I just finished reading a book titled How to Break Up with Your Phone, by Catherine Price (2018). I go through phases where I spend entirely too much time on my phone, but when I do go down a rabbit hole, it can be quite a deep rabbit hole. I hate that feeling where the phone (or just being on the internet) feels more like a requirement than a thing I can enjoy. While I didn't learn a lot of new things from the book (much of the research about social media and compulsive screen time is well-established at this point), the book was a reminder that I don't need to spend so much time on my phone, or the internet in general, to make use of it.
What I like about the book is that it's not just saying "never use your phone," though I imagine people may read the title and treat the title as that being the literal meaning of it. It's about being mindful of when we use our phones. What purpose are we using them for? Do we have a specific objective we are trying to accomplish (such as reading the news or checking our email), or is it part of a habit? A lot of times, it is definitely a habit for me. I am looking for ways to cool it on my phone and internet use, to get back to that point where I want to use these things for specific purposes (chat with friends, play games online, share things, read things) rather than let that be my default. I don't want life to pass me by.
Price asks us to consider: how do we want to spend the time in our life? Sometimes it is to be a little distracted, and that's OK too, but is distraction the default mode we want to be in?
If you're looking for a way to lighten up your own tech use, I would personally recommend the book. It's an easy read; I was able to knock it out over a few sittings. I'm already starting to use some of the tips (Discord is uninstalled from my phone once again, and I am limiting my other notifications).
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