Measure to Control - II
Do you know how many hours you spend on your smartphone every day? Do you know which apps take the most time on your smartphone? And more importantly, is this pattern improving your life?
Whether you have bought a smartphone or someone has bought it for you, the smartphone must make your life better, like any other “thing” you own. Think of your new shoes; I assume they are comfy and you help you enjoy long walks without any pain or even the slightest discomfort in your feet. A smartphone is no different; you own it, and it should be working to serve you.
It is distressing to realize that many people end up being enslaved by their smartphones. They spent countless hours of their day just refreshing newsfeeds of social media apps, entertainment sites, news sites, and so on. It is like waiting for a notification, then refreshing anyway! Alternatively, they would start doing something gratifying, such as reading a book, going out with friends, or watching a movie, then stopping that activity to respond to an incoming pointless notification that could wait for hours and even days!
If you find yourself constantly checking your phone mindlessly and wasting sizeable portions of your “life” just catering to your smartphone, it might be wise to measure your behaviour, which might be some sort of addiction.
There are many ways to measure your interaction with your phone and start to control it. I know of two approaches:
You can use them temporarily or for long periods depending on your needs; the purpose would be to rewire new good habits and unlearn bad habits.