Inspired by a new formative podcast from over the break, Joe Stone went on a personal journey that he called “Project Screen Time.” The episode featured much-needed reinforcement on the positives of avoiding social media in the first two hours—and all around—their day. It motivated him to reflect on the state of his own screen time. Joe started with a screen time goal of reducing his daily screen time from more than four hours to less than one hour. What he quickly discovered was that this undertaking was much more complex than he envisioned.
During the first week of his project, Joe experienced a stunning decrease in screen time. He even succeeded in reducing it to a mere 51 minutes a day! This accomplishment was not sustainable. By week two, his average daily screen time skyrocketed to two hours a day. The next week, it stabilized at 90 minutes. Joe went through some significant swings, but he fought through. On an especially tough day at home, he accumulated an amazing three hours and 36 minutes on his personal device.
As Joe analyzed his usage patterns, he discovered an intriguing statistic: the “Settings” app had become his third most-used application. This surprising event led him to reevaluate his compulsive and obsessive behavior toward tracking his screen time. In his attempt to escape the pull of his phone, he inadvertently replaced one bad habit with another. Rather than spending more time on his phone, he developed an obsession with tracking his daily screen time.
Joe was more annoyed at his own arbitrary rules. In a last minute panic, he went online to try and find ways to retrieve missed notifications, only to discover that it wouldn’t be possible with the configuration he was using. He even once threatened to re-do his original screen time report in Photoshop. He was tired of losing all control over his digital existence.
Amidst this crisis, Joe found that he could no longer hold himself back. We took a few photo ops around the beautiful coastal backdrop of Tenerife. Clad in a tank top and dark sunglasses, he was the very image of leisure. He struggled with his screen time targets.
A month into Joe’s conscious effort to minimize his screen time. In turn, he was greeted with a tidal wave of congratulatory direct messages from mutual friends and planters hailing his superhuman restraint. A lot of people had written to ask him how he was able to stop checking his phone completely. Well-meaning individuals encouraged Joe in subtle ways to pursue a more practical path. Adding in activities such as cooking, driving or typing with multiple fingers.
For his part, Joe focused one whole week on stubbornly steering clear of his phone. With all the dedication in the world, though, he struggled with the difficult truth that eliminating screen time cold turkey was harder than he expected. His journey reflected a growing awareness of the complexities surrounding digital habits and the mental challenges involved in breaking old patterns.