If you are sick of using smartphones or if you are searching for a concrete method for a digital detox, this article will help you so much.
Starting from day one, like a diary style, I would like to track my emotional change caused by the loss of my smartphone.
If you want to throw your phone away from you for a better lifestyle, please take some of the tips from my own experience.
As I have shared my idea of digital detox in the article Minimalist lifestyle tips "digital detox for well-being is so important to 21st-century people", digital detox and mental/physical wellness are deeply connected.
I want to take my life back.
Day 1: I dropped my smartphone, and it does not work anymore.
This happened.
Actually, this was the first time for me, that I completely made my smartphone broken.
Of course, as many people may do, right after I broke my smartphone was looking for shops that can fix my smartphone.
The reason why I came to the idea of not having a smartphone was that the fee was very expensive and I thought I don't want to pay this amount of money just fixing a phone; almost the same price as I paid for the new one.
This time was the best time to lose access to my smartphone for me.
On day 1, I was staying at my partner's house because her place is much closer to the destination of the family trip starting from day 2 to day 4; meaning that I will be physically close to my important people, so there will be no urgent calls coming in.
For a time being, I have been thinking about quitting a smartphone, but at the same time, I had this feeling I should not stop using a smartphone.
I will share the reason why I had this conflict in my mind in the next paragraph.
Findings from Day 1
So the reason why my mind was suffering from reaching the conclusion is that, in Japan, some important notifications from the government are conducted through smartphones and it is much easier to have a smartphone.
Also, as a freelance, I need to send financial documents to the taxation office every year, and in this location as well, it is so easy to have a taxation-related app on my phone.
And including these conflicts in my mind, I noticed some findings from not having a smartphone, and a laptop this time.
The findings from life without a smartphone are...
- People check their smartphones so frequently
- It is not that inconvenient without a phone
- I felt enough mental space
People check their smartphones so frequently
During my family trip, I have realized how frequently the rest of the family members check their phones, even during a family trip.
Each family member lives separately because we are all grown up, and the time that all of the family members gather together is very limited.
Noticing how frequently my parents and my siblings check their smartphones, I've started thinking about why the smartphone is more important than talking with your family?
Some of them were even checking social media during a family trip.
Actually, I'm a person who is without social media to track every day, by the way, my Pinterest account is for my blogging growth so I never check other's posts, I can't believe the people who check social media posts, even though they are with other people.
I became to be very scared to realize how people and myself till yesterday look at their smartphones, even without any purpose for using them.
I think we should be conscious not to use smartphones when we are with people.
It is not that inconvenient without a phone
The first iPhone 4 was released in 2007, no, I'm writing this blog in 2022 so it has been only 15 years since people are with a smartphone.
Do we remember that most of our time, human beings have cherished without smartphones?
I think these days people are spending their time for unnecessary purposes.
For example, unless you are a professional social media influencer utilizing social media for income, what is the purpose of checking social media so frequently?
You would be able to live and have fun in your life without social media.
I have proven this because for many years, I haven't checked any of the timelines filled with posts; even so, I do have my trustable best friends around me.
What I mean here is that without social media or the smartphone itself, it is not that inconvenient to live.
You may ask me "What if I get lost? I'm going to this place for the first time?"
Don't worry, what I have done to reach the hotel that I have never been to was simple; I wrote down the address of the hotel, the name of the hotel, how to get there by train, including the closest exit of the subway.
This is it.
You should remember that in every single city or town there are local people.
If you get lost, ask the people.
This time as expected, I get lost, but I asked some of the people around the station, and they took me to the hotel.
Without a smartphone, it's not that inconvenient.
I felt enough mental space
The last thing I would like to highlight is that without a smartphone, I could feel real mental space.
I did not have any access to my digital account, so what I could do was enjoy the chat with my family, looking at nature, and talking with the local people about our trip, and destination.
By experiencing this, I felt like "I have been away from the real world for a pretty long time".
Probably, people want to think that they should have a smartphone but actually, they don't have to have one.
So I want to conclude the first article of the life without my phone series with a simple question.
"Why do I need a smartphone?"