Focus!

Squirrel!  Anyone else having trouble focusing lately?  I don’t think this is necessarily new, just an amplified world of distraction lately.  I do know one thing; my phone is Evil.  There are so many reasons to pick it up; the weather, a text, an e-mail.  Yet, once that lock screen is down its off to the races.  I find this device to be a major crutch in the way any addiction could come into play.  While it’s not something that might not harm me physically, all the hallmarks of an addiction come into play.  The first step with anything is admitting the problem.  So, for all who are reading this; “Hi, My name is Brent and I have an iPhone problem.” 

As a therapy of sorts for myself, this week’s Wednesday Words is about finding ways to break the spell cast by that little “Black Mirror.”    Hopefully, some new habits will stick as not a Resolution, but a New Year’s Intention.  After scouring the internet (on my computer), I’ve come across a few tips I’ll sprinkle in with some of my own to help improve my connection, or better yet break the connection, with my phone.

• Charge the phone (overnight) in another room.  This has been a rule I’ve stuck with for many years.  The only time I’ve had my phone within reach when sleeping was when I traveled.  Even then I could see the risk of a “midnight browsing snack.”  A surprising statistic I ran across from a study indicated that nearly 75% out of 200 Stanford University Students slept with their phone next to them in bed.  Definitively one of the first habits to break on the path to balance.

• A second tip is to leverage the “Screen Time” feature within the iPhone.  This feature was added in the past few years as Apple realized that many people were spending an unhealthy amount of time on their devices.  It can be leveraged passively to check the number of times you pickup or open the phone, as well as show you your screen time in the day.  This feature can also be used to set limitations on time with apps or overall phone time.  I’ve yet to start the limiting feature but have been surprised that my 11 year old daughter is savvy enough to know that she should set her own limits on use – smart kid! Try setting daily goals to reduce the number of “pick-ups.”

• Make the phone less appealing.  I must admit I never knew about this next feature until today, but I find it quite fascinating.  You can use Color Filters to enable grayscale on your iPhone, turning it into a bland black and white screen of blah.  Just head over to Settings > Accessibility > Display & Text Size. Then, scroll down to find Color Filters and enable it. Tap Grayscale and you are all set.  You can also enable Grayscale quickly by setting up Accessibility Shortcut. You will then be required to triple-click the home button to switch modes.  I like this approach due to it’s inescapable reality.  It’s like a shock to the system.

• Limit your Apps or rearrange your home screen to make it more of a chore to access “junk food” apps.  If there are less reasons to get sucked into your phone by a “shiny object” app that can lead you down a rabbit hole after a legitimate look, you’re less apt to stay on the phone longer.  Use the folders feature or make a choice to move apps or even remove apps that can be a distraction.

• Leave it out of reach when meeting with people or watching a show or movie.  Nothing bothers my wife more than if she’s telling me something and my phone is open in my hand.  To be honest, it is rude.  But too many people are being distracted and rude under the guise of “multi-tasking.”  It’s time to put the phones down.  Our levels of engagement will go up and beyond that, it’s just more polite.  In terms of watching a movie or television show, that’s more of a choice.  I sometimes binge my phone during commercials, but with DVRs and the risk of getting sucked in beyond the commercial break, I’ve started leaving the phone out of reach to enjoy the larger screen.

• Turn Off Notifications.  Ah, the song of the Sirens (Greek reference).  Yes, that illumination of the screen without your intervention can call you at anytime.  Some notifications are necessary, while others are just an enticement to the abyss.  Try to limit the number of notifications to those that need your time or response.  This will help prevent those unintended binge sessions from happening.

• Read a Book!  I found this to be a very effective way to stay away from my phone.  And I don’t mean read a book on your phone.  Its almost like eating a carrot instead of junk food when needed.  Over the holidays I found that by picking up a book I spent less time just surfing on my phone.  Enough to read five really good novels in 4 weeks!

My hope is that this helps others beyond myself.  Try one or two of the above to see if you can make a change in the way you interact with the device.  In a world of bits and bytes with information coming to us at light speed its easy to get distracted an miss what’s really happening around us.  We’re pursuing what I’ve heard to be called the “elsewhere” reality.  What surrounds us physically is not as interesting as what is happening elsewhere (on your phone). 

While we’re in the season of resolutions, many which have been lost at this point I imagine, I’m making this an intention for the year.  What started as a “Phone” has become much more and can be a valuable tool when used properly.  However, too much has been hoisted onto this device beyond its practical usage.  So for this year, I “intend” to live my life in the present and not through the little Black Mirror.