Managing screen time

If you’ve ever been horrified by your daily screen time report then today’s mindfulness and wellbeing article is for you. In it, we’ll be thinking about some of the ways in which we can either limit or better manage our online activity in order to benefit from living in a hyperconnected environment while still retaining some capacity to engage with the offline environment and appreciate the people around us. 

We live in a world where the majority of us check our devices literally hundreds of times a day, and it’s not difficult to see how this can be detrimental to our ability to focus and even to our overall happiness. Yet it’s also difficult to completely eliminate tech from our lives, and many of us are dependent on using digital channels in our professional activities and in practical tasks. Lots of us also benefit from being able to use the internet to keep in contact with people in other places, to keep up to date with hobbies, or to learn more about the world around us. With all of this in mind, we’re thinking about how we can use the digital environment to our advantage rather than our detriment by being more intentional in our internet and social media use.

In no particular order, here are some tips. 

Be more conscious in how you use your devices

Try to limit the amount of apps on your device and aim to be intentional in how you use them. It’s often easier to keep a handle on screen time if we set aside particular times for dedicated scrolling rather than dipping in all the time. You’ll enjoy your device more, and get more out of it, if you make an active choice to use your device at a certain time, for a certain time period, for a certain purpose. Set yourself a predefined time limit and try to have something else to do afterwards so that you already have a natural cut-off point. Try and physically distance yourself from your devices by leaving them outside of your reach when you don’t intend to use them. 

Limit on-screen notifications and reminder emails 

Deactivating on-screen push notifications for non-essential apps will help you to avoid pop-ups catching the corner of your eye whenever you take your phone out and will make it more difficult for you to get sidetracked whenever you have to use your phone for a necessary task, such as paying a bill. If you start spending less time on a platform you might then start receiving emails with updates about what’s been happening on that platform while you’ve been away, so it can be helpful to unsubscribe from that correspondence. It’s also a good idea to try to disable any kind of targeted content such as personalised news feeds since this tends to create more of a distraction than generic content. 

Engage in the analogue versions of your hobbies

Until fairly recently, the majority if not all of people’s activities took place offline, and it’s worth trying to reclaim this wherever possible. If your on-screen interests have an analogue equivalent then it’s well worth pursuing it instead of, or as a break from, your online activities. Try to engage with offline media sources like print newspapers or magazines, and try to prioritise activities that occupy both of your hands. If you’re in any way artistic then it’s always a good idea to keep materials like sketchbooks close to you so that you always have a tactile way of filling the time.

Seek inspiration from offline spaces 

Social media platforms can be a great place for picking up creative ideas, particularly if you have niche hobbies, but try not to limit yourself to online content. Try reading magazines, borrowing books from libraries, or even seeking inspiration in physical places, whether that’s by visiting a gallery or walking through a neighbourhood with interesting street art. If you take all of your ideas from online then you’ll likely be exposed to the same content everyone else is following, while if you set your sights wider then you’re more likely to feel inspired by things that help you to think differently.

Try to prioritise longer-form content 

Arguably one of the major drivers of consistent screen use is the fact that we have easy access to constantly unfolding news content. While there’s nothing wrong with keeping up with current events, and if anything this is part of being a responsible citizen, always remember that rolling updates only provide part of the picture and that if you want to understand a situation in depth it’s best to try to either read longer articles on the topic or ideally even a book about it. Also remember that news updates and articles tend to be high on shock value and low on context, particularly when filtered through the lens of social media. Ultimately, taking some time to read and reflect properly on global events will be more helpful than constantly refreshing live updates.

Try to take some of your social interactions offline

Many of us work for multinational organisations or have friends and family members living in other places, and twenty-first century technology is great for bridging the miles and allowing people in vastly different time zones and locations to be in constant contact with one another. At the same time, when it’s so easy to complete the majority of actions online, we can sometimes become complacent about the value of seeing friends, family members, colleagues and other other acquaintances in real-world settings. If you have loved ones living close to you, try to make time to see them in person. If you don’t then try to make use of third spaces like cafés in order to benefit from being in the company of other people, even if you don’t know them personally.  

Look after your physical as well as mental health 

When we consider the effects of excessive screen time we generally focus on the impact on our psychology but we should also be mindful of the physical toll that screen use takes. If you use a computer for long periods of time as part of your work or studies, be mindful of your posture and try to take regular breaks to move around and give your eyes a break. Always get outdoors whenever you have the opportunity, even if it’s only for a few moments. 

Don’t be too hard on yourself 

Just the fact that you’ve registered extended screen time indicates that you’re aware of the situation and therefore more likely to be able to address it. Remember that smartphones are deliberately designed to capture and retain our attention and have a whole host of features that are designed to draw us in, from personalised content to infinite scrolling. If you’ve spent too much time on your device any given day, just put it down to experience and resolve to try and cut your usage down the following day.

We hope our article has provided some useful tips on how to make the most of the opportunities that new technologies provide while not becoming overly dependent on them. If you have any additional tips on managing screen time then we’d love to hear them, so please feel free to throw your suggestions into the comments section. 

Stay mindful, and see you again in April for next month’s updates! 

Sources 

BBC Future

How mobile phones have changed our brains

https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20230403-how-cellphones-have-changed-our-brains