How much time do you spend on a screen?

Do you feel tired, exhausted, have troubles to sleep or similar? When was the last time you checked how much time you spend on a screen?

We focus on a lot of health aspects and I know many of us have the intention to be more present in the moment. Still we seem to “lose” a lot of time (and health) disconnected from the “real world”, in the “digital world”. Motivated by different studies, I checked my personal daily screen consume about 10 days ago, and I was honestly shocked by the result.

I realized that, over the last weeks, I had reached a daily screen consume of more than 10 hours from Monday to Friday and 5 hours on the weekends, between my laptop and mobile. I don’t own a TV. That’s 60 hours on a screen in one week. Of course, the screen consume varies if your job involves a screen or not, and in my case it does, but for me, personally, that’s no excuse. It’s a reason to focus even more on this topic.
I took a moment and asked myself: What? How? Why? Without judging.
The only thing that matters is to be(come) aware.
The only questions that matter are: Do I want to change this? What can I do to change it?

In my personal case, my decision was clear, and I took my first action immediately. I spent an extended weekend close to the beach with friends and used the time for a digital detox: I left my laptop at home, set my social media apps to 1 minute per day, all other communication tools to 30 minutes per day (in total).
I took a few pics but other than that, I hardly used my phone. It showed -95% of screen activity compared to the weeks before.
The result: 4 amazing days without digital stimulation. I felt very present with my friends and surroundings.

These are my personal take-aways and changes I’ve made, to spend less time on a screen (and I already see a huge improvement):

1. I check my daily phone and laptop consume regularly and have a clearer overview of my screen times,
   knowing on what days it increases, and on what days I can balance it out.
2. I set stricter daily time limits for all communication channels and especially the apps I wasn’t aware I was using so much.
3. I quit the notifications of several apps on my phone and decided on dedicated time slots for the ones I also use on my laptop,
   in order to stop checking them (additionally) on my phone.
4. I unsubscribed from all newsletters I receive by E-Mail that I don’t read anyways (= less new E-Mails coming in).
5. I focus on more “screen-free time”, both for my laptop and phone, especially in my breaks and on the weekends.
6. This all means an increased time investment in “screen-free activities” like walking, observing, reading, writing, handicrafts, sports, cooking, eating,… it means more mindful breaks and slow living and, as said before: more presence with yourself an everyone around.

These are my personal observations but I am really curious to hear yours, in case you would like to share them in the comments.

I would love it if this article motivates you to check and become aware of your personal, daily screen consume. Without judgement.
Then you can decide, which steps you would like to take.