FOMO is a real thing — you don’t want to be the last person to choose for their fantasy football team or miss Rihanna’s NYFW livestream on YouTube. Many of us vocalize that we “want to spend less time on our phone,” but do we really try to change or establish a goal? Most of us don’t, and we fail to realize that cell phone addiction is real. It’s something millennials struggle with, but can’t admit. Why spend so much time focused on other people’s lives and not more on your own?
According to recent research done by Dscout, a research platform that uses an app to compile data, “people tap, swipe and click an average of 2,617 times per day.” I know you’re thinking “that’s totally not me,” but it is. Have you ever counted the amount of times you picked your phone up during the day to check your Instagram, Snapchat, emails or just Google something? Reality check — you should. Documenting your phone usage can be the first step to cutting back.
Download the Moment App
Moment is a free app that tracks phone usage. It allows you to set daily limits and if you go over them, the app will notify you. It’s meant to give you a rude awakening and get you back to your real life. Try downloading the app, and you will realize how much you really do use your cellphone. It can be very eye-opening, but what you do with the results is up to you.
What Can You Do with That Time?
Less phone time equals more free time. Figure out things you like to do and would rather be doing. Make a to-do list of activities you’d like to try but make sure you cover all the time you’d usually spend on your phone so you won’t have the urge to look at it. Try picking up a new hobby or even rediscovering the joy of an old one. Think about how you spent your time when you were younger before you had a cellphone
Social Media Cleanse
Delete those social media apps until you get your life together. When you download Moment, you will see that most of the time you spend on your phone is used on social media. Stop spending so much time on trying to make your Instagram look aesthetically pleasing, and spend more time doing things that grow you as a person. If you don’t want to completely delete your social media apps, just limit yourself to using them on your computer.
These suggestions are more practical than those recommending that you “throw your phone away” or “just leave it at home everyday.” They are meant to be realistic things anyone can do, and they can help you in your journey toward creating new habits.
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