1. Turn off notifications
I never realized how distracting notifications on my phone were, as well as how much brain space they were taking up, until I turned them off for almost all of my apps.
Every time your phone dings or a notification pops up, your brain can be sidetracked from whatever you were working on.
You can do this by going to your settings app, and then, depending on what kind of phone you have, do one of two things.
1) Go to your notifications settings and toggle off notifications for all (or almost all) apps
2) Go to the settings for each app and set them accordingly.
I have an iPhone, and I think you can do either of these methods. The first one turns all notifications that the app sends on or off. The second will let you choose which notifications you get and how they pop up on your screen.
I personally turned off all my notifications besides Messages, Facebook Messenger (this was off but then I missed messages from people who only messaged me on there), and my weather app.
There might be a few other apps that I occasionally get notifications from, but by simply turning off notifications to all of my social media apps and other apps I didn’t need to know about when I wasn’t using the app, I’ve cleared up a lot of mental space that all the notifications were taking up.
2. Delete unused apps
Look through your phone and ask yourself, “When was the last time I used this app?”
If you’re anything like me, there are probably apps you got awhile ago and either used for a time and then forgot about, or you used them once for their purpose and then were done with them.
Go through and delete any apps that you’re not currently using or that you haven’t used in a long time.
Don’t worry, you can always redownload them. And even paid apps will stay be tied to your account so you won’t be charged for them when you put them back on your phone.
Plus, I’m guessing if you paid to get an app on your phone, it’s more likely that it’s one you’ve used recently and it will make the cut to keep.
If you have an iPhone, I love the new feature that lets you remove apps from your home screen and place them into an App Library. Then you can keep only the apps you use regularly on a screen or two.
By deleting unused apps and leaving your phone with only the essential apps that you actually use, you won’t have so many pages or folders of apps to search for when you need to find one.
When I do this, I also like to make my first page of apps the ones I use all the time. This way I don’t even have to go to the second page of apps very often.
3. Unsubscribe, liberally
Is there anything more annoying than all those sale-sy emails flooding you when all you want to do is find an email?
I really need to go through and do this again because my inbox is getting flooded, but periodically I go through and unsubscribe from any email list I don’t need anymore.
Maybe I signed up for a coupon code or a free download, but I’ve since become bored of the rest of the content.
If you automatically delete an email or open it, scan it for 5 seconds, and then hit the delete key, chances are you’re not going to miss that person’s emails.
Unsubscribe from anything that you’re not really getting any value from anymore, and your mental capacity will thank you.
4. Set time limits on your technology
If you have an iPhone like me, you can set time limits for specific apps or categories of apps. Once you reach the limit, you’ll be informed that you’ve used up your time for that app for the day.
The Screen Time feature on Apple devices also shows you how much time overall you’ve spent on your device(s).
Since you can’t exempt specific apps from being counted, any usage of your device where the screen is on (not things like podcasts or music) is recorded. You can’t work around having your screen time counted, which can be annoying but is also quite eye-opening.
I set time limits on social media apps/sites because those are the ones I’m most guilty of grabbing my phone to scroll through.
I also have a goal to keep my tech usage the save or lower it compared to the past week, just as a personal challenge to myself to not use my phone for hours on end.
5. Keep technology to certain times/locations
Limiting your technology usage to certain places or times can help you focus your usage.
This way, it’s less about depriving yourself of using your device(s) and more about using them when it’s their place or time to be used.
Some ideas for times to use (or not use) your device could include:
- Use it while waiting to pick your kids or groceries up
- Don’t scroll through it in bed
- Don’t immediately grab your it when you wake up (unless it’s to turn your alarm off)
- Don’t use your device when you’re playing with your kids
- Use your device to make video calls to long-distance friends or family members (can be scheduled so you all know when you’re talking)
Ideas for limiting the location(s) where you use your device could include:
- Not using it in certain rooms of your house (like the bathroom or bedroom
- Leaving it in a central location so you can hear it ring but aren’t constantly carrying it around with you
- Deleting apps of the device you carry around with you so you can only use them when you sit down on a different device
I’d like to expand on this last idea. I’ve found that I can drastically reduce my amount of time on Instagram by simply taking the app off my phone. I then am limited to using it when I’m on my iPad or laptop, neither of which I carry around with me like I do my phone.
By keeping your use of an app to a certain device or making yourself log back in each time, your use of that app or site can hopefully be a bit more targeted.
6. Read a book
Okay, so this isn’t directly a technology tip, but it can help your mind to not feel so cluttered with digital baggage.
Hobbies can also help give our minds something to think about instead of constantly feeling the need to mindlessly scroll through social media.
Read a book, or find another “analog” hobby.
Think anything that doesn’t require a screen.
Ideas for analog hobbies include:
- Reading a book
- Journaling
- Baking
- Painting
- Writing letters
- Going on a walk
- Jogging
- Gardening
- Knitting
- Crocheting
- Sewing
- Cross-stitching
- Playing an instrument
When we stop looking to technology as our source of entertainment, it’s amazing how much time we can find to do things outside of our devices!
Plus, as is the case with some of these hobbies, we can get out bodies moving and maybe even get some fresh air at the same time.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by technology, I’d encourage you to try one or two of these steps today!
