How do you manage screen time for yourself?
In a world where we are forever tethered to our devices, whether due to one’s personal or work life, it can be difficult to disconnect. For one, there’s a little thing called FOMO. Then there is society’s increasing dependence on technology to get any work done. It is an undeniable fact that our beloved devices open a whole world at our fingertips – but it is also increasingly evident that this addictive, easy access to so much information can lead to detrimental effects to our mental health. It’s why it’s important to utilize some screen time discipline. However, being a knowledge worker myself, I recognize this is quite the tall order.
Most of the work I do requires access to a computer. Research, reporting, analyzing, planning. If I’m not at the bench, I’m definitely at the desk (though even when I’m at the bench, I still need to refer to that lovely computer at my desk). When I’m having my lunch break, it’s a chance for respite from the so-called black mirror – one that, I regret to say, I do not take. I mean… it’s the perfect time to reach out to family and friends and relax. It’s just so easy to do by texting. It’s a tricky thing, reducing that screen time.
So what am I supposed to do?
Well, I can control what I do after work, especially in the hours before bed. But before that, I have a longer commute, so I unwind from work by listening to music or playing a podcast. Sometimes, my mind just wants to wander when traffic grinds to a halt, giving me a chance to look around me for a little while. Of course, these pauses aren’t always welcome depending on my mood at the time, but when they are, I find them strangely contemplative.
When I (eventually) get home, I try to avoid being on my phone for stretches of time. TikTok normally sucks me into an hours-long rabbithole, but lately, I find it less satisfying. Perhaps realizing that I miss out on other things I want to do gets rid of the urge to give it a visit. At any rate, I manage my screen time by wanting to be more intentional. Merely wandering the internet just doesn’t do it for me anymore because I lose hours of my day, and before I know it, it’s all over. On to the next day. It gives me a strange feeling of emptiness and loss. What have I done with my day? Where has it gone? But if I have a goal of reading an hour’s worth of articles like I told myself I would and worked on my coding hobby, well, then I’ve done it. My day has not gone to waste.
So I manage my screen time by using it only when I truly feel like it would, as Marie Kondo would say, “spark joy.” If it doesn’t, then what is the point?
bluebeary 