Summary

The article outlines a four-step strategy to overcome smartphone addiction by changing usage habits, setting specific times for checking apps, curating social media feeds, and using device features to limit usage.

Abstract

The article "How To Cure Your Smartphone Addiction in 4 Steps" provides a guide to reducing smartphone dependency and improving focus. It emphasizes the importance of adopting the right mindset, recognizing that frequent checks are unnecessary and that social media content will still be available later. The article suggests establishing fixed times for smartphone use, preferably in the morning and an hour before bed, to avoid emotional disturbances and sleep disruption. It also advises unfollowing irrelevant accounts to streamline social media content and make the experience more intentional. Additionally, the article recommends turning off notifications and setting app usage limits to minimize distractions and regain control over one's time and attention.

Opinions

Social media content does not require immediate attention, and checking less frequently is sufficient.
Frequent smartphone use during activities like studying or conversing is detrimental to focus and productivity.
Setting fixed times for smartphone use helps in forming consistent habits and reducing stress.
The morning and the hour before bed are strategic times to avoid smartphone use to maintain emotional balance and ensure restful sleep.
Unfollowing unnecessary accounts on social media helps return to the original purpose of using these platforms.
Having a clear, specific goal is crucial to prevent reaching for the smartphone out of habit.
Turning off notifications and setting time limits for apps can significantly reduce smartphone addiction.

Productivity / Mental Health

How To Cure Your Smartphone Addiction in 4 Steps

And gain back your focus

1. The right mindset

Social media is full of memes, food pictures, and funny selfies.

You don’t miss anything. But that’s not my point at all. I’m not entirely against social media — you don’t have to leave the platforms altogether.

It’s enough to realize that you won’t miss anything if you check your smartphone only once a day instead of 30 times. The reason is simple: The pictures, tweets, and stories of your friends are not lost so quickly. Stories are usually available 24 hours a day. Opening Instagram and Twitter once a day is enough.

This will save you a lot of time. A quick feed-check may feel short, but it adds up in time. If you open Instagram 30 times a day and spend a minute there each time, that’s a lot of time — for Instagram alone.

Another problem is that you lose your focus. Using your smartphone while studying, working, or talking is poison. Without you realizing it, your focus is reset every time.

2. Fixed times

It is enough to check all apps once or twice a day. The question is, when should you do it? It’s best to set fixed times — that helps to establish a habit. I choose to check my smartphone in the morning & about an hour before bed.

Here’s why.

Every day is a new beginning. Mostly my emotions are neutral in the morning — and it should stay that way. Especially emails, WhatsApp messages, and the news trigger stress for many people.

I am emotionally very unstable. Therefore, I also don’t want to risk seeing something in the morning that makes me angry, sad, or afraid. Twitter, Instagram & the news are a no-go.

The smartphone is known to keep you awake. Using it before falling asleep is counterproductive. It’s much better to check your phone one or more hours before you go to bed. That way, nothing keeps us awake during the night.

3. Follow your plans, unfollow people

We don’t know why we open Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. It's a reflex, coming up every few minutes. A flood of dopamine awaits us in our feed, and we leave the app with the feeling that there’s more to see.

For a good reason, the algorithms also show us content that we don’t follow. This way, we find more that we like & stay in the app even longer.

We’ve forgotten what we actually use social media for.

Unfollowing accounts is about one thing: getting social media back to what it should be for you. You’re probably like me. On Instagram, I want to see content from my friends. On Twitter, I want to follow what interesting people are saying. So what am I following all these meme sites for?

After a thorough sorting out, the flood of content is smaller. Looking through everything doesn’t take that long anymore.

Sorting out makes sense — but what do I mean by “follow your plans”?

The constant reach for the smartphone also has advantages. When we consciously notice it, it shows that we are not focused enough right now.

Not setting a clearly defined goal is the basis for self-deception. Saying that I’m going to “study” now is not specific — of course, you always reach for the smartphone under too little pressure.

My smartphone addiction has shown me I’m not structured enough. If you use your time efficiently for your tasks, there’s hardly any left to check your feeds.

4. Turn off notifications, turn limits on

There are two ways we become aware of our smartphones. I call them push & pull factors.

Pull usage is when we open an app on our own — feeling that it’s time to check again.

Push usage is when our smartphone checks in with us — telling us there’s something new, exciting. Someone wrote you a message, a picture was liked, or a friend posted something — these are typical notifications, pushing you to grab your smartphone.

Fortunately, you can turn off notifications. It’s best to do it right away. Of course, not for all apps, but the unimportant ones.

Even if you don’t want to turn off your notifications, I have a tip for you: Set limits. On Android and IOS, you can set time limits for the use of your smartphone.

You can do this specifically for individual apps — I set a limit of 1 hour for all social media apps. If I exceed the limit, the apps are blocked for the rest of the day.