#75Hard Day 52: Set Boundaries With Your Phone

▶️ Society has made everything available at our fingertips—for better or worse—via our phone.
▶️ They are a tremendous asset to our ability to be productive, but if we are not careful the pendulum can start to swing in the opposite direction as they are easy distractions.
▶️ Set boundaries with your phone so that it is a productivity tool, rather than a time wasting enemy.
▶️ Set do not disturb hours on your phone. This will allow calls and notifications to be silenced during the hours you determine you don’t want them. This is especially helpful for blocked work time and when sleeping! You can enable your important contacts to be able to override the silence feature by calling back to back within a certain timeframe in case it’s an emergency.
▶️ Turn off notifications for social media. Block time when you determine you want to check them. There is no reason to be interrupted every time for these things. It is precious time wasted getting back into focus after every single interruption.
▶️ Set do not disturb on contacts that tend to be a energy drain or mental / emotional trigger. They can wait for you to address them when it’s more convenient for you.
▶️ Leave your phone at home or on do not disturb if you plan to be with family / spouse / friend during a time which your attention should be focused.
▶️ Put your phone in another room when you go to bed at night. Better quality sleep = more energy for work the next day. You won’t be tempted to look because you know it’s not there and those texts from the crazy people who send them in the middle of the night won’t wake you up!
▶️ Create rules surrounding how you will spend your time on your device. Things like no email or social media until after your quiet time and/or biggest task for the day is finished.
▶️ Set a timer to limit the use of certain apps, games, or social media.
▶️ If you find yourself particularly drawn to over indulging in a game or social media app, delete it from your phone. You can manually download it if you decide you want to access it, but often times, the extra effort will be a deterrent.
▶️ Have your spouse or friend change the password for an app or email account that consistently keeps you from being productive. They can only give it to you once your work is done. This works particularly well if you’re working on a project that is very important and time sensitive. (Idea from @Jamesclear).