Be Here Now: Rethinking Our Everyday and Our Use of Devices
How to Reduce Screen Time, Global Device Usage Averages, and Tips for Being Effortlessly Present
Hello! Welcome to this week’s post - thank you so much for reading and enjoying last week’s reflection on adopting new habits gently. In this one, we explore habits we might not realize we have, patterns we can look to change, and how we can be naturally more immersed in our everyday. You may not use a lot of devices, but even if you are barely on them (as I am) you’ll still be surprised at a few other ways that electronics and the internet have become a part of your everyday. The article includes statistics on global averages of phone and device usage which may really surprise you!
Thank you so much for reading and being a subscriber, and I hope you find value in this week’s post too :)
Living in the Moment as Often as Possible - Effortless Presence
The idea behind this post comes from the realization I had yesterday that I am living with a lot less anxiety with regards to one of my personal behavioural patterns that I am looking to improve. This behavior pattern I refer to is simply feeling like I always need to be making the most of time. IE, as I discuss in previous posts, feeling like “there isn’t enough time” or I have to rush, or I have to do X thing right now, or X activity “or else”. For example: if it’s sunny, I should be doing this, if I have free time, I should be doing that…
Finally, after a lot of work over the last six months, I am really now feeling like I have just been living - just existing - without any burdens or worries about having to do things a certain way, or having to do certain things. I am no longer forcing responsibilities on myself and being hard on myself, and it has made a very big difference to my everyday life. Effortless presence.
So let me give you an example of the type of behaviors that I would burden myself with: Because I am accustomed to the sun, I have struggled for a long time with the weather in England. I know, it’s cliche - but bear with me. I have long since learned to love whatever the weather is and feel no attachment, but even until recently I realized that I had this feeling of “desperation” every time the sun was out.
I always felt very rushed - the sun was out for what felt like one hour, and I just couldn’t wait to make sure I was in it as much as possible. I was obsessed with spending as much time in it as I possibly could - even doing things I might not really feel like doing that day, but I did it anyway because I thought I “had” to.
I would force myself to do things because I thought: I’ve got to make the most of this right now, whether I want to or feel like it or not, because I don’t want to regret it later - I might not get another chance for a while.
Yikes! Talk about “fear of missing out”! I never used to be like this - and as I already explained, a very large part of this behavioral pattern was broken once I stopped working in law. I automatically had a lot more time to myself, and this meant I then naturally stopped feeling that sense of constant rush and like I didn’t have enough time for anything. Don’t get me wrong - I had to work hard and de-condition myself - but that job was one of the biggest contributors to this belief that “there wasn’t enough time”.
I now have the ability to pursue my interests and hobbies in depth - I can take my time - as long as I want - and I don’t feel like I am missing out on something else, or unable to do something else, because I decided to spend 2 or 3 hours on one activity. My whole sense of time has changed.
So I realized that I was finally able to live “effortlessly”. With effortless presence. I do many things, as and when I feel like it. My time isn’t perfectly planned out anymore; I don’t have any ideas about how the day should go; I don’t think of what I should be doing, I don’t tell myself I need to or should be doing something else. I simply exist in each moment, at each time, doing whatever it is that I am doing. And whatever I am doing is enough. I’m not “missing out”, or making ill-use of time. However you spend your time and whatever you do, is the right use of time.
Don’t get me wrong - of course I still have these thoughts, but I am able to work past them. It’s about acceptance: Acceptance of where you are, who you are, your environment, all as discussed in last week’s post. And whilst all the above, my efforts at living more slowly, and all my practices as detailed in the latest posts, have helped change my sense of time - there was another factor that had a larger influence on me than I realized: Devices.
What’s Your Device Usage Time?
And Do You Know the Global Averages? They’ll Surprise You!
I recently shared on my instagram what my average screen time was: It’s about 30 minutes a day - this goes up if I am writing to my family (because I can only stay in touch through the phone), or if I am feeling creative and use the camera. Alternatively, if I timelapse myself painting, the screen time shoots up by 2.5 hours or however long the timelapse records me painting. Even though I am not on the screen, the phone is in use so it logs the data as myself having been on the screen.
Whilst this figure is frustrating at a glance in terms of numerical data - the reality is that I am genuinely on my phone - as in actively looking at it and using it - for probably around 30 minutes a day. Sometimes, far less - 16 minutes! My instagram is limited to only 10 minutes a day of usage. I don’t have any other social media or apps of that kind - Instagram is the only one I use.
