{"id":53273,"date":"2017-11-05T20:38:43","date_gmt":"2017-11-06T04:38:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/?p=53273"},"modified":"2017-12-09T17:30:27","modified_gmt":"2017-12-10T01:30:27","slug":"four-tips-to-ditch-your-smartphone-addiction-for-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/four-tips-to-ditch-your-smartphone-addiction-for-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Tips To Ditch Your Smartphone Addiction for Good"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

The modern world has brought to us an unparalleled quality of life that our ancestors could have never dreamed of.<\/p>\n

Instantaneous communication with other people, information at the click of a button, and on-demand movies are just a few of the offerings on the modern buffet table.<\/p>\n

For most people, all or most of these conveniences are accessed through their cellphones.<\/p>\n

There’s no problem with this…until it gets to the level of a compulsive behavior (i.e. an addiction).<\/p>\n

Why Cellphone Addiction Is Overlooked<\/h2>\n

Many people think addiction only comes in the form of a pill or a powder, that is mainly through external substances.<\/p>\n

Parents have a good laugh amomg and say \u201cHah, hah, he\/she just can’t put down his phone no matter what!<\/i>\u201d.<\/p>\n

It seems innocent at the outset, but compulsive behavior is just one step from addiction (which is the end result).<\/p>\n

Addiction is addiction regardless of the behavior or origin. Addictions still work on the neurotransmitter system within the brain.<\/p>\n

There are many neurotransmitters but the main one involved in behavioral addictions is dopamine.<\/p>\n

Dopamine is the neurotransmitter responsible for reward-motivated behavior.<\/p>\n

Certain activities release more dopamine than others. These are activities related to sex, food, drugs, etc.<\/p>\n

The Internet is a big stimulant of dopamine because the Internet contains a lot of novelty.<\/a><\/p>\n

Social media, shopping, porn, email – these are all novel experiences only found on the Internet.<\/p>\n

To us humans, novelty is rewarding because it tells the brain on a subconscious level, \u201chey, this might be useful for your survival<\/i>\u201d. New information releases dopamine. This is very good because our ancestors would not have made a majority of discoveries without this tendency to seek out novelty.<\/p>\n

As of November 2016, over half of the world’s population accessed the Internet through a cellphone<\/a>. What does this ultimately mean?<\/p>\n

Cellphone addiction is inherently an Internet addiction, which is turn is driven by novelty seeking.<\/p>\n

Smartphone addiction has no physical effects like drug addiction, so all’s well – right?<\/p>\n

Wrong.<\/p>\n

Why Smartphone Addiction Is Detrimental to Your Self-Development<\/h2>\n

You’re dedicated to self-improvement since you are reading this article.<\/p>\n

One of the easiest ways to destroy your self-improvement efforts is to be addicted to your smartphone or the Internet.<\/p>\n

Smartphones provide an endless assortment of stimulation. Games, Internet, chatting, text, the list of goes on and on and on.<\/p>\n

But here’s what no one is saying: you are essentially wasting time<\/b>. You aren’t doing anything inherently productive.<\/p>\n

You can spend an entire day spiraling down the Internet-based rabbit hole making absolutely no progress on your goals, whatsoever.<\/p>\n

Eventually, you will question where the time went – because you spent it on a smartphone.<\/p>\n

This is especially dangerous to kids and teenagers, who have a greater tendency to develop addictions and compulsions because their brains are still growing at a fast clip.<\/p>\n

If you’re trying to get better at a skill or manage your time better, being addicted to your smartphone will absolutely destroy the chances of that happening<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You may not think you’re addicted, but if you experience separation anxiety or withdrawal – those are strong signs that you are.<\/p>\n

4 Tips to Stop the Madness<\/h2>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

In the Power of Habit<\/i><\/a>, Charles Duhigg states that for any habit, addiction, or compulsion you have, there is a cue, a routine, and a reward.<\/p>\n

In this case, the cue is hearing or seeing your cellphone ring or buzz.<\/p>\n

The routine is picking it up and fiddling with it.<\/p>\n

The reward is the sense of satisfaction from using your phone.<\/p>\n

All of these cascade to build up to smartphone addiction.<\/p>\n

Use these four steps to hijack the \u201chabit loop\u201d before you can even start it.<\/p>\n

1. Remove the stimulus<\/h3>\n

There’s a saying that goes: \u201ccut the head off of the snake and the body dies<\/i>\u201d. This is true for smartphone addiction. Out of sight, out of mind (in a way).<\/p>\n

If you have trouble with your smartphone use, keep it out of sight. Since it’s out of sight, there’s a lower chance that you’ll reach for the phone.<\/p>\n

Put the phone in a lockbox until you are finished with work. This will train your mind to associate “work” with “not touching the smartphone”.<\/p>\n

2. Buy an alarm clock<\/h3>\n

For many people, the first thing they do is reach for their phone…because their alarm rings and they go and turn it off.<\/p>\n

Since the phone’s in your hand, might as well check the news right?<\/p>\n

You are already starting the first five minutes of your day with a phone in your hand, mind you when the subconscious is still largely active.<\/p>\n

What impact will this have on your psychology?<\/p>\n

Bypass all of this with an alarm clock. When the alarm sounds, turn it off – not your phone.<\/p>\n

3. Delete certain applications<\/h3>\n

If someone who’s heavily addicted to prescription medication can’t throw away the bottle – they can at least throw away the pills.<\/p>\n

In this case, you can’t really throw away the \u201cbottle\u201d (phone) but you can throw away the \u201cpills\u201d (apps).<\/p>\n

Instead of seeing an app and clicking on it (like a knee-jerk reaction), you can remove the cue entirely. That way, you won’t have to wrestle resisting the urge to go ahead and use the application.<\/p>\n

In order to do this, you first have to have the willpower to actually delete the application from your phone. That take some degree of self-discipline.<\/p>\n

Then again, if you have a smartphone addiction – your sense of self-discipline may be compromised in that area.<\/p>\n

4. Revert to a flip phone<\/h3>\n

This is a \u201cfinal solution\u201d. If you find it hard to do all of the above, then you can return back to a flip phone (pejoratively known as a \u201cdumb phone<\/a>\u201d).<\/p>\n

Flip phones contain no shiny apps, no ability to rapidly connect to the Internet, no ability to play high fidelity games.<\/p>\n

Flip phones are also workhorses. Their battery life is longer than the average smartphone.<\/p>\n

Besides, you won’t be alone. Millions of people around the world still use flip phones and they function perfectly fine.<\/p>\n

To wrap this up, it’s quite clear that cellphone and smartphone technology has changed our landscape to a significant degree.<\/p>\n

As we progress further into the 21st century, the numbers of people who have a smartphone addiction will increase.<\/p>\n

You don’t have to be one of them. By using the techniques here, you can break your dependency on smartphones and get on the high road to high achievement.<\/p>\n

It’s a much better path to take and your future self will thank you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The modern world has brought to us an unparalleled quality of life that our ancestors could have never dreamed of. Instantaneous communication with other people, information at the click of a button, and on-demand movies are just a few of … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12362,"featured_media":53274,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[6],"tags":[6078,2057,66,4629,6318],"yoast_head":"\nFour Tips To Ditch Your Smartphone Addiction for Good<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Do you find yourself constantly fiddling with your smartphone? You may have a smartphone addiction. 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