In today’s world, it is almost too easy to get sucked into our screens and become totally consumed by the digital distractions that are in front of us. We spend all day refreshing Email, checking Twitter, or watching YouTube videos. Of course, all of these things have a time in place in our life. But many of us are too distracted by the T.V, by social media, by the internet.
In his book ‘Digital Minimalism,’ Cal Newport encourages us to reflect on how we can squeeze out all of the good in technology while getting rid of all the bad. He encourages us to become Digital Minimalists.
Of course, making a radical change is not easy. But, if you follow these five tips, I think that you will be on the path to become a successful Digital Minimalist.
Find the positive, let go of the negative
Being a Digital Minimalist does not mean that you have to delete all social media, never watch T.V again, or never spend time on the internet. It does mean that you are able to grab all of the positive that you can get out of these things while throwing out the bad. Many of the digital platforms that now dominate our lives started out with clear, positive purposes. Social media was created to help us keep in touch with friends, 24-hour news was founded to make sure that we are always informed, video games were made so we could have a bit of fun on occasion.
If you are able to use these things for what they were built for, then there is a good chance that they are not ruling your life. But, a problem arises when you refresh Instagram 30 times a day. When you have the T.V on in the background all day. When you spend your whole day playing Call Of Duty. This is the point where the negatives start to outweigh the positives.
If you enjoy interacting with your friends on Facebook, and that brings you joy, then that would be a great example of finding good on social media. But if you can’t focus on anything because you are too busy responding to Instagram direct messages, then it is clear that Instagram is negatively impacting your life.
Becoming a Digital Minimalist means different things for different people. One person might never touch social media again. Another person could limit themselves to one or two YouTube videos per day. Focus on how you feel about your digital use. Continue finding positive. Eliminate the negative.
Don’t let too much time slip away
I am sure that it has all happened to us before. We are scrolling through social media, watching T.V, or playing video games. All of a sudden, we look up at the clock and an hour has passed. An hour turns to two and then two hours turns into the whole day. And then at this point, your day is gone. You have wasted too much time on technology.
For whatever reason, when we are using digital platforms, time seems to fly by. A successful Digital Minimalist is able to control time. It is okay to spend time on technology, but it becomes a problem when one mindlessly lets time slip away.
Procrastination is a big reason why we spend too much time on digital platforms. We choose to take the path of least resistance. It is so much easier to sit on the couch and watch T.V than read a book or start the project that you have been thinking about.
When you feel yourself staring to waste too much time on whatever digital distraction is in front of you, stop immediately. Don’t watch one more video. Don’t say five more minutes. It is very important to realize what you are doing in the moment of distraction. You have the power to control your time.
Don’t experience the world through a screen
“Many people experience the world largely through a screen,” said Newport. If you are consistently spending your days on the internet, then there is a very good chance that your worldview is pretty distorted.
Depending on what current events are happening, the way the news or social media portrays the world can be off. To be clear, I am not saying that the media is giving you false information. But I do think it is important to not let your phone/T.V/computer to become your only window to the entire world.
There is no problem looking through window on occasion, but you must realize how limited its perspective is.
Appreciate all of the little things that happen in your daily life that are not news worthy. If all you do is look at the scary things that are happening online, then you are likely to think that the entire world is on fire. Of course, this is not true. Seek out real life experiences.
Find things that fulfill you
Now that you are no longer spending so much time on technology, it is really important that you find something else to do that is productive. This should be something that you enjoy doing, but at the same time, it should help you get closer to a goal that you have set for yourself.
Maybe you chose to go for a walk everyday. Maybe you decide that you want to read more books. It really doesn’t matter what you decide to do. But it should be absent of any sort of digital simulation. That means no phone, no music, no podcasts. It should just be you and the task that is in front of you.
I would encourage you to really observe how you feel after completing the task that you have chosen to do. If you feel a sense of accomplishment, then that is a positive development! If you are able to replace technology use with a productive task, you are one step closer to becoming a successful Digital Minimalist.
Set limits for yourself
I hope that I have made it clear: using technology is not inherently bad. But the negative side effects become pretty sizable if you don’t put some limits or rules on yourself.
Here are some examples of limits/rules that you can use:
Don’t look at your phone for the first hour of your day.
Limit social media use to 30 minutes per day.
When working, log out of your social media accounts
No technology one hour before you go to bed.
These are just some rules that I have tried to implement in my life. Allow yourself to experiment and find out what works for you. The most important thing is to put some sort of limit on your use. If you do this, you are a lot less likely to fall back into your old habits.