Smartphones are incredibly useful devices that enable a lot of conveniences. The benefits are innumerable and obvious. What I’m more interested in is the pitfalls. I catch myself too often spending a long part of my day on my phone. This would be fine if I did something productive on it, but most often I’m doom scrolling and re-checking apps that I’ve checked five minutes ago.

How long do I spend on my phone on average? I recently created a video outlining some of the strategies I use in combination, to lower my screen time. Yet even then, I average four hours of screen time. Which is like two long movies. Despite that, I felt like I’ve got some understanding on living better with my device.

The nerve

A friend of mine told me of a 30 Day Challenge which limits screen time to two hours. I was flabbergasted. How can I explain to him, it’s impossible? I use five different strategies in combination, and that only lowered my time to four hours. I rejected the idea.

It grew on me

Over the next few weeks, the challenge was knocking relentlessly on my head. Then one day I saw a video which made me delete the Instagram app. Cal Newport is a big inspiration of mine and in a video he described the following scenario:

• The richest companies in the world

• Pay a lot of money to the smartest people in the world

• To make those apps as addictive as possible

It’s not our fault we cannot resist. But that doesn’t remove our responsibility to live responsibly with our devices. This quote reminded me something. I never used to have Instagram until a few years ago, when I decided to share some of my film making stuff. Hold on… I’m back on the same Ferris wheel I escaped from, when I decided to delete the Facebook app many years ago.

The time is now

I didn’t know when to start. When would it be convenient for such extreme asceticism? Then one day I was under some scheduling pressure to finish an article. The first thing I did when I woke up was start work and nothing else. After work, I went to a workout date with a friend and by the time I got back it was 9pm. My phone was still on airplane mode from the night before. My total screen time was seven minutes. That was a good time to start the challenge.

Normally whenever I do a 30 Day Challenge, I tick off each day like “phew that was tough, only x to go…” But surprisingly I found it easy enough that I didn’t feel the need for this affirming ritual.

The lesson

I’ve got a desk job. For now, I cannot see a way around being in front of a computer. After eight hours of being in front of a computer, the last thing I would want to do is stay there and scroll on social media. Phones are different however. You can sit, stand, walk, sofa, kitchen. There isn’t this natural mechanism where our bodies, dissatisfied with being in one position for too long – tell us it’s time to move on.

What happened after 30 days?

How does it feel like? Sad. Whenever I now impulsively pick up my phone, to find that magic pleasure of easy to access dopamine – I feel a little sad. It’s no longer there. The fun I’m expecting this device to provide me with, isn’t there anymore. Like a junkie who has somehow become immune to his favourite drug. I look through my apps; YouTube can provide entertainment but I’m not usually looking to experience long form content in these periods. I can also browse some tabs on Chrome or my emails, but both are not exciting either.

How to make it sustainable?

What I noticed is that I still do need those mental breaks, during work hours. But if I’ve got no alternative to my phone, then it’s going to be the only place I can go to. So I’ve resorted to something I’ve never done before. Subscribed to a magazine. The nerve. In this case, it’s a publication I’m familiar with and usually buy at airport bookstores.

I know it’s moderately fun, but not endlessly fun.

I will never sit and read through the whole thing in one go, which is how my apps on my phone make me feel.