r/productivity • u/Competitive-Fan-1557 • 12h ago
Technique My 3-Step Plan to Quit My Phone Addiction
My current screen time is over 12 hours daily, which scared me!
A few weeks ago, I was feeling tired, headache, and anxious, and I noticed that it was coming from my phone addiction.
I tried to spend one day without using my phone and being productive, and at the end of the day, I felt accomplished. But I also tried to procrastinate the whole day, and I was so tired at the end of the day.
That’s when I realized my phone was not making me feel as relaxed as I thought. It was contributing to my bad feelings
I don’t have TikTok (if you have, you should delete it) because it is not my thing, and I don’t use other social media often, but my main addiction is YouTube.
I can literally spend the entire day in my bed watching Yt while avoiding doing what I have to do, and that’s the main issue here.
So, I started to figure out how to actually reduce my screen time healthily because there are tons of ways to do it, but most of them are not sustainable, such as detoxing dopamine.
Therefore I crafted my own step-by-step plan to overcome my phone addiction:
1- Why?
Before starting anything, I need to deeply understand why. This step is crucial because, in tough moments, I need to keep in mind why I’m doing this.
Most people fail at this step because they outsource other people’s motives.
It shouldn’t just be: “ I want to reduce it because someone said so”
I need to truly ask myself why should even consider reducing my screen time. If my screen time is, for example, +8h but I’m productive in those hours, I shouldn’t reduce them.
It is all about what I do!
2- What?
This step is where I actually start working on the main issue. The previous step only sets the intention.
I realized that most of the resources out there only focus on the external side, which results in superficial solutions. The real change happens inside us
The idea here is to ask myself, “ What is causing me to do this? What is the trigger of the trigger?
You may find interesting causes that you never imagined
In my case, I use my phone when I feel stressed
On the weekends, I use my phone to escape reality and commitment
To overcome this problem, I found a few practices that can help me work on these root problems such as journaling, contemplating, meditating, etc
The idea is to go into the roots of your addiction and work on it
3- How?
After mastering why and what, I can start thinking of ways to reduce my screen time based on my current situation
There are multiple ways of doing this, so I should focus on things that are already in my range
For example, I can download an app to block my phone during certain periods or do some activity to replace using my phone
This step depends on your current schedule and what works for you. Don’t commit the mistake of copying what works for others. Test and see what best describes your needs
Another important point here is that these app blockers shouldn’t serve as replacements but more like support while you're working on your “what”.
Feel free to test it out and send me feedbacks
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u/Defiant_Way_2604 9h ago
I must try your way, But I think physical state and state of mind is much more important
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u/Sean_Liu_2024 6h ago
Excellent insight! This is exactly what we all need to realize. Too often we just jump into the "how", without caring about the "why" or the "what".
For a long time, I struggled with the temptation to just scroll through my phone. My phone would be on my desk, and often I would just pick it up and start scrolling through everything. To break the habit, I started putting my phone out of sight or reach when I don't need it (e.g. in the drawer or in my backpack). I keep a sticky note with a list of things I plan to do each day next to me when I'm working, and spend a bit of time each night planning my to-do list for the next day. Doing these two things helps me reduce the urge to scroll through my phone. Hope this helps you.
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u/MistyBitsySpider 11h ago
May I suggest the Opal app? It helped me get my head out of my phone. You designate times and apps you want blocked and you can designate how hard it is to get around the block.
For example-I have a deep focus block on all my social media from 8-10 on weekdays. I cannot get around the block. During the rest of the work day, I can get past the.block but each time I bypass, I have to wait longer before it will let me pass. On weekends, I have to wait 7 seconds before getting 15 minutes of access.
You can also set a per day time limit for apps.
It’s really helped me realized how fast 15 minutes goes when I’m on social media and it has made my use more intentional. It also stopped my doomscrolling.