If there is one thing that distracts us more than just about anything else these days, it’s our smart phones. The amount of time we spend on our devices, the incessant “dings” and notifications have become a nuisance, mind numbing, and quite frankly rather nauseating. (You may not believe this, but I’m not kidding.) As I typed the word “dings” my phone literally broke the silence and my concentration with a loud notification bell from an app letting me know that my credit score just went up by a point. Wow, earth shattering news huh? NOT!) I thought I had notifications turned off, which is usually my practice, especially evenings and weekends…(Pause)  

Ok, I’m back now. Seriously, I stopped writing this post for several minutes, turned down my volume, and turned off all my notifications. I also did something else during this pause. My phone has a leather cover with a magnetic clasp. So, to get at my phone, I must open the clasp and cover and enter my pin access number or fingerprint biometrics to unlock it. I intentionally ordered this case to make it more inconvenient to constantly check my phone. Well, let’s try something else.  So, during my “timeout” I took out a ballpoint pen, remember those things? They are writing instruments used to document your thoughts on paper. On the front of the leather cover I wrote in bold block letters, “Why am I opening this cover?”    

It’s no secret that for millions upon millions of users, technology and smart phones are controlling them instead of the other way around. Social engineers, app developers and those running social media platforms, have an agenda and by design, have one thing in mind. They want your time and attention. They want access to us and our PI (personal information). By carefully curating content that appeals to us, and actively tracking everything from keystrokes, search history, and sites we visit, they can then sell our information to attract advertisers. Yup, far too often the endgame is money.

Yes, these devices that we carry in our pockets can provide incredibly powerful, helpful and wonderful benefits for our lives. But let’s not kid ourselves, they can and do also cause a lot of stress, distress, and harm.

We can all do little hacks like purchasing phone covers, turning off notifications, gray scaling or other practical disciplines reminding us to reduce the excessive number of times we reach for our phones each day.

However, maybe I’m on to something by writing in ink on my case “Why am I opening this cover?”  Perhaps by answering this question each time I reach for my device, I can get a better handle on what is moving or motivating me to open it. What’s going on in my mind and soul that makes this so compelling, compulsive, and controlling, demanding my attention and making the decision to act?  Answering those questions will better get to the root of the why, allowing me to go below the surface, and address areas of life needing attention.

Ask yourself, “Do I really want to become like the dogs in Pavlov’s experiment where my mouth salivates at the sound of the bell. Am I going to allow myself to be managed and manipulated, trained by social engineers, and continue to salivate every time the bell rings?

I am very seriously considering using my smart phone only for when I truly need it, and investing in a flip phone, often referred to as a “dumb phone” that only allows for calls and texts. Imagine that, using a phone to talk to another person.

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