Digital Minimalism - Day -n

I reached some sort of a breaking point with my phone last night. Again. I do this every now and then, become aware that I’ve “re-addicted” myself to my device(s) and am once again doomscrolling through endless mind-numbing crap to try and distract me from whatever is plaguing my mind at the time, be it things I should be doing, work, time with the kids who won’t stop shouting at their own devices or just good old plain boredom.

At these times, I usually delete whatever social media accounts (Reddit is usually my particular poison) I have created in the last few weeks and swear off phone use again. However, in the style of a tue addict, I usually am back on there within a few weeks, usually when some minor misfortune has befallen me and my brain craves that hit of dopamine.

At this point, the other thing is usually do is pick up Cal Newport’s Digital Minimalism and re-read it for the umpteenth time, hoping that on this occasion I’ll come across some nugget of wisdom I missed the other times I’ve read it which will help me kick the habit. The fact that I’ve read it umpteen times probably gives you some sort of insight into how often this happens.

But, one thing I have never had before when attempting this is any form of accountability, and now, I have a blog.

So, I’m ready for another try. As I’m re-reading the book, I’m not calling this day 1 or even day 0, I’m calling day “-n” as my plan is to start officially in a few days’ time Cal’s “Digital Detox” as described in the book, but to lay out some proper ground rules and instructions on here first rather than just putting the phone away and hoping for the best.

So here’s to the latest attempt to quit being the one which sticks and this blog being the accountability tool which holds me to it. Digital Minimalists of the world unite, we have nothing to gain but our sanity.