Do you know what the average screen time is? Do you know what pickups are? (not the guitar ones). I recently decided to turn my screen time on, and I have been really interested in the data it collects. You can really see just how you really use your phone, and for what. It can be very eye-opening - but it is also a very, very good tool for holding yourself accountable.
I dislike devices and the internet, and social media. Even like this, however, I still found it very useful to turn on “Screen Time” and have a metric that informs me of my device usage. It feels like someone is keeping track of you, and you feel much more aware of making sure that “screen time” figure stays low - because you are confronted with it everyday! You can see it on your home screen - and that really helps remind you of how much time you might be wasting away in front of a phone.
If you are the type of person that doesn’t think twice about using devices, or when they pick them up and how often - then you’ll be very surprised at the data that is collected and you’ll find Screen Time very useful in helping you limit your device usage time.
As I say - if a person who consciously chooses many times a day not to pick up their device has found this tool useful, then imagine how useful it will be for anyone who wants to limit their screen time but doesn’t already have that modicum of self-discipline or even awareness.
Global Averages for Screen Time, PickUps, and Shocking Usage Habits
Screen time is how long you spend on your phone - this can be reading, using your camera, being on social media apps like instagram, or anything else at all. If you have unlocked your phone, and you are using it, this will count towards your screen time.
What about pickups? What are they? This is whenever you unlock your phone, and go to use it. It is basically logging every time you pick up your phone - as long as you have then gone on to use it. If you tap your screen to see the time, this will not count.
Do you know what the average daily pickups are?
The average person checks their phone 96 times per day! Stats say people touch their phones 2,617 times per day and unlock their phones 150 times a day on average. That means people are picking up their phones once every ten to 12 minutes. This is not okay!
70% of phone pick-up sessions last less than 2 minutes
Half of all screen time sessions begin within three minutes of the previous one.
71% of people check their phone within the first 10 minutes of waking up
70% check their phone within the first 5 minutes of receiving a notification
People born in and after 1996 watch 7.2 hours of videos per day, bouncing from TikTok to YouTube to Netflix.
The average person spends 5 hours and 24 minutes just on their mobile device each day.
On average, children 8-18 spend 7.5 hours a day in front of screens for entertainment alone — which amounts to 114 days a year!
You can clearly see just how lost people are when they are spending these obscene amounts of time in front of a tiny electronic device. Meanwhile, their entire life is passing them by.
Rethinking Our Everyday
It’s time to look at our habits and start changing. By reducing our phone usage we create boundless amounts of time, we are immersed in the present, and we improve our ability to live slowly and mindfully.
Are you doing any of the things listed in the statistics? Here they are again:
70% of phone pick-up sessions last less than 2 minutes
Half of all screen time sessions begin within three minutes of the previous one.
71% of people check their phone within the first 10 minutes of waking up
70% check their phone within the first 5 minutes of receiving a notification
People born in and after 1996 watch 7.2 hours of videos per day, bouncing from TikTok to YouTube to Netflix.
The average person spends 5 hours and 24 minutes just on their mobile device each day.
On average, children 8-18 spend 7.5 hours a day in front of screens for entertainment alone — which amounts to 114 days a year!
Do you find yourself picking up your phone a lot? Then putting it back down? Are you doing constant “quick searches”? Are you constantly checking in with your social media? If the person you are with leaves the room or the table, do you go on your phone?
Do you get a lot of notifications on your phone? Do you feel stressed or anxious? Do you always feel like you have to look at them now, or answer right away?
How much - if any - of your phone time, goes toward personal development? Are you watching youtube videos to learn? Or are you watching things that don’t really have any substantial value - things that years from now will make no difference at all whether you had watched it or not.
Does that search really matter? Does that check-in really matter? Does that information really make a difference to your life? Does looking that thing up really add something you will never forget to your life? Or will that smile from your family or friend instead be something that really sticks in your mind forever - or the view if you just look up - what’s around you - your home - your life. How much of that are you missing?
71% of people check their phone within the first 10 minutes of waking up:
Do you do this? If you do, here is another way screen time can help. I have set mine to lock my phone from 8pm to 7am. Of course I can still unlock it and use it, but it requires me going through some steps first - this puts you off because you are fully aware that you are using your device during a time where you tried to tell yourself you wouldn’t. Again, it may sound silly, but if you have a smartphone and even if you are a very, very conscious user, this does help you use your phone less.
I am considering changing my “locked” phone time from 7am to 8:30am before I can first look at my phone.
This is another huge way that setting up screen time can help keep you accountable. For a start, your phone usage is locked - so you have to click a series of buttons in order to access whatever you want to access. The phone shows a white screen saying “Time is up” - you have to click “ignore time limit” and then click “one more minute” - which let’s be honest - really makes you sound like an addict! Or you can also click “remind me in 15 minutes” or “ignore time limit for today”.
