
Photo by ROBIN WORRALL on Unsplash