When was the last time you completely forgot about your phone for a block of time?
I don’t ask this rhetorically; take a minute to really see if you can remember.
Maybe it was one evening last month when you did that workshop in floral design that you’ve always wanted to try.
Maybe it was two hours last Saturday while you inhaled fresh air and hiked with a friend.
Maybe it was twenty minutes last night when you pulled your youngest child close and read to her till she fell asleep.
For most of us, our phones have become an extension of our hands. And if they’re not in our hands, they’re in our purses, our back pockets, or on the counter just a few feet away.
I’m not writing to condemn phone use—not by any stretch. My phone is invaluable in helping me stay organized, form lasting habits, capture spontaneous moments, and connect with family and friends.
But just ten years ago, I couldn’t have foreseen how heavily I’d rely on a piece of technology—and how easy it would be to honor a piece of steel and circuitry over the things I care most about.
To me this huge shift we’ve all undergone means we need to keep our eyes open to how we’re really using our devices and how we want to be using our devices. It’s a never-ending, imperfect process of searching for a reasonable balance.
5 Reasons to Forget Your Phone
1. Life satisfaction declines when we’re too connected.
Studies (like this one) have found that excess social media use predicts a decline in happiness. As compelling as that is, all I really need is my own experience to show me the difference between how I feel when I’m away from my phone for a length of time and how I feel when I’ve spent my whole day checking it.
2. Our kids are fascinated with what we are fascinated with.
If this quote isn’t indicting, I don’t know what is! –> “We may think that kids have a natural fascination with phones. Really, children have a fascination with whatever Mom and Dad find fascinating.” Read more at The Art of Staying Focused in a Distracting World.
3. Our kids learn empathy through eye contact.
If you think of a time when you needed empathy and a friend really came through, how do you remember your friend communicating it? I think words make an impact, but more than anything, it’s in the eyes. If we’re too often distracted by technology when our kids come to us with their worries and pains (however small they may seem), how will they learn the power of empathy?
4. Phones instantly take us out of the moment.
When we glance down to see if anyone has commented on an Instagram post… When we refresh our email just because… Each of those motions yanks us away from whatever is happening right around us. Unplug in order to focus on what truly matters.
5. Time spent digitally connected could be better spent developing connections with each other and the great outdoors.
What the above have in common is simply that our time could be better spent. I’d rather connect with my friends, my family, a good book, and the great outdoors than the brightly-lit screen in my hand.
I often think about how “convenient” it is that nature—where cell reception is often scarce—forces us to put away our devices, soak in the beauty, and be all there with our families. Some of my best spontaneous conversations with family members have taken place on the hiking trail when phones were forgotten.
Here are 10 things you could do with 10 minutes—instead of checking your phone:
- Take a walk around your neighborhood {Why a Walk Really Does Help Your Body & Soul}
- Read a childhood classic to your child.
- Light a candle and turn on some favorite mellow music
- Make a healthy meal. Our kids love having breakfast for dinner – Oatmeal Blender Pancakes.
- Gather supplies for a creative project. I’m partial to this one!
- Go to sleep ten minutes earlier. (Heavens, yes!)
- Get to know yourself better by taking a personality test.
- Do a random act of kindness.
- Have a face-to-face conversation with your spouse. I suggest starting your travel bucket list. It’s such a fun activity, dreaming together.
- Write in your journal.
If you could soak in any of those experiences in 10 distraction-free minutes, imagine what you could do with half a day.
I’ll close by personally answering the question at the top of this post. When was the last time I forgot to check my phone for a length of time?
As this is our first winter in North Dakota, I couldn’t really prepare myself for the isolation that can come with such cold temperatures. The kids’ school was cancelled for three days in a row as we sat inside our house watching the snow drifts on our street pile up well beyond our heads.
We had run out of hot chocolate mix and our patience with each other when suddenly I knew it was time to get outside, no matter how low the temperatures.
We put on more layers than I think I’ve ever seen in my life (and I’m Canadian-born!) and headed outside right at sunset. My younger girls and I worked hard to build a snowman while the older kids fired snowballs at us from a safe distance.
We headed in with red cheeks and slightly blue lips, but in that one hour, we’d laughed more than we had in three days.
When I got inside, I saw that I’d missed two texts and five new emails, but somehow, it didn’t really seem to matter.
“Do more things that make you forget to check your phone.” – Unknown
If you liked this post you might also enjoy…
- How to Make Time for What Matters Most
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- What I Gained When I Lost My Social Media Addiction
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The only two times I regularly separate from my phone are during church and when watching a movie. Your post encourages me to rethink this !!
Rebecca, this is such a brat concept! I love the idea of ‘forgetting’. On weekend I intentionally don’t check my phone but I’m honestly struggling to remember a time when I was so enthralled with what I was doing that I forgot to check it (outside of visiting with family and friends which again, is intentional). You’ve inspired me to pull out my paints and get wrapped up in creativity! Thank you!
Sometimes I read blog posts and it’s like the writer has just summarised something I’ve been so close to figuring out myself…but haven’t quite got there yet! This really is a great way of thinking about free time, and how to spend it in an intentional, meaningful way.
I’m hunting for great content on Minimalism & Simple Living at the moment, as part of my day job, so I thought I’d add a couple of your posts to the list 🙂 I work for a company called Quuu, who promote great blog posts on social media. So, hopefully you’ll see our subscribers sharing your post more over the next few days.