3 tips for curing your smartphone addiction

The smartphone is one of the greatest inventions of our time. It provides us with endless amounts of information anytime we need it. It’s hard to get stranded or lost when you have a smartphone, and there’s almost no such thing as being unreachable. But with all of the good that comes along with them, there are definitely down sides. We can spend up to 5 hours a day using our phones. That’s insanity. If you sometimes feel that your phone is permanently attached to your hand, here are three tips to help you cut back on your smartphone use.

Set the tone in the morning: Sure, we all like seeing what we’ve missed while we were sleeping, but honestly how important is it really? Try changing things up. Get up, gather your thoughts in a hot shower, and enjoy the calmness of drinking a cup of coffee as you enjoy the morning sun. If you don’t reach for your phone first thing in the morning, it might have a positive effect on your whole day.

Cut back on the notifications: Some things are important, and you need to know about them right away. But I bet if you stop and think about the number of times that your phone buzzes each day, you’ll realize how often unimportant stuff takes your attention away from whatever it is that you’re focused on. Check out your notification settings and think about which apps aren’t as important as your phone makes you think they are. You’ll be happier if you cut back on the notifications and set aside some times during the day to check for the less crucial updates.

Educate yourself: You may not realize just how much you’re using your phone during the day. The truth is, we like to convince ourselves that we’re not using our phones near as often as we actually are. If you think the truth about your smartphone usage might be the wakeup call you need, keep track with Checky. This app will help you keep tabs on yourself, and just might be the push you need to make a change.