What is it about being present that’s so uncomfortable for so many in 2022? Well, I don’t think the answer is particularly challenging. After all, we’ve made it a habit to be distracted, never be alone with our thoughts and crave our dopamine hits. And all of that — for most of us — is the result of phone addiction.
For me, personally, my goal isn’t to stop using my phone entirely or go 30 days without using social media, etc. To be frank, I quite like my phone. Plus, I need to use social media for my business.
That said, figuring ways to eliminate my phone habit (i.e., addiction) so that I can be more present in my life is healthy, necessary and important.
How To Stop Phone Addiction
Number one: Leave phone in car when going out.
I recognize this may be a very personal call (to be honest, I can’t believe I’m admitting that this is an actual goal of mine). Also, this tip makes me feel a little nervous.
Nonetheless, if you leave your phone in the car — for backup, emergencies, etc. — you’ll be so much more present for all the things you left the house for.
- Dinner date
- Shopping
- Networking event (bring pen and paper!)
Maybe, if you’re with a friend or significant other, decide on who will carry around a phone for pictures and such. And then just have them send you all the images later.
Number two: Don’t look at your phone first thing in the morning.
This can be especially difficult when our phones are our alarm clocks, podcast/audio book players, guided meditation sources, etc.
And for me, putting my phone in the other room room at night isn’t an option because if there’s an emergency with my kids or in-laws or parents, I want to know.
My hack: I set up the podcast/audiobook I want to listen to in the morning the night before.
And I’ve learned that if I don’t have my readers nearby in the morning (and my contacts aren’t in), then I literally can’t see anything on my phone. Goodbye, scrolling.
Hence, all I have to do is hit the play button (for the audio selection I’ve already planned) and pop right out of bed and listen.
Number three: Make a list of phone time sucks (that don’t need to be done on the regular).
You know what I’m talking about. We all do it:
- mindlessly checking Instagram messages
- scrolling through tweets
- getting sucked into any video on TikTok, Reels or YouTube
For additional steps on limiting phone use and breaking the addiction, listen to this episode of The Chalene Show:
And don’t forget to subscribe to TCS for weekly shows dedicated to your overall personal development!
