I’m generally one of those people who checks her phone as soon as the alarm goes off in the morning. I open up my email, weather app, and Instagram before either of my eyes can even focus. I continue to check it as I get ready, and then again when I pull into my parking spot at work.
This is undoubtedly one of my worst habits. And honestly, I’m embarrassed when I see my screen time report at the end of each week.
So I decided that last week I wouldn’t look at my phone until I got to my desk each morning. That means two full hours of screen-free time. It may not seem like a lot (or maybe it does), but I needed a way to decrease how much I was mindlessly scrolling and focus on things that are actually good for me. Like drinking water.
Here’s what I noticed after implementing a two-hour-no-phone zone each morning for one week.
I got ready quicker
I think this probably goes without saying, but our phones are such a time suck. I often find myself wondering why I’m rushing out the door when I woke up five minutes early. Because those extra five minutes were probably taken up by checking what’s new in the Zara app, that’s why.
With nothing to distract me, I got ready quicker and had extra time to do a quick chore, or write down my intentions for the day (something I skip out on if I’m running behind schedule).
I felt calmer
Lately, I’ve felt frazzled with my phone. Constantly checking what’s new in your most-visited apps is not zen, and I was starting to feel it. One of the most relaxing things about traveling for me is that I’m not on my phone; so why wouldn’t I do this in my day-to-day too?
Phone-free mornings made for a more relaxed, grounded me. I found joy in the normal, everyday aspects of my morning routine, and felt happier overall.
I was able to think through my ideas
Whenever I think I have a good idea, I immediately write it down into my notes app. I challenged myself not to do that this week; instead, I let myself think through the idea, reflect on it, and then write it down in a notebook.
The result? I was able to slow my mind down, focus on one idea at a time, and decide which ones were worth thinking about further. I’m really going to try doing this one all day.
I drank more water
You may be thinking: huh? But hear me out: with my hands and time free of my phone, my glass of water had no competition. I drank twice as much water each morning as I normally would. I’ll just chalk it up as an extra healthy bonus.
As someone who loves scrolling through visual media and is a little too familiar with the Pinterest app, it can be tough to set boundaries when it comes to my phone. But, obviously, setting intentional blocks of screen-free time is so beneficial for both our mental and physical health (yay for extra water intake!)
So what do you say – are you with me? Will you be setting aside time to put your phone away each day?
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