Do you ever notice a shift after a lovely holiday, going back into the normal routine of things and back into old habits of scrolling/checking for messages? Nowadays our phones are a big reason we feel anxious, stressed and burnt out. One major thing we can do to be more mindful and be more present is reduce our distractions. We can’t hold proper conversations or keep good relationships if we’re constantly distracted by beeps or notification icons.
Here are my top tips to be more mindful with your time and reduce your phone use:
Turn off all sound on your phone except for a phone call
Delete the news apps – so if you want to read the news you can open a browser and it’s more of a choice rather than a habit
Mute whats app conversations with lots of people in them (or even with someone that you maybe want to support but takes up a lot of head space), so you can choose when you catch up on these messages rather than it being dictated to you when you’re checking the time
Remove the need to use your phone for day to day activities
- Get a watch
- Get an actual alarm clock (or a small child will do just fine)
- Use a kitchen timer
Try doing your walk to school/nursery/work without looking at your phone (it doesn’t need to be every time, but try it once and see how you feel)
Set boundaries – eg. No phones at the dinner table, don't unlock before 8am or after 9pm. Maybe even removing it from your workspace so you can focus (even it sitting locked/face down beside you will be a temptation)
Leave your phone on charge downstairs so you have some time to wake up in the morning without going into fight/flight when you look at your emails first thing
Either mute email notifications or remove them completely from your phone
Have a competition with your family to see who can have the least amount of screen time by the end of the day.
How many of these can you tick off?
Pop your favourite tips below!
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