I appreciate how this article acknowledges that once an addicting device is in our hands, we are to some degree at its mercy. So the best intervention is environmental: get rid of the device.
I employ a lightweight version: in my home is a "charging station" where it is easy to place a device and then forget about it. Some days I don't even see my phone until noon. If I drop my device at the charging station when I walk past it or when I get home, it's likely I won't pick it up for many hours. This practice has been a game changer for elongating my attention span and conducting myself with greater presence.
Notes:
- There's no downside to this strategy; I still have a 2-factor auth device, maps for travel, music for car rides, convenient contactless payment, etc.
- The charging station should be away from the main living areas and bedroom – mine is in a hallway's open cupboard near the main entrance.
- The "charging" part of the charging station is a misnomer, you don't have to charge anything, but the label serves as an enticement to drop off the device.
I do this, though using a different term for the station. Mine is called a "key catch" since I also plop my wallet, keys and the rest of my EDC on this shelf that is also fitted to charge my phone.
My trouble is that it's not necessarily the phone I'm addicted to, but screens in general. I have a tablet that floats around the house, and my laptop is never far away, so without the phone in hand, I'm reaching for one of those two preferred devices.
The justification is that I'm not playing games or endlessly scrolling social media. If I'm on my tablet, I'm reading news or a book. If I'm on my laptop, I'm working on a project or learning something.
I view my devices as tools, so any use of them is intended to inform me or further my understanding on something. Still, I arguably spend too much time on all of them collectively and I am not clear if this is healthy or not, but it does make me happier than my actual job or going out into the community which inevitably involves spending money I don't need to spend. Of the people who know me and understand this, nobody seems alarmed by my behavior.
I mentioned that because I deal with substance abuse in my life as a 12-year-sober recovering alcoholic. When we start applying the word "addiction" and it's barbed hooks to things like technology, I take notice. I'd argue that it depends on what you are doing with said device. Doom scrolling? Gambling? Eroding your self-worth by comparing yourself to people on Instagram? Watching vapid YouTubers read listicles from Reddit?
The activity matters...BUT, is the person performing the activity getting some joy from it without harming themselves or others?
It's a sticky subject, to me, but one worth discussing.
I employ a lightweight version: in my home is a "charging station" where it is easy to place a device and then forget about it. Some days I don't even see my phone until noon. If I drop my device at the charging station when I walk past it or when I get home, it's likely I won't pick it up for many hours. This practice has been a game changer for elongating my attention span and conducting myself with greater presence.
Notes:
- There's no downside to this strategy; I still have a 2-factor auth device, maps for travel, music for car rides, convenient contactless payment, etc.
- The charging station should be away from the main living areas and bedroom – mine is in a hallway's open cupboard near the main entrance.
- The "charging" part of the charging station is a misnomer, you don't have to charge anything, but the label serves as an enticement to drop off the device.