Having a cell phone means having the whole world at the tips of your fingers all day, every day. This power and potential can quickly overwhelm you and end up fraying your real-life relationships! With great power comes great responsibility and today we’re going to be talking about 5 healthy cell phone habits you can incorporate into your daily routine.
1. Skip Social Media in Social Situations
One of the easiest things you can do to create healthy cell phone habits is to eliminate checking and using your phone when you’re with friends and family. Focus on engaging with them in real-life rather than spending time checking your phone. Shut off your phone or put it on airplane mode so you won’t be getting notifications or feeling vibrations during this time!
2. Skip the Scroll at Bedtime
Blue light from technology keeps you awake at night and can make it hard to fall asleep. The stress and anxiety that constant scrolling on social media can also keep you from getting a restful night’s sleep. Put your phone across the room at bedtime to keep yourself from scrolling until the wee hours of the night. You’ll still be able to hear your alarm from here but you won’t be tempted to keep looking until you’ve exhausted your news feed.
3. Go out without your Phone
Believe it or not, you CAN go out and do errands without your phone! Start by simply going for a walk without your phone and experience the world around you rather than allow yourself to be distracted. Write your grocery list on an honest to goodness piece of paper and take it with you to the store. You’ll find you simply don’t need the distraction as much as you thought once you’ve got the hang of going without!
4. Create a New Habit
Every time you reach for your phone, choose something else to do with your hands. This can be as simple as just tapping your fingers on the table or get as complicated as reaching for a new hobby instead. Teach yourself to knit, crochet, whittle, or any other type of activity as a replacement for your cell phone.
5. Turn off your Notifications
Feeling or hearing the ding or chime when a new notification comes in is a satisfying experience. To keep yourself from constantly checking your phone, turn off your notifications for everything but your phone or text messages. This limits the number of times you’ll be reaching for your phone and checking why you’ve got new notifications.
Takeaway
Creating healthy cell phone habits can be trying. But once you’ve got the hang of it, you’ll find your health and wellness thanking you! Rather than being consumed by your phone, it will quickly return to simply being a tool that you can use whenever you need it. You won’t end up being controlled by it but rather you’ll be in control again!