You can only click “one more minute” once - if you click it, use up your minute, and then want to keep using the app or webpage you are on, you have to click “ignore time limit” again, and select a time option again. You are really confronted with the screen usage choices you are making by having screen time set up.
Small Conscious Changes Lead Us to Living Effortlessly Present and Being in Tune with Your Wellbeing
The idea is to end up living effortlessly - without “trying to” be something or someone, or “trying to” be “peaceful” or “present”.
We have to refocus ourselves into using devices far less, even if we are the type of people who already consciously choose not to use devices, we can always do better.
We simply want to be aware and present throughout the entire day - or at least as much as possible throughout the whole day. I have seen the following changes in myself by forcing myself to be very strict with the amount of time - and ways - that I allow myself to use the phone.
I removed instagram by limiting it to ten minutes a day. Instagram is the only “social media” that I have - I don’t have anything else. I never really browsed on instagram much, but I noticed that over the last two months, I had picked up a bad routine of using my phone way too much in the morning - and checking in to a couple of wellness people that I follow. It is completely irrelevant and makes zero difference to my life, yet I convinced myself that it was just a bit of fun and it should be inspiring so that I then also feel like working out or going out and doing yoga.
Again - social media feeds constant negative comparisons, even when your aim is with the best intentions like I had - I just wanted to get inspired to move and exercise. But why do I need to? I already exercise for a living. Why do I need to be inspired by someone else doing yoga? I don’t need to do yoga, and I should only do it whenever I feel like it - not because I am forcing myself. Just as I discuss in last week’s post: accepting where we are and who we are.
When I cut out instagram to just 10 minutes a day - as I say, it’s not like I was ever on it for hours anyway - already I noticed a huge improvement in how I used my time. That time would have been spent on my phone, and instead I ended up writing, drawing, reading, and learning.
Improving my anxiety levels when it comes to my phone - just touching it gives me anxiety - I really dislike the phone. By picking it up less, I feel happier because I never liked using it to begin with. I would force myself to answer promptly, or look things up on the spot because it was easy - the internet at your fingertips.
Now, I either write it down and look it up later, or write it down and think about it and see if I can figure it out or learn it another way. Otherwise, I just let it go.
Learning to find the right balance between answering messages promptly and letting them sit there and answering another day. I get anxiety from the notifications because I find this way of communicating very intrusive - I don’t like that people can contact me whenever they want to, including past 9pm! In my day, you could only call your friends - and you knew better than to call late!
Most of my messages are work ones - it is not an easy balance to find. However, forcing myself to work at it has helped me improve my anxiety and sense of urgency when it comes to replying. I think about how urgent it really is to reply, and I force myself to be calm about it.
I also get stressed when I don’t reply, because replying then becomes something on my to-do list, and makes me feel like I have a lot to do. So as I say - it’s a balance to find - and awareness of your screen time helps you do this.
By being aware of the daily average pickups, I force myself to not pickup my phone unless I really need to. It feels like a cool successful challenge when it says 10 pickups for the day or something. I know I am really trying to be present and focused on what I am doing and I have achieved this throughout the day.
If you use the internet or your phone for recipes, you can instead transfer them into a notebook, this has been really helpful to me.
I hope this will inspire you to reanalyze your phone usage and think about how you can do a little bit better - or maybe a lot better!
Thank you so much for reading and being a subscriber, and I hope you find value in this week’s post too :)
Si, el mundo cambió y cambió mucho, recuerdo mi niñez y realmente comparando con los niños de ahora es otro mundo, claro tiene su lado positivo y es bueno pero el problema no es el iPod o phone or computer, es cómo educamos los niños en este nuevo mundo donde ir al parque , usar la bici, nadar, jugar a la escondida con nuestros amigos o vecinos ya es cada vez más difícil , claro depende del lugar en el planeta que nos encontramos pero también de los educadores de esos niños, claro los adultos tienen el mismo problema: devices vs actividades , lo importante es el balance que tenemos que lograr y conseguir un equilibrio, es difícil pero no es imposible, nosotros los adultos debemos de razonar a todo esto y buscar la solución EL EQUILIBRIO para no dejar de ser humanos y sociables y seguir teniendo un mundo capaz de hacernos felices mirando esa puesta de sol o esa nieve en el pico de la montaña , pájaros volando, caballos corriendo en fin buscar la belleza de este mundo sin necesidad de artefactos las 24 hs del día♥️