Phone Addiction: A Hard Habit to Break
Phones are a huge source of attention clutter!
I love to talk about clutter, its consequences, and how to clear it. Usually when we talk about clutter, we’re referring to stuff. While clutter involving physical objects is the most recognized form, clutter includes so much more than stuff. More broadly speaking, clutter is anything that gets in the way of our priorities, anything that draws our focus away from what’s most important.
Invisible Clutter
Our schedules and to-do lists can get cluttered with activities and tasks that don’t serve us well. Our minds can become cluttered, causing a lack of focus or ability to concentrate on the person or task at hand. Just like schedule clutter, this kind of clutter, which I call attention clutter, is invisible. It causes us to do a poor job at whatever we’re doing because our mind is elsewhere. It can be especially damaging to relationships because we treat others as if they aren’t important.
While I don’t have issues with physical clutter, I definitely struggle with both schedule and attention clutter. Attention clutter in particular is a huge problem for me. It causes me to lose things, to have trouble concentrating, and to be self-absorbed, among other things.
Although many factors contribute to my attention clutter, I’ll concentrate on the one that has caused the most problems. It’s probably the #1 factor causing unprecedented levels of attention clutter in our culture. I’m addicted to my smartphone.
Admitting the truth is painful. The worst part is it took me so long to change, even though my family had been telling me I had a problem for years. Many times, when they were trying to talk to me, I was glued to my phone. I usually had an excuse. I made half-hearted efforts to address the problem. In the end, it took radical decisions to alter my behavior.
Got Nomophobia?
I am not alone in this struggle. Smartphone addiction is so prevalent that it’s been given a name. Nomophobia is the fear of being away from one’s mobile phone. In 2022, our smartphones have become both our best friend and our greatest enemy. We’ve got the power to do so much with our phones, but that power comes with a steep price, including damaged relationships, mental health concerns, and distracted driving, among others.
The Numbers
Take a look at a few alarming statistics from the article “90 Smartphone Addiction Statistics You Must See: 2022 Usage and Data Analysis.” Remember, these statistics apply to smartphone users of all ages.
On average, a person spends 4 hours and 10 minutes on mobile devices daily.
A user clicks, taps, and swipes their phone 2,617 times daily.
86% of users check their phones even while talking to friends and family.
55.4% of users use or look at their smartphones while driving.
99.2% of users show some level of fear and anxiety if they accidentally leave their phones (nomophobia).
I find these statistics frightening and sobering. Before you say (or think), “Some people really do have a problem, but not me,” take a look at yourself. Better yet, ask your close friends and family whether it’s an issue with you, and be prepared to hear the truth. At the end of our lives, we may say, “I wish I had spent more time with my family and friends.” I don’t think anyone will ever say, “I wish I had spent more time on my smartphone.”
There are positive aspects of quick communication. In case of emergency, we can be reached instantly. Messages occasionally need a hasty answer. But just because we can reply quickly doesn’t mean we need to. Just because we can instantly find out the answer to a question with a quick search doesn’t mean we should. There is value in wondering, thinking, and discussing an issue.
I’m grateful I was made aware of the problem so I could make changes. It’s not perfect now, but it’s much better. Following are some of the helpful steps I took to break my smartphone addiction.
Breaking the Addiction
No Phones at Mealtime
This rule can make mealtime more enjoyable and meaningful. Although exceptions may need to be made occasionally, conversation at the table should have priority, whether at home or out.
Since I started fighting my smartphone addiction, I’ve become more aware of this widespread problem. When eating in a restaurant, have you noticed how often families are sitting together but not talking because one or more family members are on a device? Put the phones down and spend time together!
Limit Car Phone Use
As a driver, avoiding smartphone use is a matter of life and death. As a passenger, it’s easy to use travel time as a reason to get on our smartphone. This subtly communicates to the driver and other passengers that whatever you’re doing on the phone is the most important thing. Instead, choose something in which everyone can participate like a travel game, audiobook, or podcast. How about just looking out the window and observing your surroundings?Don’t Charge by the Bed
Having your smartphone beside you is convenient, but convenience isn’t always the most important factor. With our phone beside us, we’re more likely to use it late into the night and the middle of the night, as well as hopping back on first thing in the morning. Try moving it across the room. This small adjustment has reaped big dividends for me.
Limit Social Media
Spending time on social media isn’t wrong. It can be an excellent way to stay in touch with people we rarely see. But if we’re honest with ourselves, most of our social media time is wasted idle time.
To decrease social media time, identify the reason(s) you spend time on it. Your desire may be tied to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). We want to keep up with “the latest,” and we don’t want to miss an opportunity to participate in an event. It might just be a desire for mindless entertainment. Identifying your “why” can help; you may realize your reasons aren’t that important, or you may think of better ways to accomplish the same purpose.
Conclusion
The changes I’ve made have improved the quality of my life. The same could be true for you if you’re willing to tackle unhealthy smartphone habits.
You’ll find more information, inspiration, and tools for conquering clutter of all kinds in my book, Unholy Mess: What the Bible Says about Clutter, which is available in paperback and ebook on Amazon.